Burnet Park

Welcome to Burnet Park located in Syracuse, New York. This piece of land was first given to the City of Syracuse by it's past owners John and Cynthia Burnet. The donation however, did have the following strings attached:

1. That the land remain as a public park named for the Burnet family.

2. That no alcholic beverages be sold or consumed inside the park and no street or railway ever disect the park grounds.

3. That the City of Syracuse find somebody to map and design the park immediately.

4. That over the next five years $10K be spent on the park's improvement and after that $3K a year for maintenance.

5. That the City of Syracuse build and pave two streets by the park's main entrance by September 1888.

6. The City of Syracuse shall and the Burnet Family shall do their part at the same time.

Numerous battles were fought between the City and the original owners when it appeared that the City of Syracuse failed to meet some of the conditions. It isn't known whether the Burnet family really wanted their land back or whether they were pressuring the City to meet all six conditions but the court ultimately ruled in favor of the City of Syracuse.

The park's design and development began in 1887 by John Bogart and Alfred Egerton and over the next few years the park received over 1,500 feet of sewer pipes, a baseball diamond, a golf course, and a swimming pool, just to name a few. Come on out and have fun!