Denny Park is Seattle's oldest park. Pioneer David Denny gifted the land to the city, first as a cemetery in 1861, and then as a park in 1884. By 1904, the area had become residential, and the park was improved with formally designed planting beds, swings and other play equipment, a sand lot and a play field. The park was also the site of the Denny Grade School from 1884 to 1928. Children were, from the earliest, regular users of the park.
As the downtown area was regarded around 1910, some pioneers demanded that the park remain unchanged, however, access to the park was impossible by car due to the grade and by 1930, the park was flat. Following the re-grade, the park was once again planted in a formal style and the cupola from the old Denny School was placed in the park as an historical marker.
In 1948, over the strenuous objections of the Denny family, a Parks and Recreation building was built within the park to house this growing city department. For several years, before all of the space was required for Parks personnel, the lower level of the new building housed the Washington Society for Crippled Children. By 1964, Parks Department personnel had fully inhabited the building.
Today, Denny Park's formal pathways remain, but the central fountain is no longer a water feature and many of the trees and shrubs planted after the re-grade are past their normal lifespan and do not contribute to the environment. The park is heavily shaded and has no amenities to invite use by children or families. Drug dealers and prostitutes are active in the park both day and night.
A diverse coalition of park supporters called Friends of Denny Park have invested many hours to bring their need for a safe and vital park environment to the attention of the City. This group is working, in partnership with City Departments, to revitalize the park to serve the children, families and other constituents who populate two of Seattle’s fastest growing neighborhood's South Lake Union and Denny Triangle.
Prepared by Kate Mortenson, Friends of Denny Park, March 2006, with information from Seattle Parks and Recreation website and historic park data complied by Don Sherwood (Don Sherwood History Files).
