Riverside Park History Continued:

After 1890, a carriage lane and walking paths were created, stone bridges were constructed, and ornamentals were planted, including camphor trees. By 1907, Riverside Park was one of the prettiest parks in the southern U.S. with picture postcards capturing the beauty.

Tennis courts and a bandstand were built, attracting even more people to the Park's natural features. When Margaret Street was laid out, it cut off the southwest corner of the Park, and the north side of the property was used by Interstate 95, reducing the parcel to its current 11.4 acres. A city-owned brick storage warehouse was constructed on the Park property along College Street in 1940, which is no longer used. A camellia garden was planted in 1967 by the Jacksonville Men's Garden Club.

The Riverside Avondale Preservation (RAP) group, founded in the mid-1970s, made numerous park improvements over the years, and when high winds uprooted and toppled 52 trees in 1997, city employees and RAP volunteers worked together to restore the park. Amenities include a basketball court, playground, bike racks, spring-fed lake, and the adjacent John Gorrie Dog Park.