Stead Park

Stead Park is a 1.5-acre (0.61 ha) municipal park located in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Northwest Washington, D.C. Among its facilities are Stead Recreation Center, located at 1625 P Street NW; a lighted basketball court; an athletic field with a 60-foot (18 m) baseball diamond; and a playground.[1]

Stead Park
Stead Park, looking north
Location within Washington, D.C.
TypeUrban park
LocationWashington, D.C.
Coordinates38°54′36″N 77°02′15″W
Area1.5 acres (0.61 ha)
Created1953
Operated byD.C. Parks & Recreation
StatusOpen all year

Public events such as Summer Movie Mania, an outdoor screening sponsored by the city's government, are held at the park.[2][3][4] Stead Park is also used as a practice field by the Washington Renegades RFC, the first rugby union club in the United States to recruit gay men and men of color.[5][6]

The park and its small staff are administered by the city's Department of Parks and Recreation. Stead Park, whose property was valued at $8,659,560 in 2009,[7] is partially funded by a private trust created by Washington architect Robert Stead (1846-1943). The park is named for Stead's wife, Mary Force Stead.[8]

History
Stead Park playground, after 2008 renovation

The portion of the park next to P Street once held 19th-century row houses. During a 2008 renovation, archaeological work uncovered artifacts and brick foundations from the houses that once occupied 1613 and 1625 P Street. Researchers concluded that the latter supported a house built in 1878 by Henry Hurt, a Confederate Army veteran and president of the Washington and Georgetown Railroad Company.[9]

In 1951, work began on Stead Park, an explicitly unsegregated recreational facility. The single-story fuel sheds from the row houses at 1621, 1623, and 1625 were consolidated, expanded, and topped with a second story; this structure became the park's recreation center. The park was eventually completed at a cost of $80,000[10] ($764,478 today[11]), and formally opened on November 13, 1953.

In 2003, plans for a four-story, multimillion-dollar gay community center to be built on a small section of the aging park sparked a dispute among Dupont Circle residents and the Washington D.C. Center for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender People. The plans were ultimately abandoned.[12][13]

In 2008, the recreation center and playground were renovated. Work began in April and the park reopened on December 15.[14]

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References
  1. "Stead Recreation Center". Government of the District of Columbia. Archived from the original on June 10, 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
  2. Buckwalter, Ian (2009-05-13). "Screens on Other Greens". DCist.com. Archived from the original on 2009-05-17. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  3. Mathis, Sommer (2009-06-12). "Stead Park's Summer Movie Scheulde". DCist.com. Archived from the original on 2009-06-15. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
  4. "Summer Movie Mania". Washingtonian. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
  5. Worsdale, James (2009-02-27). "Sports". Washington Blade. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  6. Krisberg, K. (2002-07-25). "Renegades Rugby". Metro Weekly. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  7. "DC Citizen Atlas Real Property Reports". Government of the District of Columbia. Archived from the original on 2009-04-30. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  8. "About Us". Friends of Stead Park. Archived from the original on 2010-09-26. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
  9. "Stead - New Entrance, Central Plaza, and Playgrounds". Government of the District of Columbia. 2008. Retrieved 2013-11-23.
  10. Williams, Paul Kelsey (September 2004). "Scenes from the Past..." (PDF). The InTowner. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 25, 2006. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
  11. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  12. Brune, Adrian (2004-07-23). "Neighbors unsure about gay center at Stead Park". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on July 25, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  13. Chibbaro Jr., Lou (2004-11-19). "D.C. gay community center to open in office building". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on November 20, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
  14. "Mayor, D.C. Open Stead Park in Northwest". The Washington Post. 2008-12-15. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
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