Old Church Park in Helsinki, Finland, contains a cemetery that has been gradually transformed into a park. With wide open paths, benches and a playground, the park has become as popular as all the other parks in the city center. In doing so, Old Church Park represents what it can mean for a space to be transformed into something new for the benefit of an entire community.
From a Dreary Cemetery to a Hub of Activity
In 1710, Helsinki was struck by the plague, killing 1,185 out of a total population of less than three thousand residents. Victims of this plague were buried in the area, although it wasn’t until 1786 that the Parish of Helsinki decided to establish a cemetery outside of town. The cemetery that was inaugurated in 1790 is now the Old Church Park, despite the church not being constructed until 1826.
The cemetery was gradually transformed into a park maintained by the parish, although the parish discontinued burials in the Old Church Cemetery in 1829. The space was neglected after the cemetery was closed and became overgrown.
The park/cemetary was transferred to the City of Helsinki in 1900, at which time the present paths were created and paved gutters were added along the main paths. Two additional graves were added at this time, along with a monument erected in 1919 in memory of the Finnish volunteers who fell in the Estonian war of independence. The monument is a cube cut from red granite with dedications in Estonian, Finnish and Swedish. tThe names of the fallen are inscribed in the stone.
However, the space would once again come to be neglected and overgrown. In 1998 another round of renovations took place as gravestones were cleaned, the cast-iron lamps were restored and their wiring renewed. During the renovation a children’s playground that was added in the 1980’s was separated from the side of the church, making it possible to walk around the building unobstructed. The main archway was also restored during this time.
These efforts have seen the park become a popular place for people to relax and take in the scenery. It has also become a spot that hosts small events throughout the year, especially on the Night of the Arts in August. However, these events are just part of how Old Church Park has had an impact on the community.
Engaging with the Surroundings
Old Church Park has become one of the most popular green areas in the center of Helsinki, competing with numerous other green spaces that have been designed around far more engaging elements. The gravestones in Old Church Park remind visitors of the history of cemeteries in this part of Helsinki but also provide those same visitors with numerous ways to engage with the present-day community.
The CLT Plant installation is a prototype where a single CLT (cross-laminated timber) plate is converted into a small space with zero waste. Simple CNC-routed shapes allow unfolding an 11 x 3m cross-laminated timber plate into a volumetric entity. It is one of the many installations that appear inside Old Church Park throughout the year.
The pathways, play areas and benches throughout Old Church Park further showcase where and how visitors can relax in the space and view it as much more than a cemetery. This sort of engagement has allowed it to become featured in maps and other guides to the city, illustrating what can happen when a space that might otherwise be forgotten or avoided actively encourages interaction from both residents and visitors.
The Legacy of Transformation
Like other cemeteries that have come to serve as genuine attractions, Old Church Park showcases what it can mean when what would otherwise just be a cemetery that was ignored, removed or built around becomes something so much more. By creating numerous experiences for visitors, Old Church has come to represent how spaces can be transformed for the benefit of an entire community.
