Friends Park was purchased by The Society of Friends in 1836 to use as a burial ground. It was previously part of William Shoebridge's Providence Valley Farm. About 60 people were buried here, including George Washington Walker, the founder of the Hobart Savings Bank. The cemetary closed in 1912. The land was first used as a childrens playground in 1926. Many of the old headstones can still be seen around the edges of the park.
The Friends Park sculpture is a huge cypress pine radiating four massive branches, one of which is 9½m tall.
While the sculpture is set in an old Quakers’ cemetery, Roland Gabatel decided to re-create something he had once seen in a documentary of people releasing birds into the air to make a wish.
He turned the four branches into four soaring beings releasing birds – the artwork giving the park and former cemetery a calm and tranquil feel.
“It’s supposed to make you feel good and I think releasing the birds is a good image for a cemetery, I think the piece goes really well in the setting,” Roland says.
To log this virtual geocache, please follow these steps:
- Visit the park and find the sculpture.
- Take a picture of the sculpture. You can choose to include yourself or an item that identifies your caching persona in the photo, but this is optional.
- Attach the photo to your online log.
Note that Find logs without a picture will be deleted.
Above all, please respect the location and enjoy a rest in a tranquil location close to the city. There is an enclosed childrens playground and also a picnic table with shade provided in the park.
Public transport stops at the park and there are toilets at the site.
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.