Jenks Park And Cogswell Tower

Originally the site of an Indian observation point used during the late-seventeenth-century King Phillip's War, this small, 4-acre park was the gift of Alvin Jenks to the city in which his progenitors had pioneered the manufacture of textile machinery. The designer of the park is unknown. Despite the loss of many of the park’s elements (its fish ponds for example), it retains the Fales and Jenks’ iron umbrellas, the the tall clock tower and its rambling, picturesque walkways. The tower, a gift of Caroline Cogswell and designed by Albert Humes, has been the symbol of the city since its construction in 1904. Cogswell Tower is eighteen feet square and nearly seventy feet tall, with a clock face on each of its four sides. Observation balconies with iron rails under each of the clocks provide an unparalleled view of the city. The tower is supported by a brick barrel vault resting atop the historic Dexter’s Ledge, from which, it is said, Pierce’s progress was observed by his Indian enemies before they met in battle at the river’s edge. The tower’s lower level is surrounded by a pergola of delicate iron work.