Old Soldiers' Park

Early in the 1890s, Civil War Union veterans claimed a small corner of Brandywine Park as a place to gather in good weather, and the regular sight of the old soldiers there led people to call the spot Old Soldiers' Park. In 1908, some of the veterans formed the Old Soldiers' Park Association and, with approval from the city's Board of Park Commissioners, erected a flagpole that they dedicated on Flag Day that year. Around 1913-14, local citizens added military equipment to the park, including cannon, cannon balls, and a tripod of rifles at the foot of the flagpole. In 1919, the elderly veterans, no longer able to care for the park themselves, turned responsibility for it over to the city's Board of Park Commissioners.

Wilmington, Delaware · United States