When Henry Shaw gave St. Louis its beloved botanical garden, he also gave it a park to stroll to it through. Tower Grove Park, opened in 1872 on land Shaw donated, is one of America’s best-preserved Victorian landscapes: 289 acres of ornamental pavilions, lily ponds, tree-lined carriage drives and more than 7,000 trees.
Every era of the park charms: the Roman-style ruins by the lily pond, the Piper Palm House — the oldest greenhouse west of the Mississippi — the bandstand’s Music Stand concerts, and the bust of Shaw himself keeping watch. On Saturday mornings the park hosts one of the city’s favorite farmers markets, and at its edges stand the gates Shaw built to welcome the city in.
It is the most civilized walk in St. Louis.
Tower Grove Park sits between Kingshighway and Grand Boulevard, beside the Missouri Botanical Garden. Details at towergrovepark.org.
