Richmond’s Historic Urban Oasis

Byrd Park is a 275-acre public park in western Richmond, originally developed in the 1870s around a new city reservoir. Fountain Lake was dug to provide fill for the reservoir’s berms, and the park—first called New Reservoir Park—was renamed William Byrd Park in 1907. Designed under city engineer Col. Wilfred Emory Cutshaw, Byrd Park reflects late 19th and early 20th-century landscape ideals and features rolling hills, wooded ravines, open lawns, and three lakes. Today, it is a hub for recreation, culture, and community gatherings, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.