Forest Park (Springfield, Massachusetts)

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Forest Park is located in Springfield, Massachusetts. At 735 acres, it is one of the United States' largest urban parks. Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted - the designer of New York City's Central Park - in 1893, Forest Park features many daily and seasonal attractions.

The Zoo at Forest Park, although small, is well-kept, and features an extensive collection of exotic animals (e.g. elephants, leopards, and giraffes.) Additionally, Forest Park features 38 tennis courts, numerous playgrounds, basketball courts, baseball diamonds, bocce courts, lawn bowling greens, fishing and paddle-boating on the 31-acre Porter Lake, a formal rose garden, an aquatic park, Victorian promenades and water gardens, tree groves, dozens of walking and hiking trails, sculptures, and The Barney Carriage House - a restaurant and reception center.

Children's camps take place in Forest Park during the summer. During the holiday season, the park features the nationally-renowned Bright Nights light extravaganza - one of the United States' largest and most elaborate lighting shows, which draw visitors from all over from November through January.

Until the 1960s, Forest Park extended to the Connecticut River and included the Barney Mansion - the residence of Everett Hosmer Barney, the man who popularized ice skates and roller-skates during the 1800s. The Barney Mansion was torn down to make way for Interstate 91 -- the much-maligned highway that has separated the City of Springfield from the Connecticut River and the Basketball Hall of Fame.