Louisville’s Olmsted parks are no stranger to tornadoes.
In 1974, a series of tornadoes hit Louisville, uprooting many of Cherokee Park’s original trees. In a matter of minutes, 80% of the park’s 409-acre tree canopy was gone. Cleanup took months; restoration took years. The event served as the catalyst for the creation of the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy.
In the last 50 years, the Conservancy has built a network of partners who, through volunteer efforts and fundraising, have made the city’s extensive park system a landmark destination.
Recently, Chickasaw Park has seen a wide range of projects generously funded. Last year, for instance, the park received $2.5 million in American Rescue Plan funding to rebuild the pond, widen walking paths, add a canoe and kayak launch and more. Olmsted Parks Conservancy is raising funds and planning to restore the lodge and install a pollinator meadow. A new play space was nearly complete, and work was underway on several other projects when a tornado struck West Louisville in the area of the 61 acre park on July 4.
Winds uprooted and split several old trees. A century-old ash tree was so badly damaged that it could not be saved. The fate of the maple on the island at the center of the pond remains uncertain. Worst of all, a giant oak tree toppled over and crashed through the roof of the lodge, the park’s main building.
The park was closed for four days over the July 4 weekend as the roadways were cleared and limbs removed. The loss of old trees for any park is always devastating. But Chickasaw bounced back quickly!
On July 9, the park was ready to welcome Mayor Craig Greenberg and other city officials to cut the ribbon on the Sankofa Sanctuary. The new, natural play area with an Ohio River overlook and climbing wall, was funded by the MSD Community Benefits Program.
Meanwhile, Olmsted Parks Conservancy staff continued work on the first phase of the Butterfly and Bee Pollinator Meadow, an installation that will honor one of Chickasaw Park’s most famous fans, Muhammad Ali.
The West Louisville Tennis Club, which is based in the park and recently hosted a summer tournament, also received exciting news.
Olmsted Parks Conservancy received a grant of $50,000 from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, a National Trust for Historic Preservation program dedicated to preserving important sites in Black history. The funding will go toward educational signage about the park’s history as the only Olmsted-designed park intended to specifically serve the black community during park segregation as well as the historical importance of the Tennis Club. The grant will also support West Louisville Tennis Club programming.
The Club was established in the park for the black community when other tennis clubs in the city were exclusively white. For more than a century, it has focused on serving the underserved and inspiring new generations of tennis players. Each year, they hold a free summer clinic.