May 14th, 2020

May 14th is History Day during Love Your Park at Home

lemon hill

Thursday, May 14th is History Day during Love Your Park @ Home! Here are all the things you can learn, share, and do to celebrate history in Philly parks.

5 14 history day lyp at home

LEARN: About 6 Historic Houses in 6 minutes

Join John Sigmund, Fairmount Park Conservancy Historic House Coordinator, and Justina Barrett, Philadelphia Museum of Art Site Manager, in a whirlwind bicycle tour of six historic properties situated in beautiful Fairmount Park. In just one minute per house, learn unique facts about these historic homes!

Watch video

SHARE: Your own historic photos of your Philly park

woodford mansion 1900 2

Woodford Mansion, 1900.

Share your favorite photos of Philadelphia park history! This can be historic photos of your neighborhood park, or a more recent photo of a fun day spent in your favorite secret park spot. #loveyourpark

DO: Enjoy a virtual Park History Happy Hour at 5pm

Grab a beer (or a stein of ye olde meade) and join John John Sigmund, Fairmount Park Historic House Coordinator, and other park historians as they kick back, relax, and spin some of their favorite Philadelphia park tales.

Join the virtual Happy Hour

BONUS: You're invited to a special webinar "Making history: The power of parks during COVID-19"

How will the COVID-19 pandemic shape the future of our urban parks?

On Thursday, May 14 from 12-1pm, join us for a conversation about resilience and the future of civic spaces with three leading park advocates:

Carol Coletta, President and CEO, Memphis River Parks
Maura McCarthy, Executive Director, Fairmount Park Conservancy, Host
Kathryn Ott Lovell, Commissioner, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation

Register for free

BONUS: Enjoy these free coloring pages of the Historic Houses of Fairmount Park!

Bring some color to these beautiful black-and-white sketches of the Historic Houses of Fairmount Park! These coloring pages are available to download for free – you can even draw your own Historic House! Share your creations by tagging us on social media at #loveyourpark. 

Download free coloring pages

Upcoming Love Your Park @ Home Events

Concourse Lake

Open Volunteer Workday – Concourse Lake

June 3rd at 9:00am
Concourse Lake, Philadelphia, PA 19131

Join Fairmount Park Conservancy staff for a volunteer day at Concourse Lake. Together, we will work on tree care (weeding and mulching), trail cleanup, woody cleanup along the lake edge, and trash removal. All tools, including gloves, will be provided.

Learn More
parkside edge pic

Open Volunteer Workday – Parkside Edge

June 10th at 9:00am
John Welsh Memorial Fountain, Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia, PA 19104

Join Fairmount Park Conservancy staff for a volunteer day at Parkside Edge. Together, we will work on plant care (weeding and mulching), watering, and trash removal. All tools, including gloves, will be provided.

Learn More
rail park weeding happy hour

Volunteer Clean Up and Happy Hour

June 11th at 5:30pm
1300 Noble St, Philadelphia, PA 19123

Join Friends of the Rail Park for a Volunteer Clean Up and Happy Hour at Phase One! Volunteers will assist with litter pick-up, graffiti removal, weed removal, and other park management duties. This is a great opportunity to get involved in the day-to-day maintenance of the Rail Park and connect with other people in the community. All supplies will be provided, plus light refreshments! Clean Ups will be hosted on the second Wednesday of the month through October 2025. Sign up for a shift below!

Learn More