Crane Park offers an ideal setting for picnicking, playing tennis or bocce ball, running/walking your dog and taking in some fresh air. Situated just south of Crane and Grayson avenues near St Helena Primary and High Schools. Home to 6 lighted tennis courts, 8 lighted bocce ball courts, 2 Little League baseball fields, 1 sand volleyball court and children’s playgrounds – Crane Park boasts over 12 acres!
Crane Park was first purchased by the city for gravel pits in 1886; but soon became a favorite destination among residents and visitors to stroll its beautiful gardens and admire their beauty. By 1939, Frank Manzullo was hired to restore it back to its former glory.
He was so enthusiastic about flowers that he worked long into the night to maintain an aesthetically pleasing and weed free garden at Crane Park in Michigan in 1940s, drawing in hundreds of thousands of visitors and earning it an award from Michigan Horticultural Society annually for landscape gardening.
The park is also well known for its L-shaped brick road that runs between Westnedge and Grandview Streets, known as Betsey-Ann Place after being known for many years as Dingley Road – although in honor of James Morren’s wife Betsey-Ann Place was changed during this era.
Park features an open and free disc golf course for public use, providing a fun yet challenging way to exercise. There is also a trail that circles around it while skirting some tees and holes – this loop covers about 1.7 miles while another follows Twelve Mile Brook for another two miles.
For more information about St. Helena Park, including parking options, visit the Parks & Recreation Website. You can also get a copy of its brochure at any St. Helena city office or Chamber of Commerce office in St. Helena.
Crane Park Island Nature Reserve is an idyllic place to stroll, bike and relax with children. As part of The Crane Corridor Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation, there is plenty to see and admire here!
Once part of Hounslow Gunpowder Mills, this nature reserve now enjoys protected status as an area of special scientific interest and conservation status from English Nature. A popular cycling route, the area also manages to encourage wildlife such as various fish species and rare Marsh frogs.
This linear park follows the northern bank of the Crane from Meadway in Twickenham to Hanworth Road in Hanworth in West London, featuring important industrial archaeological remains and managed to conserve natural habitat. Opened for public viewing every Sunday afternoon.
Shot Tower, once used as a lead shot factory, now offers an intriguing visitor centre featuring exhibition and education rooms, open on Sunday afternoons as well as special occasions.
