Big Spring Park, park in Huntsville, Alabama
Big Spring Park is a park in downtown Huntsville, Alabama, built around a natural spring that flows from deep underground with significant daily volume. The grounds feature walking paths, benches, fountains, and historic monuments, along with international features including a red Japanese bridge and ornamental cherry trees.
John Hunt chose the spring as the site for a new town more than 200 years ago, establishing a community originally called Hunt's Spring. The area became historically significant when it hosted the first public water system west of the Appalachian Mountains starting in 1823, demonstrating the spring's importance to the city's growth.
The park is known as Big Spring International Park and celebrates friendship with different countries through gifts from around the world. A bench from the UK, a sundial from Germany, and a red Japanese bridge with cherry trees mark its commitment to cultural exchange that visitors experience when walking through the grounds.
The park is located in central Huntsville near the courthouse, making it easy to walk through with paved paths and seating areas throughout. Parking is available nearby, and visitors can easily combine a visit with other downtown activities and nearby dining options.
The spring produces millions of gallons of water daily, enough to fill many swimming pools, and was considered the best water source in the world by one of Huntsville's early leaders in 1815. An early 1800s canal system connected the spring to the Tennessee River, allowing traders to ship cotton to larger markets before railroads took over this role.
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