Jimmy Melrose Park

Jimmy Melrose Park is a small foreshore park on South Esplanade in Glenelg, positioned in front of the Stamford Grand. Its main facilities are a grassed area and seating benches, making it a straightforward place to pause beside the coast, sit outdoors or enjoy the open foreshore setting. The park is part of the City of Holdfast Bay’s network of parks and beaches, with Glenelg’s wider coastal area nearby.

The park’s most distinctive feature is the Jimmy Melrose Memorial, a bronze head-and-shoulder bust by artist Ken Martin. It honours Charles James ‘Jimmy’ Melrose, a Glenelg-raised aviator who established Australian and world flying records during a short but notable career. Melrose died in 1936, aged 22, when his aircraft broke up during a charter flight from Melbourne to Darwin. The memorial gives the park a strong local connection and adds historical interest to a simple foreshore stop.

Nearby, the Rhythm sculpture is described by the City of Holdfast Bay as an iconic Glenelg artwork and is thought to be the area’s first public artwork commissioned by the former City of Glenelg, in 1978. Created around the idea of two intersecting waves, it offers another reason to take a closer look at the foreshore. With its open grassed space, benches, memorial and public art, Jimmy Melrose Park suits a quiet solo visit, a short stop during a coastal outing or an easy break for couples and small groups. It has a Google rating of 4.5 from 296 reviews.