In the early 1950s, the site across from Boca Raton’s Old Town Hall, formerly a bus station, sat empty. In 1953, landowner Eleanor Sanborn allowed the town’s annual holiday celebrations to take place there, and by 1955 she donated the land to the city in memory of her husband, Boca Raton part-time resident Dr. William E. Sanborn, a wealthy Detroit dentist. The small park became the city’s town square and hosted numerous gatherings. After the Boca Raton Redevelopment Agency was established and began improving the downtown district, local residents voted in 1983 to expand Sanborn Square by removing the portion of Boca Raton Road that bisected the park. Benefactors Charles and Dorothy Schmidt made this possible through a generous donation of additional land just north of Boca Raton Road. In 1985, the community commemorated the new Sanborn Square. Today, Sanborn Square remains the heart of Downtown Boca, a green and shady oasis amid the activity of a vibrant district that hosts many events year-round.