Marion Park is a public park named after Revolutionary War leader

Francis Marion Brigadier-General Francis Marion ( 1732 – February 27, 1795), also known as the Swamp Fox, was an American military officer, planter and politician who served during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. During the Ameri ...

also known as ''The Swamp Fox''. It is located at 4th Street, 6th Street, and E Street,

Southeast, Washington, D.C. Southeast (SE or S.E.) is the southeastern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and is located south of East Capitol Street and east of South Capitol Street. It includes the Capitol Hill and Anacostia neighborhoods, ...

, in the

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...

neighborhood. Locally, it is known informally as Turtle Park because of the large cement turtle in its playground.

History

Marion Park was first established as open ground, dating back to the original plans for the city created by

Pierre L'Enfant Pierre "Peter" Charles L'Enfant (; August 2, 1754June 14, 1825) was a French-American military engineer who designed the basic plan for Washington, D.C. (capital city of the United States) known today as the L'Enfant Plan (1791). Early life an ...

in 1791. Also included in updated plans from

Andrew Ellicott Andrew Ellicott (January 24, 1754 – August 28, 1820) was an American land surveyor who helped map many of the territories west of the Appalachians, surveyed the boundaries of the District of Columbia, continued and completed Pierre (Pete ...

, this reservation has served continuously as a park since its first improvements in 1885. It is one of the larger parks in the Capitol Hill area. In 1764 the tract of land was known as Houp's Addition, and was owned by Jonathan Slater. In 1791, Mr. Slater sold the tract to William Prout, who then had to turn over the land to the federal government soon after. Improvements were made by 1886 which gave the park an ornamental elegance in the developing neighborhood. A large vase in the center of the park was filled with tropical flowers every summer. This "Large Hilton Iron Vase" was used to direct the flow of traffic through the park through the carriage paths. In 1963, the vase was removed, and the traffic patterns were redirected outside of the boundaries of Marion Park. A statue to Francis Marion was authorized on May 8, 2008. However it was met with opposition by some local residents. It was argued that they were not consulted by the federal government on the placement of the statue in a DC park. In addition the figure of Francis Marion is controversial as he fought Native Americans and was a slave owner.

Uses

The park has a playground, and is a popular place to bring

dogs The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

References

External links

Photo of Marion ParkMarion Park on Wikimapia
{{Usgovtext Parks in Washington, D.C. Urban public parks Capitol Hill