History

Waveny Park in New Canaan, Connecticut was originally a grand summer estate owned by Thomas Wells Hall from 1894 to 1904. The Carriage Barn and Powerhouse were built during this period. In 1904, Lewis Henry Lapham, a co-founder of the Texaco Oil Company, bought the property as a summer estate from Hall, renamed it Waveny, and expanded it from 280 acres to 450 acres. Lapham tore down Hall’s house and had a new one built in 1912 by the renowned architect William B. Tubby. The landscape design for the property was by the Olmsted Brothers Firm, sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., who designed Central Park.

In 1967, Ruth Lapham Lloyd, who inherited the estate from her father and lived there full-time, entrusted the entire estate, including Waveny House, to the Town of New Canaan. Today, the park consists of 300 acres (1.2 km2) of fields, ponds, and trails.

Lewis Henry Lapham

Youth Ruth Lapham Lloyd

The park is bordered by Farm Road to the North, the Merritt Parkway to the South, South Avenue to the East and Lapham Road to the West. Over the years, numerous additional structures have been built or re-purposed on parts of the property.

The park contains approximately 3.5 miles of jogging/walking trails, soccer, baseball and softball fields, picnic areas, Waveny Park Swimming Facility, artificial turf Water Tower Field and lots of open space. Waveny Park also contains the PowerHouse Performing Arts Center, The Carriage Barn Art Center, Spencer’s Run Dog Park, Lapham Community Center and The Waveny Lodge and Platform Tennis Courts.

Waveny Park Conservancy

Waveny Park Conservancy is a tax exempt 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

Waveny Park Conservancy
PO Box 944
New Canaan, CT 06840