Hagerstown City Park - Museums - Events

The Hagerstown City Park Historic District is significant for its association with an important period in Hagerstown's history and for the architectural character of the district. The district developed in response to a period of unprecedented industrial and commercial growth. By 1914 Hagerstown emerged as the second manufacturing city in Maryland in terms of value of product. The city's population more than quadrupled between 1880 and 1930. During this period of boom, which began about 1890 and continued through the 1920s, numerous additions were made to the town including posh Oak Hill on the north and various working class developments. The industrial buildings in the district further represent the city's industrial growth but also have a direct historical link with the residential section. Many of the residents of the district over time were employed by the industries occupying these buildings. Architecturally, the district buildings include excellent examples of the major architectural styles popular in Hagerstown during the period of significance and collectively exhibit a range of architectural expressions, craftsmanship, and technique of the period. From the point of community planning and development, the park, from which the name of the district is derived, represents an important effort on the part of the city government to enhance the community's quality of life. Designed by George Burnap, a landscape architect from Washington, D.C., the park results from the ambitious conversion of a privately owned marshy area historically used for recreation purposes into a formally designed public urban amenity characterized by a lake with lagoons and islands, picnic and play areas, gardens, and an art museum. City Park is the largest city park and the only one given such formal design.