Originally named Grand Boulevard, Southern Parkway was completed on June 14, 1893, as a 150-foot-wide route constructed of packed dirt and watered daily to keep the dust down, lined with large trees and flanked by a bicycle path on the east and a bridle path on the west, intended to connect the growing city with Iroquois Park to the south. Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Iroquois Park is one of the flagship parks in the Louisville Olmsted Park system. Originally known as Jacob’s Park after land was purchased by Mayor Charles Jacob in 1889, it has scenic overlooks and, at 725 acres, is Louisville’s largest Olmsted Park.
