Appreciation of Mr. Olmsted

Mr. Olmsted said that Cherokee Park was meant to present the "bluegrass country of Kentucky" to the people of Louisville.

In a report from the F. L. Olmsted firm provided to the city in 1891, the site for Cherokee Park was described as a place of "refreshment that is to be had in the contemplation of superb umbrageous trees..."

 The Park has broad spaces that are kept mowed but also wide corridors of woods.   Beargrass Creek winds its way through the landscape lending the scene an inviting look.   There is a famous photograph of Big Rock in Beargrass Creek with park visitors in clothing of  a bygone era.  It may be 1890s clothing.  At the top of a bluff there is a statue of the Greek god Pan. The statue dates back to 1905.

Louisville Metro Parks - Cherokee Park - Pan

Cherokee Park - Limestone Cliffs

Cherokee Park - Cliffs

Cherokee Park - Informational

Cherokee Park - Beargrass Creek

Cherokee Park - Stonework on roadside wall

The limestone cliffs along the creek corridor are home to walking ferns and amphibians that need special conditions to live. The outstanding tree in the woods of Cherokee Park is the American beech.  The bark of the American beech unlike most Kentucky native trees grows with the internal structure of the tree.  Most trees shed portions of bark over time but the Americon Beech does not.