Marcus Garvey Park
Photo Credit to Wikipedia
Located between 120th and 124th street on Madison Avenue, Marcus Garvey Park park was opened to the public in 1840. Originally named Mount Morris Park, the name was changed to Marcus Garvey Park in 1973 honoring Marcus Garvey, a crusader for Black Nationalism. The facilities in the park include a recreation center, Amphitheater, swimming pool, playgrounds, a little league baseball field and a dog run. The park also has the Harlem Fire Watchtower, which was built in 1855-1857 to allow observers to use the natural elevation of the park to look for fires. It is the only one of eleven watchtowers to still stand and was designated a landmark in 1967.
Rucker Park in the past
Photo Credit to http://www.americanproject.tv/content/rucker-park-ebc.html
Rucker Park is located at 155th street and Frederick Douglas Boulevard. Holcombe Rucker started a Rucker tournament in the park in 1946. This basketball league was intended to keep kids off the street and provide an organized form for pickup basketball. Today the Rucker tournament is famous worldwide for its players, some of whom even go on to the NBA. Some players that have developed their skills at the park were Julius “Dr. J” Erving, Rafer “Skip to my Lou” Alston and Earl “The Pearl” Monroe. Even players who have already gained fame come back to play in the famous tournament. Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant have both played games here, drawing huge crowds.
However, in recent years, attention has been drawn to tennis in the Harlem area. Thanks to city funding, the PAL tennis center on 143rd street has been newly refurbished. It now features six new hard courts and two other courts with a rubbery surface that can double as basketball courts. Even though real estate prices have rose in the area, the center has managed to survive and thrive in the area. But the center does not just act as a tennis club, it also features classrooms and a computer room for children to learn basics about radio and television. The center will also have a climbing wall and a ropes course for military personnel and will eventually hold gymnastics clinics. While many feared that these new renovations would put tennis second to basketball, but the center has maintained its tennis tradition and improved on its facilities.
