Sewallcrest Park is a trusted neighborhood park for its old-fashioned, dusty baseball diamond and playground equipment.

Dr. DeNorval Unthank was a Portlander by way of Pennsylvania, Kansas City, and Washington D.C. Throughout his career as a doctor, he worked at Good Samaritan, Providence, St Vincent, and Emanuel Hospitals, as well as starting his own practice. An important figure in the early civil rights movement in Portland, Unthank opened many doors and opportunities for other minorities, winning several awards, breaking down racial barriers, and serving as the president of the local chapter of the NAACP.

Mt. Tabor is an extinct volcanic cinder cone whose name was borrowed from a mountain six miles east of Nazareth in Israel. Portland is one of only three cities in the US to have a volcano in its city limits.

The International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park is the oldest public rose test garden in the US and is home to over 7,000 roses of around 550 varieties. New types of roses are sent to the garden from all over the world and are tested for color, fragrance, disease resistance and other attributes.

Colonel Owen Summers was a commanding officer of the Spanish-American War who later became an Oregon legislator. He introduced the bill that led to the creation of the Oregon National Guard. There is a relief carving of him in a large rock in the southwestern corner of the park where you can view him in all his mustachioed glory.

William Ladd came out west and settled in Oregon during the California Gold Rush. Today at the gardens, you can find over 3,000 roses of sixty different varieties. He came to be a prominent businessman and eventually Mayor of Portland. In 1891, he decided to subdivide his land into a diagonal street system surrounding a central park. That area is now known as Ladd's Addition, and it is one of the most unique neighborhoods in the city.

Ulysses S. Grant visited Portland three times in his life, which is quite a feat considering that it was before the times of standardized air and rail travel.

Elk Rock Island is actually located in Milwaukie, OR, but was gifted to the city of Portland by the island's owner Peter Kerr. Kerr wanted Portland to “preserve it as a pretty place for all to enjoy.”

The island was formed by the eruption of an ancient volcano roughly 40 millions years ago. Lava flows shaped the large jagged rocks that may be some of the oldest exposed rock in the area. The island is only accesible by land when the water levels are low by way of the Spring Park Trailhead, otherwise a canoe or kayak is needed.

Buckman Field was re-fitted last year with all-weather synthetic turf and brand new stadium lights. But be wary about using the track for running: the southeastern corner runs by VooDoo Doughnut's east-side location (unless the smell of fresh doughnuts is motivation for your workout).

This little park is known for its big steep hill behind the baseball diamond. On hot summer days, you might find a super-sized slip-n-slide set up on the slope.

This park was requested by both Dan Lesage and Justin Holbrook.

Laurelhurst Park was named the most beautiful park on the west coast in 1919 by the Pacific Coast Parks Association, and in 2001 became the first city park to be named on the National Register of Historic Places. The design of the park by Emanuel Mische was based on the principles of Frederick Law Olmsted, the father of American landscape architecture. The park is divided into many sections (the concert grove, Firwood Lake, children's lawn, plateau and broad meadows, picnic grove, and Rhododendron Hill) to create a Picturesque journey with a different view at every turn.

Peninsula Park is home to the city's first public rose garden. Around 100 varieties of roses are grown in the plots surrounding the nearly 100-year-old fountain. The park is also home to Portland's second oldest playground and a gazebo-like octagonal bandstand that dates back to 1913. It is now a popular place for beautiful summer weddings and concerts.