Wilson Park in Poznań

A park in Poznań's Łazarz district once had a statue of a US president sculpted by Gutzon Borglum – the same artist who carved the presidents' faces into Mount Rushmore. The Germans destroyed the statue, but Wilson Park still tells an interesting story: from a municipal tree nursery to Poznań's first botanical garden and on to a listed park with the Poznań Palm House.

History: from nursery to a president's park

It all began in 1834, when the Society for the Beautification of the City set up a nursery here for the ornamental trees and shrubs used to plant Poznań's streets. In the early 20th century the city turned it into a botanical garden designed by Herman Kube and completed in 1904 – with a landscape section in the English style (a pond, a rock garden and a small peninsula for relaxing) and a formal section with flower beds and plant collections. In 1910 the Palm House was built in the park for the East German Exhibition.

In the mid-1920s the garden was renamed after Thomas Woodrow Wilson, the president who, influenced by Ignacy Jan Paderewski, backed Polish independence. On 4 July 1931 a statue by Borglum, funded by Paderewski, was unveiled here. From 1951 to 1990 the park was named after the socialist activist Marcin Kasprzak, and a monument to him replaced Wilson's. After the old name returned, a bust of Wilson by Zofia Trzcińska-Kamińska was put up in 1994.

What to see

• The pond and the landscape section – the most picturesque part of the former botanical garden.
• The Perseus and Andromeda sculpture, cast in 1891 – once part of a fountain on today's Cyryl Ratajski Square, moved to the park in 1956.
• The 1936 concert shell and the entrance gate with sculptures by Edward Haupt.
• Wilson's bust and a boulder with a plaque, re-unveiled in 2024 (first placed on 4 July 1926).
• Natural monuments – including a plane tree and a ginkgo, designated in 2025.

The park covers 7.2 ha and is on the heritage register. Among its old trees, a plane tree with a trunk girth of about 410 cm stands out.

The Palm House – important before you go

The Poznań Palm House, the main attraction within the park, is currently temporarily closed to visitors for reconstruction (as of October 2026). The park paths themselves are free to use; according to available information the park closes at night at 22:00 and reopens at 5:00.

Tripto tip

A walk through the park takes 30–60 minutes. Enter through the main gate with its sculptures, walk round the pond and look into the formal section with its former botanical beds. The park is close to the Poznań International Fair grounds, making it a good break between exhibition halls. If the Palm House is the reason for your visit, check its website first to see whether the reconstruction has finished.