The park was then called Lake View Park, a name easily mixed up with the cemetery next door, so in 1887 it became City Park. Its current name came later, thanks to J. Willis Sayre, a Seattle theater critic, journalist and historian who had fought in the Spanish-American War and urged local officials to honor the volunteers who served in that war.
An Olmsted Landscape Shaped by the Ridge
As you wander, you are walking through one of the high points of Seattle's Olmsted park and boulevard system. In 1903 the Board of Park Commissioners invited John Charles Olmsted of the Olmsted Brothers firm to plan a citywide network of open space, and because it lay so close to downtown, Volunteer Park became the central park in his first comprehensive plan.
Olmsted worked with the natural setting rather than against it. Follow the crest of the hill along the north-south concourse, lined with chestnut trees from one end of the drive to the other. A second axis crosses the city reservoir, built in 1901 and now fenced off, and where the two lines meet his plan placed a concert grove, a pergola and terraced beds beside lily ponds.
Head east for looping paths, wide lawns and groves of trees, or drift west for lawns and woodland. Layered plantings along the east, south and west edges were designed to screen the park from the surrounding city. The northern edge holds the working side of the park, with the caretaker's cottage and greenhouses.
Volunteer Park Conservatory
Make your way to the park's north side, where the Volunteer Park Conservatory stands alongside the greenhouses. Added in 1912 and assembled from a kit bought from the Hitchings Company of New York, this glass house is a designated City of Seattle landmark. Check with Seattle Parks and Recreation for current hours and admission details before you go.
Climb the Water Tower
Built by the Water Department in 1906, the Volunteer Park water tower rewards you with an observation deck. The tower also has a place in local LGBTQ history: during Seattle's first Gay Pride Week in 1974, organized by activist David Neth, the celebrations included singing and roller-skating on the tower.
Art, Monuments and Skyline Views
Seattle Asian Art Museum
The Art Deco museum building almost did not happen. In 1910 Olmsted turned down a proposal from the Washington State Art Association, arguing that a large museum would overwhelm a landscape park. Years later the Fuller family offered to fund a museum for the Seattle Art Institute, the Park Department accepted, and the building opened in 1932.
It housed the Seattle Art Museum until 1991, when a new building opened downtown. The Volunteer Park building then became home to the museum's Asian art collections under the name Seattle Asian Art Museum, and like the conservatory, it is a designated city landmark.
Black Sun, or The Doughnut
Find Isamu Noguchi's sculpture Black Sun, known locally as The Doughnut, and stand nearby for a view of the Seattle skyline with the Space Needle front and center.
Statues and Memorials
- A statue of William H. Seward
- A memorial to Judge Thomas Burke
What to Enjoy Through the Seasons
Summer brings several of the park's features to life. The wading pool runs during the summer months, open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the koi ponds hold fish through the summer as well.
Volunteer Park is also known for its large dahlia garden, well worth timing your visit around when the flowers are in season. Any time of year, spread out a lunch or host a birthday party at the meadows and picnic tables, then use the open lawns for frisbee, touch football and field day games.
Concerts, Theater and Pride
Catch free concerts and outdoor theater here throughout the year, carrying on a long musical tradition. In 1915 the Park Department built a wooden bandshell designed by Seattle architect Carl Gould on the lawn north of the reservoir, a spot Olmsted disliked because it cut into the great lawn. Rotting timbers led to its removal in 1947.
A stage designed by Rich Haag followed in 1971. Work on a replacement amphitheater began in 2021, and it opened in July 2022 with a roof over the stage, storage and a dressing room.
For decades the park has also been a Pride Month gathering place. From the 1980s until 2005, Seattle's Pride Parade traveled along Broadway and ended with a festival in Volunteer Park, and today Trans Pride Seattle and Pride in the Park are yearly events held here during Pride Month.
Plan Your Visit
The main address is 1247 15th Ave E. In the park's early days a streetcar stopped at 15th Avenue East and East Prospect Street, where paths on the east side led visitors into the interior, and that corner is still a natural place to start. From the entrance, the conservatory, the museum and the water tower are all within about a tenth of a mile.
Seattle Parks and Recreation has the most current details on event schedules, conservatory hours and any closures. If you are building a day around gardens, continue on to the Washington Park Arboretum and the Japanese Garden, or browse more ideas in the full list of Seattle parks.
