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Designed by Albert Kahn, the building opened August 18, 1904, and maintains a vast array of succulents, perennials, ferns, palms, lily pond garden, and more. The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, found on the island, is the oldest continually running conservatory in the country. From 1992 to 2001, 20, and from 2012 onward, Belle Isle has hosted the Detroit Grand Prix. The elegant and historic Detroit Yacht Club, as well as the nation’s oldest rowing club - the Detroit Boat Club - are located on the island. Several athletic facilities are available for use, such as baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts and small golf course. There are picnic pavilions, beach access and a playground. Belle Isle boasts a nature center and trail, featuring a large wooded area inhabited by fallow deer. It is home to a Coast Guard station, as well as the William Livingston Memorial Light, the only marble lighthouse in the nation. The park is connected to Detroit by the MacArthur Bridge, and is rich with unique architecture, fountains, statues and manmade lagoons. Some elements from a plan designed by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted were incorporated into the island. It is the country’s largest city island park, and at 982 acres, it is larger than New York City’s Central Park. The strains of an ever-growing urban environment inspired cities to designate space for relaxation and recreation, and Belle Isle, as it became known, was a popular choice to become a park. The City of Detroit purchased the island from the Campau family in 1879 and opened it to the public the following year. The French who settled the island in the 1700s referred to it as “Hog Island,” and allowed public use for keeping animals. Belle Isle is a recreational island park located in the Detroit River.