De Waal Park, Urban park and heritage site in Oranjezicht district, Cape Town, South Africa.
De Waal Park is a roughly rectangular public park in Oranjezicht, Cape Town, bordered by Molteno Dam to the south and roads on the other three sides. It holds over 120 tree species, and four tennis courts belonging to the Gardens Tennis Club occupy its south-west corner.
In 1877 the Cape Town City Council bought the Oranjezigt farm from the Van Breda family and split the land into three parts, building two small reservoirs below Camp Street and the Molteno Reservoir below Belvedere Road; the ground between them became a natural park. David Christiaan de Waal, city councillor and member of the Cape Colony's Legislative Council, pushed its development, and as mayor in 1889–1890 he expanded it. It opened officially in 1895, first called Jubilee Park before reverting to its current name.
The park was first called Jubilee Park before reverting to its current name. Its 1899 gates have brick pillars and Art Nouveau iron arches, and a Kei apple hedge was planted along Molteno Road. The bandstand, built for the 1904/5 Cape Town Exhibition in Green Point, was moved here afterwards and used for public performances.
The park is open daily with no entry fee and includes dedicated areas for dogs to exercise. Visitors find seating and pathways throughout that make it easy to explore different sections.
The Victorian fountain is fed by a natural artesian well and supplies the Lower Reservoir No. 2 in Oranjezicht. The bandstand nearby was built for the 1904/5 Cape Town Exhibition in Green Point and moved here once the exhibition closed.
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