Ball Nurses' Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park

Ball Nurses' Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park is a historic park and garden located on the campus of IU Health University Hospital at Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It was designed between 1929 and 1934 by Percival Gallagher, principal landscape architect for the Olmsted Brothers. The Ball Nurses' Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park were constructed between 1930 and 1940.^[2]

Ball Nurses' Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Ball Nurses' Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park in 2022
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Location	Bounded by Ball Hall, Rotary Bldg., Riley Hospital Dr., and Eskenazi Ave., Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
Coordinates	39°46′35″N 86°10′56″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1930 (1930)-1940
Architect	Gallagher, Percival; Olmsted Brothers
NRHP reference No.	96001008[1]
Added to NRHP	September 25, 1996

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.^[3]

History

Following the construction of the James Whitcomb Riley Children's Hospital in 1921, the Riley Memorial Association convinced the City of Indianapolis to purchase property east of site for a convalescent park.^[4] The Riley Memorial Association first discussed buying the land for a convalescent park with the City of Indianapolis as early 1921.^[5]

The garden was designed by Percival Gallagher, architect for the Olmstead Brothers, between 1929 and 1934 as a therapeutic greenspace for convalescence care. George A. Ball donated $10,000 to help improve the landscape around the Ball Residence for Nurses.^[6] This garden is the only remaining public garden designed by the Olmstead Brothers in Indianapolis and the only Olmstead Brothers therapeutic greenhouse on an urban medical campus in the United States.^[7] In 1947, the Nurses’ Alumnae Association donated the Robert Davidson sculpture known as Eve, which would become the centerpiece of the central pool.^[8]

Ball Garden was listed on the National Register for Historic Places in 1996 under criterion c for its embodiment of masterful landscape architecture.^[8] In 2016, the Ball Garden were rededicated by Indiana University President Michael McRobbie, Chancellor Nasser Paydar, and the Indiana University School of Nursing Dean Robin Newhouse.^[9] The garden lies in between the Rotary Building to the north, the Ball Residence Hall and Ball Annex to the south.

See also

• Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis Public Art Collection

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. "Welcome to SHAARD". secure.in.gov. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
3. National Park Service (July 9, 2010). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places.
4. Schneider, William H. (2021). The Indiana University School of Medicine: A History. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. pp. 104–105.
5. "Indianapolis Times 13 August 1921 — Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program". newspapers.library.in.gov. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
6. Flowers, Leslie (2014). Leslie. A legacy of leadership: Indiana University School of Nursing, 1914-2014. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press. p. 37.
7. “Ball Nurses’ Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park.” Indiana University Bicentennial. Accessed August 29, 2023. https://200.iu.edu/signature-projects/heritage-art-campus/heritage-preservation1/ball-garden.html .
8. National Register for Historic Places, and Patrick R. Ralston, National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Nurses’ Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park § (1996).National Register for Historic Places, and Patrick R. Ralston, National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Nurses’ Sunken Garden and Convalescent Park § (1996).
9. "Restored Ball Garden to be rededicated, adding historic flavor to welcoming campus". news. June 14, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2023.