Branch Brook Park, located in Newark, was America's first county park. The park was established in 1895 as the cornerstone of the Essex County Park System. The vision for Branch Brook Park came in 1867, when Newark park commissioners retained Olmsted, Vaux, and Company to identify a site for a park in the city. That vision matured into a reality that is now, 140 years later, woven into the urban experience of Newark and its neighboring towns. The significance of Branch Brook Park has been nationally recognized with its placement on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. Home to the Newark Cherry Blossom Festival, organized long-distance runs and bicycle races, picnics, the Chrysanthemum Show, the New Jersey Symphony Under the Stars, boating on the lake, prom pictures, and sports activities from baseball to bocce to soccer and tennis, Branch Brook Park remains a constant source of great beauty.