| Added by |
 Alain Martineau
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| General Description | Stanley Park is a 1,001-acre public park that borders the downtown of Vancouver, Canada and is almost entirely surrounded by waters of the Pacific Ocean. The park has a long history and was one of the first areas to be explored in the city. The land was originally used by indigenous peoples for thousands of years before British Columbia was colonized by the British during the 1858 Fraser Canyon Gold Rush. For many years after colonization, the future park with its abundant resources would also be home to nonaboriginal settlers. The land was later turned into Vancouver's first park when the city incorporated in 1886. It was named after Lord Stanley, a British politician who had recently been appointed governor general. Unlike other large urban parks, Stanley Park is not the creation of a landscape architect, but rather the evolution of a forest and urban space over many years. Most of the manmade structures we see today were built between 1911 and 1937 under the influence of then superintendent W.S. Rawlings. Additional attractions, such as a polar bear exhibit, aquarium, and miniature train, were added in the post-war period. Much of the park remains as densely forested as it was in the late 1800s, with about a half million trees, some of which stand as tall as 76 metres and are up to hundreds of years old. Thousands of trees were lost (and many replanted) after three major windstorms that took place in the past 100 years, the last in 2006. Significant effort was put into constructing the near century old Vancouver Seawall, which can draw thousands of residents and visitors to the park every day. The park also features forest trails, beaches, lakes, children's play areas, and the Vancouver Aquarium, among many other attractions. It it hard to believe that there used to be a full fledged Zoo in Vancouver's Stanley Park. Not much remains of it since its closing in 1996, most of the animals were moved to other Zoos due to space constraints and the pens turned into walking paths. The large Bear pits still remain, the surrounding vines almost enclosing them. This unique historical feature of Stanley Park is an interesting stop if not to see what was once the biggest attraction, but to see if the local artists have used the pits as their canvases. wo enclosures - both bear habitats, and a few older peacocks which still strut around the park are almost all of what remains of the Zoo |
| Catalog code | S-3689 |
| Height | 89.00 mm |
| Width | 148.00 mm |
| Catalog prices | No catalog prices set yet |
