In this vlog, Don from WDO Photography gives an on‑site tour of Pittsburgh’s Schenley Park, the city’s second‑largest urban green space at over 450 acres. He recounts the park’s origins: the 1889 purchase of land from Mary Schenley, whose family history involves a scandalous elopement and a grandfather’s intervention, and the pivotal role of Public Works Director Edward Bigelow in acquiring and preserving the park’s name. Don highlights Bigelow’s hiring of renowned horticulturist William Falconer, whose work led to the creation of the Phipps Botanical Garden and Conservatory and spurred the development of nearby cultural institutions such as the Carnegie Library, Music Hall, and Carnegie Mellon University. The video then details the park’s extensive year‑round amenities—including a swimming pool, ice rink, disc‑golf, ball‑golf, tennis courts, running tracks, extensive trails, and fields for football/soccer—as well as its hosting of the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix. Don emphasizes the park’s micro‑climate advantage, offering cooler, less humid conditions in summer, and celebrates the park rangers, public works staff, and the community that maintains the space. He concludes with an invitation for locals and visitors to share their favorite spots, comment, like, and subscribe, encouraging broader exploration of Pittsburgh through Schenley Park.
Chapters
Hey, it's Don from WDO Photography, and I am once again in Pittsburgh's Schenley Park. If you've been watching my videos on Muppet the Owlet, then you'll have heard me say that I'm in Schenley Park quite often, but you may not be familiar with Schenley, so I figured why not tell you guys more about it. So Schenley Park is Pittsburgh's second largest park behind Frick. It is over 450 acres. Shenley Park is an urban park, so if you can hear the helicopter flying, the medevac helicopter flying above me, that's why. Shenley Park sits basically in this little valley and on some hills between Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood and Squirrel Hill, as well as a little bit of Greenfield. The city purchased the land that Shenley Park sits on today in 1889 from Mary Shenley. Mary Shenley's grandfather, James O'Hara, who was a general had gifted her this land after she eloped with a gentleman from the British Army, I think, maybe Navy, I'm not sure, which was very scandalous, and her father tried to disinherit her. So her grandfather, maternal grandfather, said, no, I got you. This land was purchased by the city under the guidance of Edward Bigelow, who was Public Works Director at that time and who left a huge lasting impact on the city, not just with the purchase of Schenley, But with lots of other acquisitions. Both Bigelow and Shenley were very interesting people, and I highly recommend checking out their stories. But back to Shenley Park. As soon as Bigelow had acquired the land from Shenley, with the promise to never rename it, but to keep it named Shenley in her honor, or her family's honor, he set to work on turning it into this beautiful horticultural oasis. oasis in the city. And he hired William Falconer, I believe is his name. He was a very famous horticulturist at the time and was named the superintendent of Schenley Park. He's responsible for Phipps Botanical Garden and Conservatory being built here. Beautiful place. If you haven't been there, make sure to check it out. He is really the reason that so much stuff was built around Schenley Park. That includes the Carnegie Library and Music Hall and museums that were built by Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie Mellon University abuts the park. It's technically, I think, partly in the park. All of those things are a result of the work that was done to make this beautiful, beautiful place. Schenley Park has So much to offer in terms of activities. There's a swimming pool for the warm months, an ice rink in the cold months. There's frisbee golf, there's golf golf, ball golf. I don't know what what to call it. Great great amenities here. There are loads of sports fields for pretty much everything: tennis. There's a nice track. If you're into running, if you're into trail running, there are miles and miles of amazing trails. There are football/soccer fields. Schenley Park is where the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix is held. Very interesting stuff happening here in Schenley. In addition to that, like I mentioned, there's over 450 acres here, and given its proximity to these urban neighborhoods, it is really an oasis in the summer. Some of the trails, like the one that I'm on right now, 10 or more degrees cooler in the summer. Humidity just seems much lower, and once more, just absolutely beautiful to be around. If you're local, And you see me in the park, be sure to say hi. If you see the park rangers, be sure to tell them hi. They're awesome. Shout out to them and the great job that they do here. And to the public works folks who help keep the park clean and running and return owls to their parents when they fall out of their nests and all sorts of other stuff. So, and to the city more generally for just doing A fabulous job keeping Schenley Park a beautiful gem for everybody to experience. Let me know in the comments if you're local, what your favorite thing about Schenley is, where your favorite trail is, or what your favorite activity to do in Schenley Park is. Love to hear from you. And if you're from out of town, then if you've been to Pittsburgh, I'd love to hear from you as well. If not, let me know why you haven't been here yet, because I'm telling you, there's so much cool stuff to come see and explore in this town. I, I don't even know where to start, but I guess, well, I'm starting here in Schenley Park. So I hope to see you and everybody else, just not all at once, come and visit Pittsburgh's Schenley Park. Thank you so much for watching. Please like and subscribe, and I'll see you next time. Bye-bye. Bye.
