Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

On our way to Virginia, we made a stop at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, one of the more unusual units of the National Park Service. Located along the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C., it is the only national park devoted to the cultivation and display of aquatic plants. During the summer, the ponds come alive with blooming water lilies and lotus flowers, creating a peaceful natural setting in the middle of a busy urban area

The gardens trace their origins to the 1880s when Civil War veteran Walter B. Shaw began growing water lilies and lotus plants on the marshy property. His collection became so well known that visitors traveled from around the country to see the spectacular blooms. In 1938, the federal government acquired the property, and it has since been preserved by the National Park Service as Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens.

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens is one of the sites managed by National Capital Parks – East, an administrative unit of the National Park Service established to care for many of the federal parklands east of the U.S. Capitol. In addition to Kenilworth, National Capital Parks – East includes Anacostia Park, the Civil War Defenses of Washington, Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm, and Greenbelt Park in nearby Maryland. Together these sites protect more than 8,000 acres of natural, historical, and recreational resources, offering a different perspective on the nation’s capital beyond its familiar monuments and museums.

As we continued our journey south, this quiet stop provided an opportunity to experience another side of the National Park System. Rather than commemorating a historic event or preserving a battlefield, Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens protects a unique wetland ecosystem and the legacy of one man’s vision to cultivate some of the world’s most beautiful aquatic plants in the heart of Washington.