the greenwood park plats historic district is a nationally recognized historic district located in des moines, iowa, united states. it was listed on the national register of historic places in 2013. at the time of its nomination the district consisted of 393 resources, including 277 contributing buildings, one contributing site, 109 non-contributing buildings, and six non-contributing structures. most of this district was originally known as brown's park, a private park that was the location of the iowa state fair from 1879 to 1885. founded privately in 1854, the fair was held in several locations in the state making it more of a regional event. it was also not profitable. that changed when the fair moved to this location, and its profitability eventually led to funding from the iowa general assembly and a permanent location on the east side of the city. brown's park continued for a while longer and the streetcar line from des moines opened in 1889.