Belle Isle

Posted by Colleen Vanderlinden Jun 13, 2007

Located on the flowing water of the Detroit River, with the magnificent Detroit skyline in the background, Belle Isle Park is beloved among area residents. The 982 acre island was originally settled by French colonists, who named it Île aux Cochons, or "Hog Island." It was so named because it was a safe place to keep their livestock. In 1879, it was renamed "Belle Isle." While the park was originally swampy, Detroiters yearned for a wold-class, European-style park of their very own. To fulfill this dream, the city hired famed park designer Frederick Law Olmstead to design the park.

Belle Isle contains several acres of wooded areas, a nature zoo featuring animals from Michigan, a stunning fountain, golf courses, marinas, and a yacht club. But for our purposes, we'll focus on the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory and gardens. Built in 1904, and designed by architect Albert Kahn, the conservatory is fashioned after Jefferson's Monticello. The Whitcomb Conservatory covers over one acre, and contains areas dedicated to tropical plants, desert plants, a fernery, and a display gardens area. If you visit during the winter holidays, the display gardens are filled with gigantic "trees" made of poinsettias. The conservatory also houses one of the nation's largest municipally-owned orchid collections.

Outside the conservatory are the perennial gardens, rose garden, and lily ponds. All together, the conservatory and its gardens cover about 13 acres of the island. It is a wonderful way to spend a summer afternoon.