Belle Isle Park

The 982-acre island located in the Detroit River received great attention from Frederick Law Olmsted over the two years he was involved in creating a park plan. In 1882 he was hired by the City of Detroit to transform the 982 acres into a recreational landscape for local residents. Olmsted’s plan called for leaving the island in its natural wild state, spare for a few meadows that were to be maintained by pasturage. To deal with the issue of drainage, he proposed that “channels should be opened by means of which currents would flow through several deeper pools…These channels, or rigolettes, should be so laid out as to serve as minor surface-drains for which there would otherwise be insufficient fall”. Plan 00661-27 shows a proposed ferry dock and promenade on the west end of the island to encourage boating activities. Deemed too complex and expensive, the idea was ultimately rejected by the park commissioners. Protective of his design and perhaps anticipating pushback, of which he would receive plenty, Olmsted wrote to the Park Commissioners after his report was published suggesting they be active in “cultivating a public opinion favorable to a well-considered plan”. After defending his work for two years, most of Olmsted’s designs were dismissed by the city, with only a single-story gallery being constructed. Correspondence from the late 1880s reveals Olmsted’s dissatisfaction and frustration with the way he was treated, artistically and financially.

[The Park for Detroit_1882-11_Frederick Law Olmsted_Papers of FLOP-v.8-p.87] [Frederick Law Olmsted to Park Comissioners_1882-12-01_LOC-FLOP-SF-R46-Belle Isle-im.67&68]