Goodale Park is a public park in the

Victorian Village Victorian Village is a neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, United States, north and near west of Downtown Columbus, Ohio, downtown. It is an established neighborhood built when a streetcar line first ran along Neil Avenue around 1900 with a fair numbe ...

area of

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. It was donated to the city in 1851 by

Lincoln Goodale Lincoln Goodale (February 25, 1782–1868) was the first doctor to live in Columbus, Ohio, United States. He was a great benefactor to the city and his legacy includes a large parcel of land that today is known as Goodale Park. His likeness in t ...

. For a few months during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, it was a staging area for Union troops known as Camp Jackson. ComFest, a large, free, multi-day, non-corporate, music and arts annual festival, is held in the park in June. Located immediately north of downtown Columbus, the park is bordered by Goodale Street on the South, Park Street on the East, Buttles Avenue on the North, and Dennison Avenue on the West. Goodale Park features a pond, gazebo, tennis courts, a basketball court, bathrooms, and more. The park contributes to the Near Northside Historic District, 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 ...

History

Early history

The 37-acre site was donated by Dr.

on July 14, 1851, to be used as a public park or pleasure resort. He had originally purchased the property for railroads to gain access to the city. When the park opened in 1852 featuring a wooded grove of trees, it was the second largest municipal park in the country, the first at the time being

Boston Common The Boston Common (also known as the Common) is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street (139 Tremont St.), Park Street, Beacon ...

Camp Jackson during the Civil War

From April to June 1861, the park was used as a staging area for new recruits for the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

at the request of three city councilmen. The camp started in April when Governor William Dennison, at the urging of

President Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

, called on Ohio communities to revive their

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

s and send them to Columbus. "A high picket fence is erected around the camp, and the curious public mills around all day. Few visitors are allowed in. There are reports that the troops eat very well while in the camp." The Governor's Guards, a corps of soldiers stationed at the camp, marched through Columbus on a Saturday morning to urge the local people to show their patriotism and enlist in the cause. A Captain Morrow was particularly successful: his company grew so large from new recruits that he started a second company, and was nearly able to fill that one as well. "Any young man interested in enlisting in this company, "B" of the 3rd Regiment, is told to call at Camp Jackson at an early hour." In June, Camp Jackson's military operations are transferred to

Camp Chase Camp Chase was a military staging and training camp established in Columbus, Ohio in May 1861 after the start of the American Civil War. It also included a large Union-operated prison camp for Confederate prisoners during the American Civil War ...

, west of Columbus, and Camp Jackson reverts to being a public park. During its peak, about 8,000 troops were stationed at the camp. Among the officers stationed at the camp were two future presidents:

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governor ...

and

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

Post-Civil War

After the Civil War, the park was under construction until 1875 for the creation of a carriage drive, landscaping inspired by

Andrew Jackson Downing Andrew Jackson Downing (October 31, 1815 – July 28, 1852) was an American landscape designer, horticulturist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival in the United States, and editor of ''The Horticulturist'' magazine (1846–5 ...

, and a lake house. Starting in 1874 during construction, the park exhibited various animals to draw children and their guardians to the park. In 1888, a bronze bust, the

Lincoln Goodale Monument The Lincoln Goodale Monument (also known as ''Dr. Lincoln Goodale'', the Goodale Monument, ''Lincoln Goodale'', and ''Memorial to Lincoln Goodale, M.D.''), is an 1888 bust depicting the physician of the same name, installed in Columbus, Ohio's G ...

, was erected in the park commemorating Dr. Goodale's gift to the city. From 1900 to the 1950s, the park faced multiple challenges for development, including a site for Memorial Hall, a Carneige Library, a branch library, and a bus garage. In July 1910, the park once again hosted troops when the

Ohio National Guard The Ohio National Guard comprises the Ohio Army National Guard and the Ohio Air National Guard. The commander-in-chief of the Ohio Army National Guard is the governor of the U.S. state of Ohio. If the Ohio Army National Guard is called to fede ...

was called in to quell a streetcar strike when it looked to turn violent. The troops stayed for two weeks and after their departure, the worst violence of the strike erupted. In the 1970s and 1980s, economic downturn negatively affected the park, making it unsafe and unmaintained. In the mid-1980s, the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department began installing train tracks in the park (from a former Columbus Zoo train) and neighbors reacted and began organizing to have a say in the park's direction. In 1987, the Friends of Goodale Park was officially formed to maintain and preserve the park. In 2004, they began the restoration of the Goodale Gates, erected during the park's time as Camp Jackson.

Park amenities

Park facilities include ball diamonds, basketball courts, gardens, a gazebo, playground, shelterhouses and tennis courts. The shelterhouse and gazebo both have Victorian-style architecture. The park is home to two Champion Trees: a Chinese catalpa and Smoothleaf elm.

Gallery

File:Columbus, Ohio JJ 47.jpg, Pond and gazebo File:Columbus, OH - Goodale Park fountain.jpg, Fountain File:Columbus, OH - Goodale Park 01.jpg, Arched entranceway File:Flagg monument.jpg, Charles Benton Flagg Memorial

References

External links

Friends of Goodale Park
{{Columbus Recreation and Parks Parks in Columbus, Ohio Protected areas of Franklin County, Ohio Ohio in the American Civil War Historic district contributing properties in Columbus, Ohio National Register of Historic Places in Columbus, Ohio