Franklin Park

Spanning 527 acres connecting Roxbury, Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan and Roslindale, Franklin Park is a country escape in the heart of the city. Designed by renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, the jewel of the Emerald Necklace has miles of pedestrian paths, ponds and recreation facilities and is also home to Franklin Park Zoo and the second-oldest public 18-hole course in the U.S. Look for relics of the past, like the abandoned bear cages left at the original site of the zoo; and other stone ruins.