Volunteer Park (Seattle) Self-Guided Walking Tour

  • By Jennifer Ott
  • Posted 2/03/2025
  • HistoryLink.org Essay 23178
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Volunteer Park was designed by John Charles Olmsted, who developed Seattle’s park and boulevard system in 1903. It includes neighborhood parks, playfields boulevards and parkways, and large parks, such as Woodland Park, Seward Park, and, of course, Volunteer Park. Volunteer Park is the crown jewel of Seattle’s Olmsted park and boulevard system. Today, it is the most developed and intact Olmsted-designed park in Seattle. Olmsted completed a plan for the park in 1904 and made some revisions for a 1909 plan. Construction of the park according to that plan was completed between 1909 and 1912. Since then, it has been one of Seattle’s favorite outdoor destinations and it has evolved with the addition of new buildings, changes to structures and facilities, and the addition of sculptures and memorials.

To take this walking tour, visit HistoryLink.Tours.


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