Washington Irving Memorial Park and Arboretum
Encyclopedia
Washington Irving Memorial Park and Arboretum (32.5 acres) is a public park and arboretum
located just north of the Arkansas River
Bridge at 13700 S. Memorial Drive, Bixby, Oklahoma
. The park is named in honor of American writer Washington Irving
, who camped in the area in October 1832 while participating in a federal expedition to the American West led by Judge Henry L. Ellsworth of Connecticut. The expedition included a 31-day, 350 miles (563.3 km) circular tour of central Oklahoma
.
bombing and to the September 11, 2001 attacks
. It also contains a statue of Irving seated on an amphitheatre
stage modeled after the facade
of his home, Sunnyside
in Tarrytown, New York
.
in Oklahoma on October 8, 1832, along with Irving, naturalist Charles La Trobe
, and Swiss nobleman Albert de Pourtalès. He promised the trio would have ample adventures in what was then Indian Territory
. Irving had been absent from the United States for seventeen years before returning to New York only a few months earlier. Upon his return, he became interested in the country's efforts for westward expansion. Irving's experience in Oklahoma included scouting for prairie hens, hunting wolves, and trading with members of the Osage Nation
. He also met Sam Houston
, who Irving described as a "well formed fresh looking man".
Irving wrote of his experiences in Tour of the Prairies, published in 1835. The North American Review called the book "a sort of sentimental journey". The book was a popular success, and the author's first book written and initially published in the United States since A History of New York in 1809.
Arboretum
An arboretum in a narrow sense is a collection of trees only. Related collections include a fruticetum , and a viticetum, a collection of vines. More commonly, today, an arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study...
located just north of the Arkansas River
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
Bridge at 13700 S. Memorial Drive, Bixby, Oklahoma
Bixby, Oklahoma
Bixby is a city in Tulsa and Wagoner counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, and is a suburb of Tulsa. The population was 13,336 at the 2000 census and 20,884 in the 2010 census. It is nicknamed "The Garden Spot of Oklahoma" for its rich agrarian heritage...
. The park is named in honor of American writer Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
, who camped in the area in October 1832 while participating in a federal expedition to the American West led by Judge Henry L. Ellsworth of Connecticut. The expedition included a 31-day, 350 miles (563.3 km) circular tour of central Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
.
Overview
The park contains a wooded walking trail, the Laci Dawn Griffin Hill butterfly garden, and memorials to the children of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal BuildingAlfred P. Murrah Federal Building
The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States Federal Government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. The building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995, which killed 168 people, including 19 children...
bombing and to the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. It also contains a statue of Irving seated on an amphitheatre
Amphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
stage modeled after the facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
of his home, Sunnyside
Sunnyside (Tarrytown, New York)
Sunnyside is a historic house on 10 acres of grounds alongside the Hudson River in Tarrytown, New York. It was formerly the home of noted early American author Washington Irving, best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", and is a National Historic...
in Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line...
.
Irving in Oklahoma
Ellsworth arrived at Fort GibsonFort Gibson
Fort Gibson, now located in Oklahoma and designated Fort Gibson Historical Site, guarded the American frontier in Indian Territory from 1824 until 1890...
in Oklahoma on October 8, 1832, along with Irving, naturalist Charles La Trobe
Charles La Trobe
Charles Joseph La Trobe was the first lieutenant-governor of the colony of Victoria .-Early life:La Trobe was born in London, the son of Christian Ignatius Latrobe, a family of Huguenot origin...
, and Swiss nobleman Albert de Pourtalès. He promised the trio would have ample adventures in what was then Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
. Irving had been absent from the United States for seventeen years before returning to New York only a few months earlier. Upon his return, he became interested in the country's efforts for westward expansion. Irving's experience in Oklahoma included scouting for prairie hens, hunting wolves, and trading with members of the Osage Nation
Osage Nation
The Osage Nation is a Native American Siouan-language tribe in the United States that originated in the Ohio River valley in present-day Kentucky. After years of war with invading Iroquois, the Osage migrated west of the Mississippi River to their historic lands in present-day Arkansas, Missouri,...
. He also met Sam Houston
Sam Houston
Samuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
, who Irving described as a "well formed fresh looking man".
Irving wrote of his experiences in Tour of the Prairies, published in 1835. The North American Review called the book "a sort of sentimental journey". The book was a popular success, and the author's first book written and initially published in the United States since A History of New York in 1809.