Brookes Park: A Great Spot for Photos in Hazelwood

Every park has its virtues. Some parks are great for walking or biking. Others for fishing or canoeing. Still others for turning kids loose on the playground. And others still for simply being in nature.

Some parks have the virtue of being a perfect fit for a postcard. These are the parks where moms take prom photos, or a young couple finds a backdrop for their annual pictures. Brookes Park, located in North County, is just such a park, and it even has a little history to go with it.

Getting There

Brookes Park sits on Brookes Drive in Hazelwood (Google Maps link), in view of Interstate 270. To reach the park, most people will take 270 to N. Lindbergh Blvd. (U.S. 67) southbound in Hazelwood, driving a short distance before turning right onto Utz Lane, then right again onto Brookes Drive. The park is on the tail end of Brookes Drive, past multiple Bommarito car dealerships. You can’t miss the park, as the road dead-ends right into it.

Parking

There are a handful of parking spots outside the park, which are free. The park is almost never busy so finding parking isn’t likely to be a problem.

Costs and Considerations

The park is open daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. There are a few rules in place, including no motorized vehicles, alcohol by permit only, no golf, animals must be on a leash, and hard ball playing by permit only.

The no golf rule, in case you’re curious, may have to do with the fact that there is a large expanse of grass in the middle of the park.

Like most city parks, there’s no cost to go here. Some facilities, including the Knobbe House and Gazebo (Pavilion), may be reservable by calling the Hazelwood Community Center.

Things to Do

The park consists of three main sections: the front, the middle, and the back.

The front side of the park holds a few buildings, connected together by brick pathways. Structures in the front include:

• Knobbe House. Located on the left side of the park from the parking lot, this farmhouse was originally built in the mid-1800s west of what is now Village Square on the north side of 270 west of Lindbergh. According to the historical marker next to the entrance, Knobbe House was moved to Brookes Park in 1995 and restored in 2007 for use in community rental and social events, and is also home to Hazelwood’s economic development office.

• Little Red School House. Across from Knobbe House, on the right side of the park from the parking lot, this one-room schoolhouse life as the Old Elm Grove School in 1852. The school closed a century later, in 1952, after the organization of the Hazelwood School District and was moved to Brookes Park in 1966, where it was reconstructed to reflect its appearance in the 1890s.

• The Gazebo. This pavilion sits midway between Knobbe House and the Little Red School House. It features picnic tables and trash cans.

• Utz-Teson House. More formally known as the Stuart-Utz-Teson House, this two-story dog-trot house is just past the Little Red School House. The house enjoys a colorful history that includes ownership by the stepson of St. Louis founder Pierre Laclede, two families with connections to the Confederacy during the Civil War, and a family who owned it for most of the 20th century. The house was relocated from Utz Lane to Brookes Park in September of 2003.

You can also find some interpretive displays on a structure near the Utz-Teson House.

The middle part of the park is dominated by an open grassy field that also includes

•  Restrooms. They’re old and basic, but there are single-person facilities for men and women.

• A garden. I spotted a garden near the farmhouse. I’m not sure if it’s a small community garden or is tended to by the city.

At the back of the park sits a single structure.

•  The playground. It’s a familiar design, with slides, climbing structures, and swings. Benches line the area around the playground, and trees provide partial shade.

Our Thoughts

Brookes Park isn’t a walking park, per say, as the pathways here are minimal and the park itself isn’t large. What it lacks in walkways, though, it makes up with in photogenic charm and local history. The park affords places to snap some lovely photos and read up on buildings that call back to previous centuries. The front part of the park also offers shaded spots to sit. The middle and the back of the park are less impressive, but the playground is functional and the grassy middle section isn’t a bad spot to let kids run around.

In short, Brookes is a hidden gem nestled on a corner of the interstate that is worth looking at, especially if you’re looking for a place to set some pictures.