Watkins Park in Nashville in Davidson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Watkins Park

Photographed By Darren Jefferson Clay, January 2, 2023

1. Watkins Park Marker

Inscription. Land once known as Watkins Grove was given to the city in 1870 by brick maker and contractor Samuel Watkins. It served as a site for political gatherings, school commencements and concerts. This became Nashville's first public park in 1901. Park Board chairman E. C. Lewis planned landscape features including a stone entrance and fence, walkways, flowerbeds, and benches, which were built with materials donated by citizens. In 1906, the Centennial Club opened the city's first playground here, setting a precedent for public recreation facilities elsewhere in the city. Improved by the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s, Watkins Park was a park for black Nashvillians from 1936 until the 1960s, when the park system was desegregated.

Erected 2005 by The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County. (Marker Number 123.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Notable Places. In addition, it is included in the Tennessee, The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1870.

Location. 36° 9.711′ N, 86° 47.938′ W. Marker

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is in Nashville, Tennessee, in Davidson County. It is in Watkins Park. Marker is on Jo Johnston Avenue near 16th Avenue N., on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Nashville TN 37203, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Pearl High School (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Fisk Jubliee Singers (about 500 feet away); The Alfred Stieglitz Collection at Fisk University (about 500 feet away); Blue Triangle YWCA (about 600 feet away); William Edmondson (approx. 0.2 miles away); First State Penitentiary (approx. ¼ mile away); Bethlehem Centers of Nashville (approx. ¼ mile away); Marathon Motor Works (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Nashville.

Photographed By R. E. Smith, September 2, 2007

2. Watkins Park Marker

Photographed By R. E. Smith, September 2, 2007

3. Watkins Park Marker

Photographed By R. E. Smith, September 2, 2007

4. Watkins Park Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 4, 2008, by R. E. Smith of Nashville, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 1,572 times since then and 34 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on January 22, 2023, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. 2, 3, 4. submitted on January 25, 2008, by R. E. Smith of Nashville, Tennessee. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.