Wilcox Park was the 1898 bequest of Harriet Wilcox, widow of
Stephen Wilcox. The latter invented the non-explosive boiler and founded, along with fellow West'lyan Herman Babcock, the giant engineering firm of
Babcock & Wilcox, and was a major funder of the
Romanesque Westerly Library, which faces the park and was built in 1892. Wilcox Park was designed in 1898 by
Warren H. Manning, who had been until 1896 an associate of
Frederick Law Olmsted, and originally dominated by plants native to the region. However, in the 1960s efforts began to develop the park as an arboretum. Current specialties include a dwarf
conifer garden,
herb garden, garden of the senses, and
perennial garden, set off by fine Westerly granite masonry designed by landscape architect
Arthur Shurcliff in 1929–1930. The park contains a number of monuments and memorials including the Wilcox Memorial Fountain (1930), designed by
John Francis Paramino and given in honor of Harriet and Stephen Wilcox. One tree was planted in memory of boxing champion
Rocky Marciano. Today, Wilcox Park is privately operated by the Westerly Library and Wilcox Park's board of trustees. Both paid staff and volunteers are responsible for the upkeep of the grounds. In 2006 the board announced a plan to restore the park's original character by replacing the many walkways and the aging path lights. The park is the location of the Summer Pops by the
Chorus of Westerly (since 1980) and the Shakespeare in the Park productions by the Colonial Theatre. ==Gallery==