 Running downhill from the northern slope of the Karangahape ridge, the park was formed in 1914-15 out of an overgrown gully facing towards the Waitematā Harbour.The gully was the start of the Waihorotiu Stream, also known as the 'Queen Street River'.As it followed the route of Queen Street below Victoria Street the open stream became polluted, its lower reaches being little more than an open sewer.