La Crosse, Wisconsin, Committee on Parks, Resolutions and Reports Relating to Parks
Scope and Contents
Common Council resolutions and reports began to be organized by a numbering system in Dec. 1932. Before that time the resolutions were kept folded up in chronological order, roughly by subject or Council committee (such as Parks, Judiciary, Fire, Police, etc.). This set of pre-1932 resolutions represents those labeled as Parks.
The resolutions consist generally of expenditures, land acquisition proposals, maintenance of parks and boulevard trees, and items relating to parks (comfort stations, tennis courts, ice skating rinks, etc.), mainly dating from 1900-1932. Not all parks are represented in these Council files. The parks best represented are Cameron, Copeland, Myrick, Powell, and Riverside.
Dates
- 1869-1932
- Majority of material found within 1900 - 1932
Creator
- La Crosse (Wis.). Committee on Parks (Organization)
Historical Note
Until 1908 the care and maintenance of city parks fell under the jurisdiction of Public Works. A Common Council committee called the Park Committee authorized expenditures and generally administered Council policy regarding city parks. It is unclear when this committee was established, but the first Council legislation in the resolution files relating to parks is dated 1869, and it dealt with Cameron Park (then referred to as 4th Street Park).
A Board of Park Commissioners was established on May 15, 1908, and two park districts were created. Mayor Wendell A. Anderson was very supportive of the city's involvement in the creation of parks and was instrumental in the construction of Riverside Park. Riverside Park was a major endeavor in terms of land acquisition from individuals, commercial interests, and the railroads, and a great cost since so much fill was hauled in along the riverfront. One of the first things the Board of Park Commissioners did was to hire landscape architect John Nolen to devise a master plan for parks in La Crosse. The Park Department was not only in charge of city parks, but the trees on boulevards and streets, and the landscaping of playgrounds and schools.
The parks have gone through many name changes, some officially and some were casual names given to them by residents. The most common names of parks that the Archives staff is aware of and that are represented in this series are the following:
- Adams St. Playfield
- Hood Park
- Burns
- Main St. Park, High School Park, 7th St. Park
- Cameron
- 4th St. Park, 4th Ward Park, Public Square, King St. Park
- Memorial Field
- Interstate Fairgrounds, Fairgrounds Park
- Myrick
- Oak Grove, Oakwood, Lake Park
- Powell
- West Ave. Playfield
- Riverside
- Levee, Riverfront Park
- Spence
- Public Landing, "park at the end of State St."
Extent
1.4 Cubic Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Common Council resolutions & reports relating to the city parks, 1869-1932. The materials are separated alphabetically into subject categories, then chronologically within the folders. The bulk of the resolutions date after 1900. The best represented subjects in the series are Cameron, Copeland, Myrick, Powell, and Riverside Parks, as well as financial documents.
Until 1908 the Committee on Parks, a committee of the Common Council, authorized expenditures and oversaw the administration of parks, while Public Works actually maintained the city parks. In 1908 the Council passed an ordinance establishing a Board of Park Commissioners and a Park Department to assume those supervisory duties. Over time, the Park Department crew became large enough to handle the daily maintenance operations of the parks.
Arrangement
The resolutions are organized alphabetically by subject, therein chronologically. Originally the files were arranged strictly in chronological order. Very brittle paper has been deacidified, and some items encapsulated. A few blueprints are included in the files. The Archives staff assigned a file number to each piece of legislation in the hopes of creating an index in the future. These are labeled on the documents in brackets and are noted in the container list as file numbers.
Acquisitions Information
(Accession no. 1996.004) Resolutions were located in the City Clerk’s basement area of City Hall; came to the Archives as part of the Mayor’s Special Committee on Historic Records, Dec. 1996
Physical Description
4 archives boxes
OCLC Number
42449765
Processing Information
Processed by Anita Taylor Doering with assistance from Carrie Seib, May 1997; additions interfiled by Jaime Dechant, Jan. 1999
Creator
- La Crosse (Wis.). Committee on Parks (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the La Crosse, Wisconsin, Committee on Parks, Resolutions and Reports Relating to Parks, 1869-1932 (bulk 1900-1932)
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Anita Taylor Doering, Carrie Seib, Jamie Dechant
- Date
- 1997-1999
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the La Crosse Public Library Archives Repository