FRANKLIN PARK CONSERVATORY "PALM BUILDING" - COLUMBUS, OHIO
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places
Franklin County Agriculture Society purchased 88 acres of land two miles east of downtown Columbus to host the first Franklin County Fair in 1852. By 1874, the Franklin County Agricultural Society agreed on the importance of this piece of land, increased the size to 93 acres, and made it the official site of the Ohio State Fair.
For several years, the state fairgrounds were a popular destination. History was made on August 11, 1880 when General William Tecumseh Sherman delivered his famous statement, “War is Hell,” in a speech to Civil War veterans.
The state fair occupied the site until 1884, when it moved to a new location north of Columbus. With the change, the lot was abandoned. But on May 17, 1886, the site was officially revived when the Ohio State Legislature passed a resolution declaring it open for use as a public park.
In 1893, the Chicago’s World Fair and Columbian Exposition was an immensely influential social and cultural event. It inspired the city of Columbus to create a horticulture building modeled after the Exposition’s Glass Palace. This glass structure, built in the grand Victorian style, was erected in Franklin Park and opened to the public in 1895 as the Franklin Park Conservatory.
From 1895 to 1989, Columbus Recreation and Parks Department owned and operated the Conservatory. Unfortunately, little is known about the Conservatory’s earliest days, as a fire in Columbus City Hall destroyed it's records in 1921. Much of the Conservatory’s history has been documented from newspapers and personal written accounts.
For a short period starting in 1927, animals were kept in the lower rooms of the Conservatory. In 1929, these animals left the Conservatory and became part of the first Columbus Zoo.
Over time, the facility developed a reputation for horticultural excellence and the display of rare and unusual plants. The Conservatory also became a popular location for family gatherings, weddings, and other events.
In 1974, in recognition of the Conservatory’s historic and architectural merit, the original glass structure, today known as the Palm House, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
from the Wikipedia entry for the
Franklin Park Conservatory
From
Dictionary of Ohio Historical Places Lorrie K. Owen, Ed. Somerset Publishers, Inc. 1999.
"Situated in a park which covers an area of about one hundred acres used as the Franklin County fairgrounds from 1886 to 1894 stands the Franklin Park Conservatory. The full history of the old glass conservatory will never be known. Records pertaining to its purchase were destroyed when the old Columbus City Hall burned. It is known that it once graced the Columbian Exposition of 1893r in Chicago. The building of glass, stone, and steel is rectangular in shape and has a glass dome topped by a finial in the center of the mansard-like roof. . . .. The conservatory was erected in Franklin Park in 1895, the date on the cornerstone." p. 444
Further information can be found at the official website:
Franklin Park Conservatory Offical Site
View the entire photo gallery for more detail of this wonderful place!
HOURS*
Tuesday - Sunday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Wednesdays 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Open holiday Mondays
HOLIDAY HOURS
Memorial Day - 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.