Bushnell Park
99 Trinity Street
Hartford, Ct
In the heart of Hartford lies Bushnell Park, the nation’s first publicly funded municipal park, which was named for Connecticut native Horace Bushnell, long-ago pastor of what was the city’s North Congregational Church on Main Street. Bushnell, who authored a dozen books, was known as a prominent theologian of the 19th century. Biographer Robert L. Edwards once wrote, “[Bushnell’s] young friend Mark Twain, not always comfortable with preachers, considered him one of the greatest clergymen in America.” Bushnell also played a key role in the creation of the park that bears his name, in part hoping to lure the State Capitol to a permanent place in the city; at the time, the state had two capitals, with the General Assembly alternating between Hartford and New Haven. Today’s Bushnell Park features numerous attractions, including the Bushnell Park Carousel, the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch, and the Corning Fountain, as well as a wide expanse of green space available for the enjoyment of all. A couple uncanny connections between Bushnell Park and Trinity College: 1) Trinity’s original campus was located adjacent to the park—where the Connecticut Capitol now sits—prior to the college’s move to its current location in 1878. 2) Horace Bushnell was born in BANTAM, Connecticut! For more information about the park, please visit http://www.bushnellpark.org/.