Brown Square

Beginnings

Named for the entrepreneurial Brown brothers who first developed the power of the Genesee River at High Falls for commercial purposes, Brown Square Park was the earliest public land to be designated as a city park, around the turn of the twentieth century, and first to be used as a public playground. When it was deeded to the City, it was with the stipulation that if it were used for anything other than a public park, it would revert to the family of the original owners. Situated just north of Frontier Field, it is a shady refuge in the midst of a busy urban area. 

Designs by John Olmsted, FLO’s son, were drawn up but according to an article in the Democrat & Chronicle in 1976, they were never implemented. However, some of the elements of the original design can still be seen, so certainly an Olmsted influence survives: a field house, a broad grassy semicircular lawn, and remnants of a wading pool in the form of a weedy amphitheater.

Things to Know About or Notice

Used as a public gathering space from as early as the mid-nineteenth century for military exercises, it was also famous for being the site where presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan spoke in 1896. In more modern times, it began to be used for festivals and concerts, beginning with its use as the site of the first Puerto Rican festival in 1970. In 1977, it was redeveloped and rededicated in celebration of the nation’s Bicentenntal, 1976-77. A handsome stone marker signifying that event is located in the park. One of its primary uses currently is as a dog park where volunteers walk the dogs who live across the street in the Verona St. Shelter, waiting to be adopted. Brown Square Park is rich in history and in its abundance of statuesque trees. 

Changes

Alongside the park in the 19th century, houses were built for Irish immigrants who were later joined by Italians who emigrated for a better life in the New World. Many of these Italian immigrants went on to sponsor relatives or friends who followed them to Rochester, and the area became known for its close-knit large families who watched out for one another from their front porches.

During urban renewal in the 1960s, many of the 19th century homes were razed while others were removed when neighborhood businesses expanded. Yet, some of the residents who remained, grandchildren of the early residents, still hoped that the old neighborhood could be resurrected.

For 30 years, the Brown Square Neighborhood Association has been active through community action and support. It lobbied the city for new home construction, and while it waited, filled several empty lots with flower gardens. It encouraged renters to become homeowners and monitored absentee landlords. Some Kodak divisions still operate out of the Kodak tower, but much of the headquarters, once a powerful neighborhood presence, has been turned over to the downtown campus of Monroe Community College. Nearby, Frontier Field is the home of the Rochester Red Wings and attracts many visitors from outside the city limits to home games.