Ballard Park is a wild and natural open space of 13 acres located near the intersection of Hazard and Wickham Roads, directly across from Rogers High School in Newport, Rhode Island. The park was deeded as a gift to the City of Newport in 1990 by Carol C. Ballard. It has been designated by deed as an area to be used for conservation, education and passive recreation.
Its unique features include two 19th century quarries anda diverse variety of native and introduced plan species. Ballard Park allows for unobtrusive observation of the abutting 54 acre wildlife refuge by providing paths suitable for walking and bird watching.
The park is remarkably diverse. It forms an unfragmented block of habitat and open space with the contiguous 54 acre wildlife refuge, Gooseberry Beach, Newport Country Club and Brenton Point State Park.
In the Spring, Cooper Hawks and Northern Harriers (both state listed species) scan the meadow quarry for prey. Deer use the tall grass of the quarry meadow to bed and turtles amble into the meadow to lay their eggs in the summer months.
In addition to high rocky ledges and thickly wooded ravines, the park is home to a seasonal pond and several small streams. Parts of Ballard park have spectacular views out to the Atlantic Ocean.
Native trees, glades of ferns and wildflowers are also present creating glimpses of Aquidneck Island's 17th century past. In fact, in a city which has been continuously occupied since the earliest Colonial days, Ballard park contains an unusually pristine landscape which has both esthetic and historical value
