Volunteer Park

Description:

• Built between 1904 and 1912, this park displays the Olmsted brothers' late-Victorian urban style of park design. Vistas of rolling lawns, carefully clumped shrubbery, tree-lined drives and carp ponds almost make you feel like you're strolling with top hat and cane in hand. The Kew Gardens-style glass conservatory, filled with humid tropical and arid desert environments, is free to all. Also visit the Seattle Asian Art Museum. Outside the museum sits Isamu Noguchi's stone sculpture "Black Sun," beloved of clambering children and tourists appreciative of its view of the Space Needle across the park's reservoir. At the southern end of the park stands a 75-foot brick water tower with a spiraling staircase and a 360-degree view of the Seattle area, from the Olympics to the Cascades. The view is a bit obstructed by the bars on the windows, but it's lovely in late afternoon sunlight. The park's name commemorates Seattleites who volunteered for the Spanish-American War.
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