Liberty Park is a popular public urban park in

Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

. It is the city's second-largest public park, at , being surpassed only by

Sugar House Park Sugar House Park, also known as Sugarhouse Park, is located between I-80, 2100 South, 1300 East, and 1700 East in the Sugar House neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The park is at the heart of the Sugar House neighborhood. I ...

which has . The park features a pond with two islands, and is also the location of Tracy Aviary. The park is 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 ...

(NRHP) and it includes the Isaac Chase Mill, which is also NRHP-listed. The park is prominently featured in all seasons of the Disney Channel original series ''

Andi Mack ''Andi Mack'' is an American family comedy-drama television series created by Terri Minsky that premiered on Disney Channel on April 7, 2017. It ran for three seasons and 57 episodes, concluding on July 26, 2019. The series stars Peyton Elizabe ...

'', however, it is never mentioned by name.

Facilities

Public facilities include playgrounds, restrooms, bowery,

concession stand A concession stand (American English, Canadian English), snack kiosk or snack bar (British English, Irish English) is a place where patrons can purchase snacks or food at a cinema, amusement park, zoo, aquarium, circus, fair, stadium, beach, swim ...

, children's play areas, picnic areas, large grassy areas, horseshoe pits, a swimming pool, basketball courts, volleyball courts, tennis courts,

bocce (, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to British bowls and French , with a common ancestry from ancien ...

ball courts, a 1.5-mile woodchip jogging path, a 1.42-mile paved jogging path, seasonal amusement rides and a

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...

. Other seasonal activities and public facilities include paddle boats, recreational games, and festivals. It is a popular jogging, rollerblading and cycling location. Liberty Park is a popular place to sit and watch Salt Lake City's

Pioneer Day Pioneer Day is an official holiday celebrated on July 24 in the American state of Utah, with some celebrations taking place in regions of surrounding states originally settled by Mormon pioneers. It commemorates the entry of Brigham Young and ...

fireworks display, which go off in the park across the street, on the 24th of July. Large crowds gather in the park on Sundays during the spring, summer, and early fall for

drum circles The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

that last all day. An assortment of people, pets (primarily dogs), musical instruments and dance styles merge every Sunday at the park. A sculpture/fountain models the

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

and its canyon

tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage b ...

. In the summertime children can play in the water fountain. During the COVID-19 pandemic, most facilities temporarily closed. This included playgrounds, volleyball courts, Chase Home, and Tracy Aviary. However, it was extremely popular for people walking, biking, and spending time outdoors.

NRHP listing

The entire of the park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as Liberty Park.Liberty Park
/ref> It was established in 1881 upon purchase from the estate of

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...

. It is significant as "Utah's best example of the 'central park'", following example of New York City's

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

in the general reform movement that represented. and Several historic buildings and markers are located throughout the park.

Isaac Chase Mill

The Isaac Chase Mill is located in the northeast corner of Tracy Aviary, off 6th East. Built in 1852, the mill is the oldest commercial building still standing in Utah. It was listed on the U.S.

in 1970. The mill was designed by architect

William Weeks William Weeks (March 11, 1813 – March 8, 1900), was the first church architect of the Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints), Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and is best known as the architect of the Nauvoo Temple. Weeks was the son ...

. and

Chase Home

The

Chase Home Museum of Utah Folk Arts The Chase Home Museum of Utah Folk Arts is operated by the Utah Division of Arts & Museums, and has been the permanent home of the Utah State Folk Arts Collection since 1987 and is the only museum in the United States that is dedicated to displayi ...

is located in the historic two-story adobe house of Isaac Chase. Admission to the museum is free. The Chase home is operated by the Utah Division of Arts & Museums. It is the permanent home of the State Folk Arts Collection since 1987 and over 200,000 visitors have experienced its free programs. It has become the place where traditional artists from Utah's ethnic, native, occupational and rural communities share their

crafts A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

, and

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

with their own communities, their fellow Utahns, and with visitors from around the world. In addition to

exhibits An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibition ...

and

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

, the Chase Home contains a large

archive An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

of recordings and photographs that document Utah's traditional

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

Tracy Aviary

Tracy Aviary is located on of land in Liberty Park. A Salt Lake City banker Russell Lord Tracy founded Tracy Aviary when he donated his private bird collection to Salt Lake City and its children. Open to the public since 1938, Tracy Aviary maintains a collection of approximately 400 birds representing about 135 species. Several of those bird species participate in their Species Survival Plan. The SSP is a breeding program that promotes genetic diversity in the captive animal populations. The Tracy Aviary is also an AZA accredited facility, and it is one of two free standing aviaries in the nation.

Exhibits

Destination Argentina

South American Pavilion

Owl Forest

Kenncott Wetland Immersion

Pelican Pond

King of the Andes

Treasures of the Rainforest

History

In 1860 the land became the property of

, who planted varieties of mulberry, cottonwood and other trees. In pioneer days it was known as Mill Farm, Forest Park and Locust Patch. In 1881, Salt Lake City purchased the land from the Young estate. Also in 1881 the city held a public competition for the park's landscape design.

Joseph Don Carlos Young Joseph Don Carlos Young (May 6, 1855 – October 19, 1938) was an American architect and the Church Architect for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1887 until 1893. In 1893, the office of Church Architect was disso ...

, Utah's first academically trained architect and a son of Brigham Young, won the competition which included a $100 premium. On June 17, 1882 the 80 acres rectangular parcel was introduced as a recreational area and officially named Liberty Park. A city zoo once operated within the park, but was relocated and became the

Hogle Zoo Utah's Hogle Zoo is a zoo located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It houses animals from diverse ecosystems. It is located at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. Hogle (pronounced "ho-gul") is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariu ...

in 1931. In 1938 the Tracy Aviary opened. Many of the park's trees were toppled by the

2020 Utah windstorm The 2020 Utah windstorm was a hurricane-force windstorm that struck the U.S. state of Utah in the early morning of September 8, 2020. It is estimated that the windstorm had reached a 12 rating on the beaufort scale. Damages Nearly 200,000 home ...

Red Butte Creek oil spill

In June 2010, an estimated 20,000 gallons of oil spilled into the Red Butte Creek from a

Chevron Corporation Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California (shortened to Socal or CalSo), it is headquartered in S ...

pipeline. The spill prompted the closure of Liberty Park as oil spread to the nearby

. 150 to 200 birds, many of them

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...

, came in contact with the oil and were taken to

to be cleaned. Officials have advised residents that humans and animals should avoid water access points along Liberty Park, the Jordan River and Red Butte Canyon.Salt Lake City officials, Chevron crews managing severe oil spill.
''The Baltimore Sun.'' June 13, 2010.

Images

File:Chase Home Salt Lake City Utah.jpeg, Chase Home Museum of Utah Folk Arts File:Liberty Lake.jpg, Liberty Lake File:Liberty Park.jpg, 900 South Entrance File:Wi fi in Liberty park.jpg, Free Wi-Fi in the park File:WagonTrn.jpg, Re-enactment of

Mormon pioneers The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter Day Saints, who migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the Midwest to the S ...

in the 1912

Parade in Liberty Park File:Isaac Chase Mill.jpg, Isaac Chase Mill, August 1968

References

External links

Liberty Park official website

Tracy Aviary official website
* {{Zoos of Utah Aviaries Parks in Salt Lake City Urban public parks Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Utah Amusement parks in Utah 1882 establishments in Utah Territory Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Utah National Register of Historic Places in Salt Lake City