Wilson Park

Where is this Park?

This park is located at 675 N Park Ave.

Park History

As early as 1929, Wilson Park was known as Trent Pond and considered the city's swimming hole. Wilson Park is the first and oldest park located in the center of the city with Louise, Wilson, Prospect and Park Streets bordering its 21.5 acres. A unique feature includes Hamstring Creek flowing through the castle area, underneath the swimming pool, and to the west boundary of the park. The first portion of Wilson Park was purchased in 1944 from Dr. N.F. Drake for $16,000. The remaining 16 acres were purchased and donated from Charles Marrow Wilson in 1946 for $15,000.

Park Amenities

  • Playgrounds (2)
  • Softball Field
  • Swimming Pool
  • Tennis Courts (6)
  • Basketball Court
  • Volleyball Court (sand)
  • Restrooms
  • Picnic Areas
  • Gazebo
  • Green House
  • Castle Area
  • Walking Trail (.9 miles)

Wilson Park Castle History

Did you know that there is a spring under the tower at the Wilson Park Castle? Can you imagine a large swimming hole sitting where the ball field and the City swimming pool are today? The spring that surfaces under the castle at one time fed into a large pond where citizens of Fayetteville enjoyed hours of swimming and leisurely activities. At the beginning of the 1900's this area was known as Trent's pond. There was also a bandstand located where the current parking lot for the pool is now. Bands would set up there and play music while people socialized.

The swimming pool was built in the early 1930's. As a result of this construction there was a concrete "spring house" built over the area where the spring rises up from underground. This area was considered unsafe and unattractive. Because of the increased use by the citizens of Wilson Park, it was decided that something exciting and unique needed to be created on that site. In the late 1970's there was a contest to present ideas for making the spring area look better and make it more fun and inviting for citizens and visitors of Fayetteville.

Frank Williams, a local artist, won the contest with a scale model of what would eventually be known as "The Castle". Originally, Frank called it "Seven Points". If you look at the castle closely you will be able to find and count all of the "points". Can you find all of them? When the construction was completed in 1981 kids dubbed the structure "The Castle" because it looks like one! That fitting nickname has stuck since the very beginning.

If you look high up on the tower of the Castle you will notice four faces. Can you find them and guess what those faces mean? A clue to that question is that they each represent the Four Seasons.

Do you know what the Arkansas State Flower is? If you do, then you can easily understand what the columns with the curved openings represent. A clue is that the flower is found in some of the tiles in the walk on the west side of the pond.

By the mid 1990's some cracks in the tower and in the arch started showing up and dirt pathways developed because so many kids loved to play and run around the Castle. Because of this the Parks and Recreation Division decided that it was time for a facelift and some improvements.

Our favorite improvement is an imitation of a common household pet. Can you find this feature and name the pet? Other improvements included creating a dam below the bridge so the pond would hold more water. Have you found the dam yet? Sometimes when you stand on the bridge and look into the water you will see goldfish. Have you seen them yet? Can you possibly count them? We don't know for sure how many fish are in the pond, but its fun to count them and see all the different colors on them!

The entry areas to the Castle were made larger and the walkways all around the Castle were made into sidewalks to help keep kids out of the mud. These walkways were decorated with pebbles and tiles. Have you found the mosaic yet? Do you know what a mosaic is? The tiles in the mosaic were made by kids from Fayetteville in the late 1980's at a local tile studio. Could your tile possibly be included in this mosaic?

For relaxing, enjoying the flowers and listening to the fountain, two concrete benches were designed and installed by local artist, Eugene Sargent. These benches are very heavy and were actually built in place because they couldn't be moved after being completed. These benches were designed to mimic something in nature.

There are many flowers growing at the Wilson Park Castle. These flowers are planted for kids, young and old, to look at, smell, learn more about our natural world and to leave for the next people that come to visit the Castle. They are constantly changing in size, color and shape depending on the season and how long they have been in the ground.

The Castle! It's fun, exciting and you will always find something new there if you look around each time. It's a great place to play so bring your friends and have a picnic. Come down to the Castle at Wilson Park to explore, learn and meet the Gardeners. We will help you identify all the different plants you can find.