Fireman's Park

A heated exchange between Union soldiers and local citizens in September 1866 helped lead to the development of Brenham's flagship park. The soldiers, part of an infantry company, took issue with comments in the local newspaper and set the town on fire twice. Brenham then organized its fire department under the pretense of protecting the community from fire, but in reality as a way to defend it from the Union soldiers, and the department's history has been intertwined with that of the city ever since. Fireman's Park was founded through the firemen's generosity when, in November 1883, the Mechanics Engine Company No. 1 and the Hook and Ladder Company No. 1 bought 14 acres from Pocahontas Higgins through his guardian, David B. Williams, paying $80 per acre for a total of $1,120. The land was named Fireman's Park, deeded to the Brenham Fire Department in 1884, and eventually deeded to the city in 1917. Since 1884, the park has been home to the annual Maifest, a popular German festival, and it was also the original site of the Washington County Fair. Its features include the Flying Horses Antique Carousel, the Finke Pavilion, the American Legion Hall, Veteran's Plaza, and Fireman's Field. Two of the Washington County Little League's original fields, Greenwade and Pflughaupt, were part of the park, and Greenwade remains as the site of a baseball-themed playscape. Brenham is known as the Baseball Capital of Texas, and Fireman's Field has hosted notable baseball history, including Nolan Ryan pitching against the Cubs there in 1965, along with tradition holding that Texas A&M and University of Texas alumni games were played there. In 1932, a 16-sided building was constructed to house the Flying Horses Carousel, and that building, along with the original kitchen, American Legion Hall, beer garden, and a small hut, was part of a Works Progress Administration project. Later renovations gave the carousel building a new roof and added a new kitchen, while the American Legion Hall and hut remained as originally built. The park has long enjoyed strong community support: local civic groups such as the Lions and Kiwanis Clubs maintained the carousel for years, the Washington County Arts Council sponsors a summer Music in the Park program and opens the carousel to children free of charge, and Maifest continues to celebrate local heritage there. A community-supported renovation of the Flying Horses and its building expanded into a broader renewal of the park in 2005, aided by the Rally Round the Carousel fundraising effort, a local family's support for a new pavilion in the old turnverein style, and nearly $200,000 in private donations, grants, and sales tax revenues. The park reopened in 2007 as part of the Maifest celebration and continues to attract residents and visitors.

Brenham, Texas · United States