Rice Park is located in Downtown St. Paul between the Landmark Center and the St. Paul Central Library. The park is approximately 2 acres in size and features a water fountain, a bandstand and an ice rink in the winter.
Before it became a park, Rice Park was used as an open space to dry laundry and graze animals. The land was eventually designated as a "public square" in 1849 by John R. Irvine, a territorial pioneer, and Henry M. Rice, territorial delegate and United States senator. Named after early Minnesota Senator Henry M. Rice, the park sits atop a small hill where glacial melt failed to erode completely. The park was essentially ignored until 1860 when Mayor John S. Prince procured shade trees to enhance the grounds. The 1870s marked the park’s first amenities, which included a fountain, a bandstand, and even a pair of squirrels given by the chief of police in Memphis, Tennessee as an act of goodwill. Eventually, electric lights were installed in 1883 on behalf of the visitation of President Chester A. Arthur, Generals Ulysses S. Grant, and William Tecumseh Sherman, at the opening of Northern Pacific's West Coast rail line. Construction of the historic buildings, museums, and music halls that eventually bordered the park spanned nearly 100 years. Due to the site’s rich culture and historical significance, Rice Park has been honored as a Great Place in America by the American Planning Association in 2011.
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