Murray Hill in Jacksonville, Florida

Murray Hill is a neighborhood in west Jacksonville whose Murray Hill Heights core began as a 1907 replat of an older subdivision.

The City of Jacksonville explains that Murray Hill Heights is a 1907 replat of the northern section of the Edgewood subdivision, which was platted in the 1880s. City park pages place the neighborhood in west and southwest Jacksonville: Murray Hill Playground sits in the Murray Hill section of west Jacksonville, and the Murray Hill Art Center at Herbert Bayer sits in the Murray Hill Heights section of southwest Jacksonville.

The City park and school addresses cited on this page all carry the 32205 ZIP code. The Powers Park page fixes one corner of the neighborhood by street names, placing that park two blocks northwest of the McDuff Avenue and Post Street intersection, and the Murray Hill Playground page places Ruth N. Upson Elementary just northwest of the playground on Kingsbury Street.

Murray Hill incorporated as a town in 1916 and remained a separate municipality until its annexation by the City of Jacksonville in 1925.

The City of Jacksonville records those dates on more than one of its park pages, and the Four Corners Park page repeats them in the same words, the town of Murray Hill incorporated in 1916 and remained a separate municipality until its annexation by the City of Jacksonville in 1925. The neighborhood's park land was assembled across those same years and after: the City acquired the Four Corners Park property in six deeds between 1925 and 1939, bought the Powers Park tract in 1929, bought the playground property in 1941 and bought the art center property in 1949.

The school came with the town. The playground page identifies Ruth N. Upson Elementary as one of the City's oldest schools, formerly the Murray Hill School built in 1916, and Duval County Public Schools gives the same founding year on the school's own site.

The City of Jacksonville lists four Murray Hill parks: Murray Hill Playground, the Murray Hill Art Center at Herbert Bayer, Murray Hill Four Corners Park and Powers Park.

Murray Hill Playground is the active park of the group. The City says several athletic associations have used and helped maintain the playground over the years, including the Murray Hill Youth Association, the Wright Youth Association and most recently the Murray Hill Athletic Association. Improvement projects in 2001 to 2003 added two scoreboards, a walk path, fencing for two T-ball fields, a water feature, three portable shelters and a playscape. The property itself was sold to the City by private heirs in 1941.

The Murray Hill Art Center is a City of Jacksonville arts building at 4327 Kerle Street, housed in the former Murray Hill Baptist Church.

In 1949 the City purchased the park property, including the building that originally housed the Murray Hill Baptist Church, and the park opened soon afterward, according to the JaxParks page. It was named for Herbert Bayer (1900 to 1971), whom the City calls the dean of Florida's legislative reporters; he lived near the park and covered every legislative session for the Florida Times Union between 1925 and his retirement in 1964.

After use as a community center the building sat empty until the Murray Hill Civic Club and the City opened it for art programs in 1985. Classes were offered in watercolor painting, weaving, basketry, quilting, pottery and more, and the Civic Club held monthly meetings there. The programs expanded through the 1980s, and the City describes it as the City's principal visual arts center in 2005, a dated statement the page has not updated. The site lists a community center, benches, picnic tables, restrooms and car parking.

Murray Hill Four Corners Park and Powers Park are both passive parks with no athletic fields or playground equipment.

Four Corners Park takes its name from its location at the four corners of the Lawnview Street and Lamboll Avenue intersection, in the Murray Hill Heights area. With input and assistance from the Murray Hill Preservation Association, the City completed an improvement project there in 1995 that added a lighted walking and jogging trail inside the park, new benches, irrigation spigots and trash receptacles, the City says.

Powers Park, at 3153 Green Street, was established soon after the City bought a three-block tract in 1929 from Arthur M. Powers (1904 to 1987), a Riverside resident; he and family members sold the City more land in 1940 and 1955 that was later added to the park. A 1969 report of City recreation space called it a well-maintained, passive park, and the City says it remains a passive facility, without athletic or playground amenities, with many picturesque trees and green space for Murray Hill residents. JaxParks lists only a multipurpose field and trash barrels there.

The neighborhood public elementary school is Upson Elementary, founded in 1916 as the Murray Hill School.

Duval County Public Schools describes the school as a beloved cornerstone of the Murray Hill community and Murray Hill's premier community school, with a STREAM magnet program that integrates science, technology, reading, arts and math. Its namesake served as the school's principal for 32 years, the district says, and the school lists extracurricular activities including a LEGO club, a dance and step team, a sculpture club and safety patrol.

The school's contact listing gives its address as 1090 Dancy St., Jacksonville, FL 32205, its phone as 904-381-7485 and its office hours as 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The City places the building just northwest of Murray Hill Playground.

The Murray Hill Preservation Association, a volunteer neighborhood group, keeps a public calendar of Murray Hill events.

The association says each board member is a volunteer and that its operation relies solely on donations from memberships, advertising and events. Its calendar, checked on October 18, 2026, listed the Murray Hill Farmers Market at Fishweir Brewing on October 21 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The City credits the same association with input and assistance on the 1995 Four Corners Park project.

Last verified: October 18, 2026, against the four JaxParks pages for Murray Hill Playground, the Murray Hill Art Center at Herbert Bayer, Four Corners Park and Powers Park, two Duval County Public Schools pages for Ruth N. Upson Elementary, and the Murray Hill Preservation Association calendar.