City and Cultural Parks
The land on which Balboa Park, in San Diego, California, is located was originally set aside for public use in 1835, when the area was still under Mexican rule. Balboa Park later became a prime example of an urban cultural park, covering 1,200 acres and containing gardens, promenades, musical and theatrical venues, museums, and the San Diego Zoo. Courtesy of the University of Utah - J. Willard Marriott Library via Mountain West Digital Library.
Somewhat ironically, parks we now think of as central or city parks were often originally called "rural" or "country" parks. Originally established on the edges of urban areas in the late 1800s or early 1900s, these were large regional parks or pleasure grounds generally built on what were then the outer reaches of town, where extensive swaths of undeveloped land were still available and reasonably affordable.
Responding to concerns about urbanization and industrialization, park designers often strove to replicate a rural setting to provide an opportunity for park users living far away from the country to have a restorative retreat from the city. Thus groves of trees, rolling meadows, lakes and meandering paths were common features.
As the cities grew to encompass the parks that had once been somewhat remote, and as park users made their interests and preferences known, social and cultural attractions were often added. Zoos, formal gardens, music pavilions, museums, and theatrical venues were all features of what became known as cultural parks.
New York's Central Park was the seminal example of a city park and was admired and emulated by other cities around the nation.
