Washington Park, Cincinnati, Bezoekersgids & wat te doen in de buurt

Washington Park is a public park in the Over-the-Rhine neighbourhood of Cincinnati, Ohio, at the foot of Vine Street. It sits inside a historic district of 19th-century brick buildings put up largely by German immigrants, and it is one of the best places to understand how the neighbourhood grew.

The story behind it

The park lies at the heart of Over-the-Rhine, which filled with German immigrants in the decades around the Civil War. The neighbourhood's population rose from roughly 13,000 in 1850 to more than 33,000 by 1880, with families packed into tall tenements and rowhouses. Most of the ornate buildings you see around the park date from about 1865 to the 1880s. Their German language, beer and music gave the area its character.

In 1983 the entire district, 319 acres in all, was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The blocks of Vine Street around the park were later promoted as the Gateway Quarter, a name that grew out of efforts to bring the old buildings back into use. The park itself was renovated and reopened in 2012, and it is now a busy green space at the centre of the district.

What to look for

• Look up at the brick facades facing the park and along Vine Street, where rounded window cornices and Italianate fronts show the taste of the German builders.
• Spot the Greek Revival and Queen Anne touches tucked between the Italianate buildings, a sign that the streets were built up over many years rather than all at once.
• Notice how tall and narrow the buildings are, which hints at how many families once lived floor upon floor in this one neighbourhood.
• Take in the contrast between the open lawn of the park and the dense historic streets that surround it.

Tips for your visit

• Plan 20 to 30 minutes for the park alone, and longer if you want to wander the surrounding streets of Over-the-Rhine.
• Morning and late afternoon give the best light on the brick facades, and the park is pleasant for a rest in between.
• It is an open public park, so you can walk in and sit on the lawn without a ticket. Check current details for any event you plan to attend.
• Music Hall is right next to the park, so pair the two on one walk, and keep your camera ready for the buildings along Vine Street.

See it on a quest

Try Ghost Hunt in Cincinnati if you like your history with a darker edge. You reach Washington Park on foot as one stop on a longer route through the area, the app tells you about each place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle right in front of you. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.

Visiting in the holiday season? Christmas Operation: Sleigh Down in Cincinnati gives the walk a festive theme. You pass the park as part of a longer route, hear about the place as you get there and solve a puzzle on the spot. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.