History

Meet Prospect Park

Prospect Park was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux after their completion of Manhattan's Central Park. The main attraction of the park includes the 90-acre  Long Meadow; the Picnic House; Litchfield Villa, the pre-existing home of Edwin Clark Litchfield, an early developer of the neighborhood and a former owner of a southern section of the Park.

​

Prospect Park was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux after their completion of Manhattan's Central Park. The main attraction of the park includes the 90-acre Long Meadow; the Picnic House; Litchfield Villa, the pre-existing home of Edwin Clark Litchfield, an early developer of the neighborhood and a former owner of a southern section of the Park.

Prospect Park started out; 17,000 years ago the terminal moraine of the receding Wisconsin Glacier that formed Long Island established a string of hills and kettles in the northern part of the park and a lower-lying outwash plain in the southern part.

​

War Facts:

During the American Revolutionary War, the Park was a site of the Battle of Long Island (aka Battle of Brooklyn). American forces attempted to hold Battle Pass, an opening in the terminal moraine where the old Flatbush Road passed from the villages of Brooklyn to Flatbush. It fell after some of the heaviest fightings in the engagement, and its loss contributed to George Washington's decision to retreat. Even though the Continental Army lost the battle, they were able to hold the British back long enough for Washington's army to escape across the East River to Manhattan.

​

After the War: Planning and construction :

Preserving the Battle Pass area and keeping the lots around the reservoir free of buildings were two reasons for establishing a large park in the area. There are plaques north of the zoo that honor this event. The City of Brooklyn built a reservoir on Prospect Hill in 1856. The original impetus to build Prospect Park stemmed from an April 18, 1859 act of the New York State Legislature, empowering a twelve-member commission to recommend sites for parks in the City of Brooklyn. This was due to Brooklyn becoming the world's first commuter suburb, which eventually became the third largest city in the country after New York and Philadelphia. During this time, concepts concerning public parks gained popularity.