Picnic Pavilion

One of three park buildings designed by architects Clinton L. Vivian and Arthur Gibb, apprentices to prominent Ithaca architect William Henry Miller, the Picnic Pavilion was constructed around 1895 as part of an Italianate-inspired architectural theme, with peristyle columned porch and semi-circular door and window features. The Picnic "large" Pavilion was the second building finishished in what was then called Renwick Park.

After an initial push from volunteers and the Ithaca Beer Company, restoration of this beautiful pavilion was completed after a 5 year collaborative effort between Friends of Stewart Park, the City of Ithaca, Tompkins County Tourism Program, the Town of Ithaca, and many private donors. The Picnic Pavilion is a popular venue for parties, events, weddings, and ceremonies and is rentable from spring to early fall through the Ithaca Youth Bureau. You may explore more Picnic Pavilion history on the interpretive sign on the northwest corner of the building.

In 2025, an addition was built to the back of the Picnic Pavilion. This addition allows storage for the Ithaca Youth Bureau's Stewart Park Day Camp to move from the Wharton Studio Building to the Picnic Pavilion. This consolidates camp function into one building with safer and easier to access storage while freeing up the old storage space to become the Wharton Studio & Cafe.