La Crosse, WI
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Myrick Park
Amenities:- Amphitheater
- Bike Racks
- Canoe/Kayak Access
- Dog Park
- Drinking Fountains
- Enclosed Shelter
- Fishing Access
- Green Space
- Indoor Bathrooms
- Lighting
- Memorial
- Off Street Parking
- Park Type: Regional
- Parking
- Playground
- Portable Bathrooms
- Power
- Programming
- Reservable Space
- Scenic View
- Sculpture
- Sledding
- Swing Set
- Trail Access
- Parks
Home of Tree Memorials, Duck House, Myrick Park Center, Marsh Access, Binoculars, Karen's Classroom and Mounds.
Myrick Park was one of the earliest known parks in the City of La Crosse. This large park is a place for both relaxation and play. It features the Kid’s Coulee play area, beautiful shelters, and lets you see nature up close if you choose to hike on the marsh trails. The La Crosse River Marsh borders Myrick Park and is an excellent example of a riparian (river) wetland. Marshes usually have a greater variety of plants and animals than do grasslands or forests, and are essential for drought and flood control. The Marsh is 1,077 acres and is included in the Mississippi River Floodplain. Trails through the Marsh are accessible from Myrick Park.
On October 4, 1873 the City purchased 20 acres of land, known for its Turtle Mounds, from Fanny L. Strasberger. The land was originally used as a fairgrounds and was called at various times Fairgrounds Park, Lake Park, and Oak Grove Park. There was also a suggestion to name it The Mounds, because of the Indian burial mounds located there, but it was officially named Myrick Park in 1904, after Nathan Myrick, the first non-indigenous settler in La Crosse.
A commemorative boulder near the site of the Indian burial mounds reads:
“Group of Indian Mounds -This effigy is that of the Turtle Clan. Two of the burial mounds have been restored. Marked by the La Crosse Twentieth Century Club, 1914.”
In 1935 the small shelter near the La Crosse River Marsh was built for use by the Trapshooting Club. It is now known as the Gun Club Shelter. In 1941 the large Myrick Park Shelter was built by the WPA (Works Progress Administration) with limestone quarried from Miller’s Bluff. It replaced an old pavilion that had been used at the fairgrounds for many years. Both of these structures were placed at the highest point in the Park.
Kid’s Coulee was built by over 3,700 volunteers in September of 1994. It is a 20,000 square foot wooden playscape which includes a variety of play structures and an amphitheater.
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