GOLDEN GATE PARK

Description:
Golden Gate Park is a 1,017-acre urban park in the western section of San Francisco. It stretches 3.5 miles (by .5 miles wide) from the center of the city to the Pacific Ocean. The park consists of expansive forest interspersed by open meadows and linked by a system of curvilinear paths and roads. Numerous gardens, lakes, and recreational features are located throughout the park. The resource is designed as a picturesque park landscape that was influenced by the work of Frederick Law Olmsted Sr. Many of the original features from the period of significance (1871-1943) are still present and the park maintains a high degree of integrity. There are 135 contributing resources. The site was listed at the National level of significance under Criterion C at the national level of significance in the area of landscape architecture as a pioneering example of a large 19th century urban park in the United States. The park is the first major application in the west of Olmsted’s park design principles that combined the picturesque and pastoral schools of landscape design. Golden Gate Park is also successful in integrating significant active recreation facilities within the designed landscape. Earlier “pleasure ground” parks provided primarily passive types of activities such as walking and enjoying nature within the city. With Golden Gate Park, there is a transition to the evolving forms of active recreation. Ball fields, courts, and playgrounds were skillfully located in areas off of the main drives in a way that did not impair the pastoral views of the meadows and changing landscape as one rode along the main drives. Golden Gate Park is the first major park that was created on reclaimed land, as most of the 1,017-acre site was windblown sand dunes, resulting in a landscape transformation that was unprecedented. It was also listed under Criterion A at the local level for the importance of this large urban park in the region’s recreation and social history.

Registration Date: 10/15/2004

Location:
City: San Francisco
County: San Francisco

Directions:
Bounded by Fulton St., Stanyan St., Fell St., Baker St., Oak St., Lincoln Way and The Great Highway

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