William A. Goodwin, a Portland civil engineer, originally planned an entrance to Deering Oaks Park at the corner of Portland and Grove Streets (now Park and Deering Avenues, respectively). He built a driveway over a sewer embankment that served as a retaining dam for the waters of Mill Pond. However, Goodwin’s plans were thwarted when the public, finding the driveway a handy shortcut, took to driving their carriages over the embankment.

Goodwin eventually planned a new entrance on State Street, where the granite gateway designed by Frederick Tompson in 1903 stands today.

William S. Edwards, who worked alongside William Goodwin, included this image in an album he compiled and titled the photograph, "Deering Oaks - Entrance Grove & Portland Str. Aug. 13, 1887."