Quinta Normal Park is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

in the city of

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. The park is located in the Commune of Santiago with its namesake commune,

Quinta Normal Quinta Normal is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is named after Quinta Normal Park, which lies directly on the border between Quinta Normal and Santiago Centro, although the park itself is locat ...

, situated just outside the park across the communal boundary. The park spans and is bounded by Matucana Avenue to the east, Portales Avenue to the south and Santo Domingo Street to the north. It is home to several cultural institutions, including the

Chilean National Museum of Natural History The Chilean National Museum of Natural History ( or ) is one of three national museums in Chile, along with the Museum of Fine Arts and the National History Museum. It is located in Quinta Normal Park, and was founded in 1830 by the French natur ...

, and features a railroad museum. The park was founded in 1841, originally intended for greenhouses to cultivate foreign plant species, and has since become a popular space for recreation. In addition to its museums, Quinta Normal Park offers various amenities for visitors. A recent addition is a water feature where children can play and paddle boats can be rented. At the park's rear, there are standing grills available for public use, perfect for barbecues. The park is historically significant, having hosted the

Chilean International Exhibition The Chilean International Exhibition was a world's fair held in Quinta Normal Park, Santiago, between 16 September 1875 and 16 January 1876 to show Chilean people recent technological and scientific advances. Organisation The event was organise ...

in 1875.

Transport

The park can be accessed by the

Santiago Metro The Santiago Metro () is a rapid transit system serving the city of Santiago, the capital of Chile. It currently consists of seven lines (numbered 1-6 and 4A), 143 stations, and of revenue route. The system is managed by the state-owned Metro S. ...

via the

metro station A metro station or subway station is a train station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the syste ...

that bears its name.

Nearby Landmarks

The

Museum of Memory and Human Rights The Museum of Memory and Human Rights (in Spanish: ''Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos'') is a museum in Santiago, Chile, which commemorates the victims of human rights violations during the military dictatorship led by Augusto Pinochet ...

and the Santiago Library are also located in the immediate vicinity. Across the street from the north side of the park lies the Sanctuary of Lourdes, which includes a

Lourdes grotto A Lourdes grotto is a replica of the grotto where the Lourdes apparitions occurred in 1858, in the town of Lourdes in France, now part of the sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes. Some Lourdes grottos are almost identical reproductions of the scene o ...

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline, Parque Quinta Normal
Book about the agricultural history of the park
Urban public parks Parks in Santiago, Chile World's fair sites in South America