Sakura Park

Description

Sakura Park is a public park located toward the northern end of the Morningside Heights neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City, between Riverside Drive and Claremont Avenue, north of West 122nd Street. Sandwiched between Riverside Church on the south, the Manhattan School of Music on the east, Grant's Tomb on the west, and International House on its northern side, it is a small, but historic, piece of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation's park system.HistoryThe park was originally called Claremont Park after the avenue on its east side, but renamed in 1912 after the Committee of Japanese Residents of New York donated 2,500 cherry blossom trees to the city. The land, originally owned by John D. Rockefeller and purchased by the City of New York for use as an extension of Riverside Park, was landscaped with financial support from Rockefeller, over a two-year period starting in 1932. Directly to the east is Claremont Avenue, which is dramatically lower in elevation, and resulted in a buttressed retaining wall being built during the period that extends the length of the park.