Abraham Lincoln by Bryant Baker, Buffalo NY

Statue of David in Delaware Park, Buffalo

Delaware Park–Front Park System is a historic

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

system and national

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

in the northern and western sections of Buffalo in

Erie County, New York Erie County is a county along the shore of Lake Erie in western New York State. As of the 2020 census, the population was 954,236. The county seat is Buffalo, which makes up about 28% of the county's population. Both the county and Lake Erie w ...

. The park system was designed by

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co- ...

and

Calvert Vaux Calvert Vaux (; December 20, 1824 – November 19, 1895) was an English-American architect and landscape designer, best known as the co-designer, along with his protégé and junior partner Frederick Law Olmsted, of what would become New York Ci ...

and developed between 1868 and 1876. The park system was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1982.

Components

The Delaware Park–Front Park System encompasses the following parts: ''See also:'' ''and''

Delaware Park

The centerpiece of the

Buffalo, New York parks system Many of the public parks and parkways system of Buffalo, New York were originally designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux between 1868 and 1896. They were inspired in large part by the parkland, boulevards, and squares of Paris, Franc ...

and located in the North Buffalo neighborhood. The park was named simply ''The Park'' by Olmsted; it was later renamed Delaware Park because of its proximity to Delaware Avenue, Buffalo's mansion row. It is divided into two areas: the "Meadow Park" on the east and the "Water Park", with what was originally a lake ("Gala Water"), on the west. The ravine and picnic grove on the south side of the lake comprise a subdivision of the latter. A widening of

Scajaquada Creek Scajaquada Creek ( ) is a stream in Erie County, New York, United States. The name is derived from Philip Kenjockety, a Native American described as the oldest resident of the region upon his death in 1808. The creek lends its name to the Scaj ...

, which flows westward through the park, is called Hoyt Lake (originally Mirror Lake). The lake was a feature during the

Pan-American Exposition The Pan-American Exposition was a World's Fair held in Buffalo, New York, United States, from May 1 through November 2, 1901. The fair occupied of land on the western edge of what is now Delaware Park, extending from Delaware Avenue to Elmwood A ...

. The Scajaquada Expressway bisects the park west to east. The

Albright-Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum at 1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York, in Delaware Park. the museum's Elmwood Avenue campus is temporarily closed for construction. It hosted e ...

occupies the park's western edge, overlooking Hoyt Lake, and the

Buffalo History Museum The Buffalo History Museum (founded as the Buffalo Historical Society, and later named the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society) is located at 1 Museum Court (formerly 25 Nottingham Court) in Buffalo, New York, just east of Elmwood Avenue and ...

is situated on its northern edge, overlooking Scajaquada Creek. The park is home to

Shakespeare in Delaware Park Shakespeare in Delaware Park is one of the largest free outdoor Shakespeare festivals in the country which takes place during summer months in Delaware Park located in the city of Buffalo, New York. The festival attracts about 40,000 audience memb ...

, a summer tradition since the mid-1970s, and the second largest free outdoor Shakespeare festival in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(after

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

's). It is also the location of the Buffalo Zoo on the east side of Meadow Park. The park also has a golf course, four baseball diamonds, cross country running, tennis courts, and a few soccer fields. Contributing structures are: Caretakers Cottage (1889); Lincoln Parkway Bridge (1900), designed by Green and Wicks; Rose Garden Pergola (1912); Stone Bridge (ca. 1887), the only remaining structure from the original Olmsted plan; Parkside Lodge (1914); Rumsey Shelter House (1900); Main Zoo Building (1935-1940); Shelter House (ca. 1900); and Elephant House (ca. 1912). Located north of the park are the

Parkside East Historic District Parkside East Historic District is a national historic district located at Buffalo in Erie County, New York. The district is architecturally and historically significant for its association with the 1876 Parks and Parkways Plan for the city of ...

and

Parkside West Historic District Parkside West Historic District is a national historic district located at Buffalo in Erie County, New York. The district is architecturally and historically significant for its association with the 1876 Parks and Parkways Plan for the city o ...

and to the south are the

Elmwood Historic District–East Elmwood Historic District–East is a national historic district located at Buffalo, Erie County, New York. The district encompasses 2,405 contributing buildings, 31 contributing structures, and 14 contributing objects in the Elmwood Village ...

and

Elmwood Historic District–West Elmwood Historic District–West is a national historic district located at Buffalo, Erie County, New York. The district encompasses 1,971 contributing buildings, 4 contributing structures, and 13 contributing objects in the Elmwood Village n ...

, all listed on the

Statue of David

The park is also home to a noted replica of Michelangelo's David. The statue was dedicated in 1903, one of only a few made directly from the original sculpture but included a fig leaf which was not present in the original. When the statue was rededicated in 2013, it was given a new plaque which corrected the spelling of the artist name from Michael Angelo to Michelangelo.

Gates Circle

Originally Chapin Place, a plot measuring at the intersection of Delaware Avenue, Lafayette Avenue, and Chapin Parkway. The circle's center contains a monumental sunken

fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or Spring (hydrology), spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. ...

constructed in 1904.

Chapin Parkway

Connects Gates Circle and Soldier's Place; in length.

Soldier's Place

Consists of an area in diameter at the juncture of Bidwell Parkway, Lincoln Parkway, Bird Avenue, and Chapin Parkway.

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

William R. Heath House The William R. Heath House was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, built from 1903 to 1905, and is located at 76 Delaware Park-Front Park System, Soldiers Place in Buffalo, New York. It is built in the Prairie School architectural style. It is a con ...

(1904) overlooks the circle at Bird Avenue.

Lincoln Parkway

A , thoroughfare, connecting Soldier's Place to Delaware Park; in length.

Bidwell Parkway

A , thoroughfare, connecting Colonial Circle to Soldier's Place; in length. At its intersection with Soldier's Place is a large bronze sculpture by Larry Griffiths titled ''Birds in Flight'' (1980).

Colonial Circle

Formerly Bidwell Place; a plot, , at the intersection of Richmond Avenue, Bidwell Parkway, and Lafayette Avenue. The circle's center contains an equestrian statue of General

Daniel D. Bidwell Daniel Davidson Bidwell (August 12, 1819 – October 19, 1864) was a civic leader in Buffalo, New York, before the outbreak of the American Civil War. He enlisted early in the war and then was appointed Colonel (United States), colonel of a r ...

Richmond Avenue

Originally The Avenue; connects Symphony Circle to Colonial Circle; wide and in length. It traverses Ferry Circle at West Ferry Street.

Ferry Circle

A circle at the intersection of West Ferry Street, Massachusetts Street, and Richmond Avenue.

Symphony Circle

Originally known as just The Circle. A , circle at the juncture of Porter Avenue with Richmond Avenue, North Street, Pennsylvania Street, and Wadsworth Street. Due south of the circle lies First Presbyterian Church, Buffalo's oldest congregation.

Kleinhans Music Hall Kleinhans Music Hall is a concert venue located on Symphony Circle in Buffalo, New York. The hall "is renowned for its acoustical excellence and graceful architecture." Kleinhans is currently the home of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, a regu ...

is located on the southeast side of the circle; it was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1989. The circle is located within the Allentown Historic District.

Porter Avenue

A former city street incorporated into the parks system; connects Symphony Circle to Columbus Park and Front Park.

Columbus Park

Formerly Prospect Park; located at the intersection of Niagara Street and Porter Avenue; the site of the

Connecticut Street Armory Connecticut Street Armory, also known as the 74th Regimental Armory, is a historic National Guard armory building located at Buffalo in Erie County, New York. It is sited at Columbus Park. It is a massive castle-like structure built in 1899 of ...

. The park is located adjacent to

D'Youville College D'Youville University (D'Youville or DYU) is a private university in Buffalo, New York. It was founded as D'Youville College in 1908 and named by the Grey Nuns after the patroness saint Marie-Marguerite d'Youville. As of Fall 2020 D'Youville Co ...

and is home to a branch of the

Buffalo & Erie County Public Library The Buffalo & Erie County Public Library is located on Lafayette Square, Buffalo, New York. The current facility, designed by Kideney Architects and built in 1964, replaced the original Cyrus Eidlitz Buffalo Public Library Building dedicated i ...

. The Shelter House (ca. 1908) is a contributing structure.

Front Park

Formerly The Front; a park located at the beginning of the

Niagara River The Niagara River () is a river that flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the province of Ontario in Canada (on the west) and the state of New York (state), New York in the United States (on the east) ...

and overlooking

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...

. The park is home to the U.S. entrance to the

Peace Bridge The Peace Bridge is an international bridge between Canada and the United States at the east end of Lake Erie at the source of the Niagara River, about upriver of Niagara Falls. It connects Buffalo, New York, in the United States to Fort Erie ...

, erected in 1927 on the site of the former

Fort Porter Fort Porter was constructed between 1841 and 1844 at Buffalo in Erie County, New York, and named for General Peter Buell Porter. The site was bounded by Porter Avenue, Busti Avenue and the Erie Barge Canal. It was initially a square masonry two-s ...

, and includes baseball diamonds, large open playing fields, and tennis courts. The park contains a monument to Commodore

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...

. The Picnic Shelter (ca. 1900) is a contributing structure.

References

External links

Delaware Park
- Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy
Olmsted Parks in Buffalo
from Stanton M. Broderick
Buffalo as an Architectural Museum, "Municipal Parks and City Planning: Frederick Law Olmsted's Buffalo Park and Parkway System,"
by Francis R. Kowsky, Reprinted with permission from the ''Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians'', March 1987.
The_Best_Planned_City_An_online_film_about_Frederick_Law_Olmsted
_and_the_Buffalo_Park_System.html" ;"title="Frederick Law Olmsted">The Best Planned City An online film about Frederick Law Olmsted
and the Buffalo Park System">Frederick Law Olmsted">The Best Planned City An online film about Frederick Law Olmsted
and the Buffalo Park Systembr>Short video of the Bidwell ParkwayNational Archives Catalog
- National Archives record for Delaware Park - Front Park System {{DEFAULTSORT:Delaware Park-Front Park System Geography of Buffalo, New York Baseball venues in New York (state) Cross country running courses in New York (state) Golf clubs and courses in New York (state) Soccer venues in New York (state) Tennis venues in New York (state) Tourist attractions in Buffalo, New York Parks in Erie County, New York Historic districts in Buffalo, New York Frederick Law Olmsted works Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) National Register of Historic Places in Buffalo, New York