Park is 100 years old
by Denise O’Brien Van for the Greene County Historical Society
Greene County’s Spring Lake Park is 100 years old this year. It’s evolved from a jazzy amusement park where 1930s and ‘40s Big Bands played to a peaceful outdoor recreation area.
Grand Junction Library’s director Alan Robinson will trace the park’s history at a free program Sunday, Oct. 19, at 2 pm at the Greene County Historical Museum.
Once a railroad gravel pit, Spring Lake began as a privately owned resort and amusement park in 1925. There was a dance hall, an open-air skating rink that opened in 1929 and stilll operates, and a giant slide.
The park is located five miles northeast of Jefferson, and three miles northwest of Grand Junction.
Spring Lake became an Iowa state park in 1949, and has been a Greene County park since 1969. Today, the 240-acre park is a popular fishing, hiking and camping spot that also offers two large and modern rental cottages equipped with appliances and air conditioning.
