Chastain Park Information

Chastain Park is a vibrant community with wonderful amenities. Chastain Park is the largest park and one of the most popular parks in the city of Atlanta, used for a variety of recreational and cultural activities. It is the centerpiece of the vision of former County Commissioner Troy Chastain for the development of North Fulton County in the early 1940's. It was through the efforts of Chastain, his fellow commissioners and local business leaders that the Park was created and it remains very similar to the purpose envisioned more than 50 years ago.

Originally named North Fulton Park, Chastain Park was dedicated to the memory of Troy Green Chastain on September 25, 1946. Chastain was a member of the Fulton County Commission from 1938 to 1942 when the majority of the Park was developed. Chastain Park came under the ownership of the city of Atlanta as part of the 1952 Plan of Improvement, annexing much of North Fulton County into the city limits. From 1946 to 1952, the Park did not change significantly, however, from 1984 to the present, several major changes have occurred prompted by the 1984 Master Plan. These changes are mentioned in this section and in the recommendation section of the Master Plan Update

Chastain Park currently totals 268 acres. The remainder of the original approximate 1000 acres was sold for development in the 1940's. To encourage residential development in North Fulton, the County Commission decided to provide a major recreation facility on the farmland. Many of the current facilities including the pool, bathhouse, stables, picnic areas and lakes were built under their direction in the 1940's by the WPA and labor from the prison farm.

Today's Park remains true to Troy Chastain's vision and is a tribute to his foresight. Chastain suffered a heart attack in 1942 and died three years later on August 25, 1945. The Fulton County Commission voted to name the Park in his honor and officially dedicated it in September 1946. Throughout the development no formal master plan or design was ever executed. Mr. Chastain is remembered as saying he was "imagining" what this park would look like. The Park essentially was developed as Troy Chastain imagined. The only major additions to the Park since his death are the ball fields in 1952, the gymnasium in 1972 and the PATH system built in 1995 and expanded in 1998.