During my seminary years, I spent quite a bit of time at Richmond, Indiana's Glen Miller Park. It's a 194 acre park on Richmond's eastside directly off Main Street. Glen Miller Park also houses the administrative offices for Richmond Parks.
Glen Miller Park opened on June 6, 1885. It's named for Colonel John Ford Miller, a railroad executive who'd bought the land specifically to establish a park and ended up selling it to Richmond five years after acquiring it.
One of the things that attracted Miller to the Park was its freshwater springs. He had them tested and they were noted as being high in iron (which was believed at the time to be good for your health - people still fill water jugs here).
In 1890, Glen Miller Park established a zoo within its grounds and it grew in 1908. By 1964, it had 250 different birds and animals. Unfortunately, it started to decline and by 1984 was named by Parade Magazine as one of the nation's 10 worst zoos. It closed in 1986 and all the animals were relocated.
The entrance to the park is marked by the Madonna of the Trial Monument - it's one of 12 monuments built by the Daughters of the American Revolution along U.S. 40 dedicated to the spirit of pioneer women.
The Richmond Rose Garden is also housed here. At one point, Richmond was known as The Rose City as it served as home to three of the nation's premier growers and marketers of cut roses.
Park amenities include a band shell, concessions, fishing, the Rose Garden, golf course, nature area, picnic areas, an ADA accessible playground, restrooms, both open and closed shelters, an 11,000 square foot skate park, splash pad, and tennis courts. You can, of course, rent the shelters for your events.
As the most popular park in Richmond, Glen Miller Park hosts a lot of the city's special events. It's had occasional issues with crime, but I've been here many times during my weekends in Richmond and have never had any issues. Because it's on the main drag through Richmond, police presence is not uncommon here. read more