In 1869, Captain Edward Schenley was approached to sell a parcel of his land to be used as a public park. He refused to sell both at that time and later in 1871 when the plan was
proposed again.

Many years later, in 1889, the same land was being considered for a housing development. Upon hearing that the land was for sale, Mr. Edward Bigelow, Public Works Director at the time, and attorney Robert Carnahan rushed to England to meet with the land’s owner, Mary Croghan Schenley (she had inherited the land from her maternal grandfather, General James O’Hara). She agreed to sell 300 acres with the condition that it be called “Schenley Park” and that it would never be sold. Two other tracts, one donated, one purchased, ultimately brought total acreage to 455, making Schenley Park the third largest public park on the eastern seaboard, after Central Park (New York City) and Fairmont Park (Philadelphia).

For the next five years, under the direction of landscape architect, William Falconer, the park was transformed from a wilderness into a beautiful public park. Pittsburgh’s first zoo and aquarium were located in the park, along with a band shell and a “dancing waters” fountain.