Union Park
Dubuque, Iowa
History & Pictures
Contents:
Based upon information from  Union Park - A Place of Memories, Michael A. Boge, 1983.  Many thanks to Tracy from DubuquePostcards.com for allowing me to link to her awesome collection of Union Park postcards!
History & Pictures
Like many parks of the time, Union Park began as a trolley park -- a way for electric companies to encourage people to use their services.  It officially opened as Stewart Park in April 1891 in a 75-foot-deep valley northwest of Dubuque known as Horseshoe Hollow.  "Stewart" was the last name of the man whose farmland was purchased to create the park.  It was quite simple that first spring, with hills, streams, and old miners' huts being the highlights, but improvements were scheduled to begin immediately.  Such improvements included a dance pavilion, refreshment booth, bowling alleys, employee housing, and a smaller pavilion for private parties.  Despite these additions, the first nine years were rather shaky as the park changed hands several times.
Timeline
Maps
People
The Park Today
Home
It was in 1900 that Stewart Park changed ownership yet again and was renamed Union Park by L. D. Mathes, the man chosen as the new Park Manager.  Mathes dedicated his time to creating a new image for the park, and improvements abounded:  newer trolley tracks were laid, modern lighting was installed, dirt paths became paved, a new dance hall (The Pavilion) was constructed, and the once simple platform where riders would step on and off the trollies became an elaborate waiting station/depot.  This entrance area became known as The Loop, as the single track would split (the trolley would go to the right), form a circle whose far end was the waiting station, and then re-join itself.  The Loop was at the east end of the park -- the lower end of the valley.
A rustic bandstand was built in 1905, and two years later a more elaborate one was constructed farther up the valley.  The new bandstand (henceforth known as the Rustic Bandstand) was complete with a plaza and semi-circle of benches.  In 1908, additional land was purchased to the west end of the park and a children's playground was erected.  Mathes tried to make this area extra special with slides, swings, a carousel (the small kind you climb on at playgounds), sandboxes, and other fun amusements.  A pavilion for picnics and parties was also constructed near the playground.  It was this pavilion that would later adopt a somewhat macabre moniker for its involvement in the sad events surrounding the flood in 1919.
In addition to the children's playground, a roller coaster was also built in 1908.  It appears from the picture in Boge's book that this ride was a side-friction coaster in the classic figure-eight design.  During the same year, work was done on a cave ("Wonder Cave") that had been discovered on the land some years back.  Hardened walkways (including steps and small bridges) and lights were installed inside the cave.
A year later, in 1909, the plaza in front of the the Rustic Bandstand was taken down and the largest theater in Iowa was built.  Known as Mammoth Theatre, this huge structure stretched from one side of the valley to the other side, dividing the park in two.  There were 1,500 opera-style seats inside, followed by benches, plus room for thousands more to see the show for free on the hill outside.  You see, the back wall (on the north side of the valley) was open, so those passing by on the hill could see right in.
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