The Strawberry Field that John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote about in the Beatles song “Strawberry Fields Forever” began as a Salvation Army orphanage in Liverpool, England.

In 1985, a peaceful hillside in Central Park, New York, received the name Strawberry Fields. The tear-shaped knoll honors Lennon’s memory and stands across the street from the Dakota Apartments, where his death shook the world.

From sorrow, something enduring grew. Poet Gloria Frym wrote, “The largest grief will paint itself into the longest beauty.” Strawberry Fields carries that truth, holding remembrance without surrendering hope.

Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, provided a $1 million endowment as seed money for an international peace garden. Strawberry Fields gathers 161 different plants, one from each nation of the world.

Strawberry Fields features a circular mosaic gifted by the city of Naples, embedded in the sidewalk where fans leave flowers in remembrance. In black and white marble, the word “IMAGINE” anchors the space, a single word that carries sorrow and hope. A dream planted in music now blooms in stone.

“You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one.”