History
Ann Arbor's city parks sit on the ancestral and traditional homelands of several indigenous Native peoples. Read a
land acknowledgement from the city and learn more about the early history of the land
here.
When is a square really a triangle? When it's Hanover Square Park in Ann Arbor morphing through time! Ann Arbor's oldest park was true to its name when first created some time between 1824 and 1836. It started as a square and was located where Packard Road ended at the time. The dedication of the land for use as a public park didn't take place until 1859. In 1925, a portion of the land was deeded to the Board of Education (for a property exchange), as the W.S. Perry school for girls that was next to the park had already been using that portion. These circumstances redrew and shrunk the park's boundaries, turning its larger square into the current triangle.
Hanover Square in 1964
The park had play equipment and was used as a children's playground until 1968. At this time, the play equipment was removed, and it took shape as the grassy park that it is today. The "Arbor Sapientiae" sculpture, created by Ronald Bauer, was installed at a different site in 1979, kept in storage for a few years, and then relocated to Hanover Square in 1984. The plaque at the sculpture was installed in 1986 with help from the artist.
Read a more detailed history of the park
here.
