Simpson Park, officially Simpson Park Hammock, is a

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

and nature preserve located between

Brickell Brickell ( ) is a neighborhood in Miami, Florida located directly east of Interstate 95, south of the historic CBD, and north of Coconut Grove. Brickell is known as the financial district in Miami, as well as South Florida. Brickell was found ...

and

The Roads The Roads is a neighborhood of Miami in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It is a triangular area located south of SW 11th Street, between SW 12th Avenue and SW 15th Road, just west of Brickell. The Roads is known for its old homes, historic private ...

neighborhoods of

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. The park was originally known as Jungle Park, as were set aside in 1913 by a group of individuals to preserve what is now one of the last remaining tracts (along with Alice Wainwright Park and a spot on

Virginia Key Virginia Key is an barrier island in Miami, Florida. It is located in Biscayne Bay south of Brickell and north of Key Biscayne and is accessible from the mainland via the Rickenbacker Causeway. The island is mainly occupied by the Virginia K ...

) of Brickell Hammock, a tropical hardwood hammock which once ran from the Miami River to

Coconut Grove Coconut Grove, also known colloquially as The Grove, is the oldest continuously inhabited neighborhood of Miami in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The neighborhood is roughly bound by North Prospect Drive to the south, LeJeune Road to the west, S ...

. The park lies on the Miami Rock Ridge at an elevation over above sea level, relatively high for the Miami area. The soils are mostly shallow muck (Matecumbe Series) over limestone.https://casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/gmap/ SoilWeb -- select Miami FL and scroll to "Simpson Park" In 1927 the park's name was changed in honor of Miami botanist and conservationist

Charles Torrey Simpson Charles Torrey Simpson (June 3, 1846 in Tiskilwa, Illinois – December 17, 1932 in Lemon City, Miami, Florida) was an American botanist, Malacology, malacologist, and Conservation movement, conservationist. He retired to Florida where he became ...

. In 1940 an additional of adjacent hammock was incorporated into the park. A building known as the Charles Torrey Simpson Garden Center was constructed on this addition in 1941. This is also the main entrance to the park, at 55 SW 17th Road. Simpson Park is home to 15

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

plant species, such as '' Licaria triandra'', and 9

threatened Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...

plant species. Being a remnant of local regional ecology in the highly developed downtown area, Simpson Park has the qualities of an

urban wild An urban wild is a remnant of a natural ecosystem found in the midst of an otherwise highly developed urban area. Utility Urban wilds, particularly those of several acres or more, are often intact ecological systems that can provide essential e ...

or "passive park".

Hurricane Irma

In September 2017, the park was closed for months after its canopy was heavily damaged by

Hurricane Irma Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread destruction across its path in September 2017. Irma was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the Leeward Islands on record, followed by Maria two ...

. Simpson Park tropical hardwood hammock defoliated and damaged after 2017 Hurricane Irma 04.jpg, Entrance Simpson Park tropical hardwood hammock defoliated and damaged after 2017 Hurricane Irma 05.jpg, Fence damaged and canopy severely defoliated Simpson Park northeast entrance.jpg, Old entrance on northeast at the corner of South Miami Avenue and Broadway (SW 15th Road)

Gallery

Simpson hammock park 06.jpg, Artificial creek Simpson hammock park 07.jpg, Artificial pond Simpson hammock park 09.jpg, Fallen trees are cut and left to rot to provide topsoil for new plants Simpson hammock park 10.jpg, Pathway through the hammock with fallen trees Simpson Park Hammock 02.jpg, Another path through the trees Simpson Park Hammock 01.jpg, View of pond

References

{{Greater Miami, state=collapsed Parks in Miami Parks in Miami-Dade County, Florida Nature reserves in Florida Protected areas established in 1913 1913 establishments in Florida