World’s Smallest City Park, world record in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon, United States--Mill Ends Park is a tiny urban park, consisting of one tree, located in the median strip of SW Naito Parkway in downtown Portland, Oregon; the park is a small circle 2 feet across, with a total area of 452 square inches (0.00007205784 acres), which sets the world record for being the World’s Smallest City Park, according to the WORLD RECORD ACADEMY.
"Mill Ends Park is a tiny urban park, consisting of one tree, located in the median strip of SW Naito Parkway in downtown Portland, Oregon. The park is a small circle 2 feet across, with a total area of 452 square inches (0.00007205784 acres). It is the smallest park in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records, which first granted it this recognition in 1971," the City of Portland says.
"In 1946, Dick Fagan returned from World War II to resume his journalistic career with the Oregon Journal. His office, on the second floor above Front Street (now Naito Parkway), gave him a view of not only the busy street, but also an unused hole in the median where a light pole was to be placed. When no pole arrived to fill in this hole, weeds took over the space. Fagan decided to take matters into his own hands and to plant flowers.
"Fagan wrote a popular column called Mill Ends (rough, irregular pieces of lumber left over at lumber mills). He used this column to describe the park and the various "events" that occurred there. Fagan billed the space as the "World's Smallest Park." The park was dedicated on St. Patrick's Day in 1948 since Fagan was a good Irishman."
"Mill Ends Park (sometimes mistakenly called Mill's End Park)[1] is an extremely small urban park, consisting of one tree, located in the median strip of SW Naito Parkway next to Tom McCall Waterfront Park along the Willamette River near SW Taylor Street in the downtown core of Portland, Oregon, United States. (Wikipedia)
"The park is a small circle 2 ft (0.61 m) across, with a total area of 452 sq in (0.292 m2). It is the smallest park in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records, which first granted it this recognition in 1971.
"According to legend, the leprechauns at Mill Ends Park are only visible to humans at midnight during a full moon on St. Patrick's Day -- and even then, only to children bearing four-leaf clovers as gifts. The next St. Patrick's Day full moon is March 17, 2041."
"Portland is home to more than 200 parks and natural areas spanning well over 11,000 acres (4,450 hectares). While the city is often noted for having the largest urban forest in the United States (Forest Park), it’s also home to the world’s smallest: Mill Ends Park. (Fun fact: This blink-and-you’ll-miss-it spot is often mistakenly called “Mills End Park” — even by locals!), the Travel Portland says.
"Cyclists and motorists zip by this urban park, located on a median strip in the heart of Southwest Naito Parkway by the waterfront, every day. It’s “disguised” as a traffic circle, according to the Oregon Encyclopedia, and occupies a tiny area — precisely 24 inches (61 cm) in diameter and 452 square inches (0.29 sq m) — between lanes of traffic and a crosswalk.
"Even at such a small scale, Mill Ends Park packs a big personality and has been doing so since 1946. But how did the park come to be? The answer depends on who you ask."
"The world’s smallest city park, Mill Ends Park, is the size of a small suitcase or, to be exact, officially 3.13 square feet. This diminutive 452 square inch park is in Portland, Oregon and, as you might expect, has a rather quirky origin," the Only Good News Daily says.
"It begins with a journalist named Dick Fagan, who noticed a hole meant for a light pole outside his office window in 1948. When the pole failed to appear and weeds started to grow, Fagan took matters into his own hands and probably became the world's first urban 'guerilla gardener'. He planted flowers in the hole and declared it the “world’s smallest park.”
"That bold claim was officially recognized on St. Patrick's Day 1976 by the city of Portland and named Mill Ends, after Fagan’s popular column in the Oregon Journal. If further proof was required (according to the people of Portland, it wasn't) Fagan's claim received international attention when Guinness World Records officially recognized it as the smallest park in the world. It serves as a delightful, whimsical reminder that beauty and significance can be found in the smallest of places."
"When you think “green space in Portland, Oregon,” you probably don’t picture Mill Ends Park. At about two feet in diameter, and located on a median in the middle of busy Naito Parkway, it’s tough to picnic in. A circuit around it wouldn’t give your dog much exercise. It’s really only big enough for about one very small tree," the
Atlas Obscura says.
"But, puny though it may be, Mill Ends Park—the world’s “smallest park,” according to Guinness World Records—is a legitimate city park, listed on the Portland Parks & Recreation department’s official roster. And as of this week, you have fewer excuses to count it out: The department just built it a very authoritative sign.
"This year, the Portland Parks & Recreation carpentry shop decided to get in on the action. The official sign—which is a scaled-down version of the ones found at more traditionally-sized parks—has been installed on the very edge of the median, right next to the park. It is made out of scrap wood and metal, and was built in spare moments, says Ross, who adds that everyone outside the carpentry shop was surprised to see it. All of this befits the park’s own special origins, as surplus space made good."
"The new and improved Mill Ends Park includes a miniature park sign, a few tufts of grass and a single Plum Yew bush. That’s because the park is only 2 feet across. It’s located in a traffic median near the intersection of Naito and Southwest Taylor Street.
"As part of the construction process, the mini-park was reconstructed and replanted 6 inches west from its previous location. The new version of the park is tucked inside the concrete outline of a cloverleaf, a nod to the leprechaun colony that lives there, according to legend," the OregonLive.com says.
"With a total area of 452 square inches, Mill Ends holds the distinction of being the World’s Smallest Park, a title formally bestowed by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1971."
"Just two feet across, and 452 tiny square inches. That’s the whole park! Despite its tiny size, Mill Ends Park is an officially-recognized city park by the city of Portland. And that makes it a quirky tourist attraction," the Quirky Travel Guy says.
"Fagan wrote about the park for decades until his death in 1969 from cancer. Eventually, Portland recognized Mill Ends Park as an official city park, making it the smallest in the world. They held a dedication ceremony on St. Patrick’s Day 1976.
"If you visit, be prepared for the fact that the park is really on a small median in the middle of a four-lane artery in the heart of Portland. So cars will be zipping past on either side."
Photos: World’s Smallest City Park, world record in Portland, Oregon
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
Related world records:
