Prospect Park
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Prospect Park is a 585 acre (2.1 km˛) public park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn located between Park Slope, Kensington, Windsor Terrace and Flatbush Avenue, Grand Army Plaza and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and seven blocks north east of Green-Wood Cemetery. It is run and operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
The park was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux after they completed Manhattan's Central Park. Attractions include the Long Meadow, a ninety acre (36 ha) meadow thought to be the largest meadow in any U.S. park; the Picnic House which houses offices and a hall that can accommodate parties with up to 175 guests; Litchfield Villa, the historic home of the previous owners of the southern part of Park; Prospect Park Zoo; a large nature conservancy; the only urban Audubon Center & Visitor Center at the Boathouse; Brooklyn's only lake, covering 60 acres (24 ha); the Prospect Park Bandshell that hosts free outdoor concerts in summertime; and various sports and fitness activities including seven baseball fields. There is also a private Quaker cemetery on the grounds of the Park in an area known as Quaker Hill.
History
Originally the terminal moraine and outwash plain of the receding glaciers of the ice age, the area around the Park was the site of the Battle of Long Island during the U.S. Revolutionary War and became known as Battle Pass where the highest point known as Prospect Hill jutted up approximately 200 feet (60 m) from sea level. In the nineteenth century the Park was mostly farm land; the cost of acquiring the Park land by the City of Brooklyn was upwards of $4 million. The actual cost of construction of the Park amounted to more than $5 million. Originally the Park was to straddle Flatbush Avenue and go past the later built Eastern Parkway. Planning of the Park was originally begun before the American Civil War in 1860 but stopped during the war. After the war in 1865 Olmsted and Vaux were hired and Vaux convinced the city that more lands to the east and nearer to Green-Wood Cemetery should be purchased including the area of the park known as Nethermead and the farm land where Prospect Lake was built.
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Recreation
The Prospect Park Women's Softball League has been playing softball games on summer evenings in Prospect Park for over 23 years. Horseback riders from Kensington stables are often seen on paths in the park. Paddleboating is open to the public on the lake. The Bandshell hosts frequent concerts, most notably the Celebrate Brooklyn! Performing Arts Festival, a series of summer concerts founded in 1979.
The Prospect Park baseball fields are spanning 9th-15th street in the park. There are seven fields. 2 are major league sized fields used for the older age groups. The other 5 are slightly smaller, for younger children; typically 8-12 year olds. The youngest children play on the grass.
Address
Prospect Park Alliance
95 Prospect Park West
Brooklyn, NY 11215
(718) 965-8951
Directions
By Subway
F train at 7th Ave. station, 15th St./Prospect Park station and Fort Hamilton Parkway station.
2 or 3 train at Grand Army Plaza station.
Q train at Parkside Ave. station and Prospect Park station.
S train at Prospect Park station.
B train at Prospect Park station.
By Bus
B41 or B71 along Flatbush Ave. to Grand Army Plaza or Ocean Ave.
B69 along Prospect Park West.
B75 along 9th St. to Prospect Park West.
B68 along Coney Island Ave./Prospect Park Southwest to Park Circle
or Bartel-Pritchard Circle.
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