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Playground Guide: Mount Vernon Park in Lawrence

By Lindsey Stelzig, Contributing Writer June 15, 2022

Mount Vernon Park
Mount Vernon St.
Lawrence, MA 01843

https://www.cityoflawrence.com/facilities/facility/details/Mount-Vernon-Park-18


Date/Time Visited: Thursday, May 26, 2022 1pm

Bathrooms: yes but at the time of my visit they were locked

Parking: Parking lot for over 100 vehicles

Shade: not really

Benches/Tables: Yes

Additional Features: 4 baseball diamonds, walking path, basketball court


Mount Vernon Park is tucked back in the trees of the quiet neighborhood of Mount Vernon and is probably the best maintained park in Lawrence.  When you pull in, you will enter a large parking lot. When there are baseball games going on, the lot fills up, but if you go during school time or times without games you will have plenty of parking to choose from.



There is a concession stand, open for baseball games, and 2 bathrooms in the same building, both of which were locked at my visit. I’ve visited other times and they’ve never been unlocked so I assume they only unlock them for games.



My kids love running the bases of baseball fields, so this is a great park for that. There are 4 baseball fields, and bleachers around them (which are pretty fun to climb as well!) as well as several benches.  A paved walking path encircles the fields so this would be a great place to push smaller kids in a stroller.





There is also a full court basketball court! This would be a fun area to bring some chalk, bikes, scooters, rollerblades, etc, if you are not basketball players.

Now to the fun part! You will walk down a path from the left of the parking lot along the woods. There are two metal benches facing the playground and swings. My oldest LOVES this playground. To be honest, it is more suited to older kids than younger ones. It consists of one main structure and a group of 3 swings. The main part of the playground is constructed of multiple ladders, thick twisted rope, netting, and a few other parts. If you have a kid that enjoys climbing, this is definitely a great destination. 



I’d guess that the highest part of the playground is about 10 feet and the lower climbing parts are closer to 4-5 feet off the ground. My 4 year old and 2 year old could not really participate much, mainly due to short legs on the 2 year old and nervousness from the 4 year old. The ground underneath the playground is rubber, which provides some cushioning in case of a fall. There is also a green plastic swing that can be climbed onto from the netting. There is also a trashcan next to the playground so be sure to clean up after yourself!



On the swingset, two of the swings are just your typical chain swings with plastic seats. On one side of those swings is a fun circular spider web swing. This one  attaches to the top at 2 points with 4 ropes holding it so plenty of room for hands to hold on. I do wish there were bucket seats to give the littlest kids something to do.



All in all I’d say this is a park better suited to kids a little bit on the older side but we made it work with the younger ones.


Lindsey Stelzig is a homeschooling mom of four in Lawrence. She loves reading, hiking, and playing board games with her family. 



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