The ''Parque de la Independencia'' (Independence Park) is a large public
park
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...
in
Rosario
Rosario () is the largest city in the central Argentine province of Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous city in the country, and is also the most ...
, . It is located near the geographical center of the city, its limits defined by Moreno Street and three important avenues:
Pellegrini Avenue,
Ovidio Lagos Avenue, and
27 de Febrero Boulevard. It has a surface area of .
It includes a number of attractions:
* The ''Rosedal'' (Rose Garden), finished in 1915, with several species of
rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be e ...
s, as well as sculptures and fountains.
* The French Garden, built in 1942, with many flower arrangements and a large marble fountain.
* The Calendar, where every evening since 1946 gardeners re-arrange the flowers to show the date written on the ground.
* An area reserved for fairs, initially intended for agricultural expositions, then also industry and commerce.
* The former Rosario Jockey Club's horsetrack.
* The
Museum of the City, opened in 1902, initially the School of Gardener Apprentices.
* The Jorge Newbery Municipal Stadium, started in 1925, the first state-funded sports venue for public use in the country. It hosted the
2005 South American Junior Championships in Athletics.
* The Patinódromo Municipal "Roberto Tagliabué" (Municipal Skating Rink), opened for the
1982 Southern Cross Games and host of the 2014
Inline speed skating World Championship.
* The
Juan B. Castagnino Fine Arts Museum, opened in 1937.
* The
Dr. Julio Marc Provincial Historical Museum, opened in 1939.
* The Children's Garden, an area of with amusement and educational facilities.
The park also hosts three sports clubs: ''Club Gimnasia y Esgrima'', ''Club Atlético
Newell's Old Boys'' (one of the main
football teams in the city),
''
Club Atlético Provincial''.
History
The Parque de la Independencia was the first park in the city. Its origin lies in four public squares at the intersection of two then newly opened large boulevards, Santafesino and Argentino (today
Oroño Boulevard and Pellegrini Avenue). The four-part plaza was named Independencia.
In 1900 the provincial government authorized the municipality, presided by mayor
Luis Lamas, to
expropriate the lands to create a new park. The plans for the park were drawn by
landscape architect
A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manageme ...
(famous for his work in the
Buenos Aires Botanical Garden
The Buenos Aires Botanical Garden (official name in Spanish: ''Jardín Botánico Carlos Thays de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires'') is a botanical garden located in the Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires in Argentina. The garden is tri ...
, among many others). In 1901 the municipality built the internal avenues and roads, an artificial lake and, with the earth removed for the lake, a small artificial hill (even today known as ''La Montañita'', the Little Mountain). That year, also, the First Festival of the Tree took place, and 6,000 trees were planted by students in the park, which was inaugurated on 1 January 1902.
References
External links
*
Municipality of Rosario{{Refend
Independencia
Independencia