Pettibone Park

Pettibone Park entrance sign established in 1903, with City of La Crosse Parks, Recreation & Forestry logo.

Pettibone Park is a large park covering 230 acres, with a beach on the Mississippi River and a disc golf course. It also has the distinction of being the park which led to the creation of a parks system in the City of La Crosse.

Pettibone Park was originally called Barron’s Island and located in the state of Minnesota. Alonzo Barron filed plans to develop an Island City there in 1857, which never happened. The land was partially acquired by Mayor Frank Powell and Buffalo Bill Cody before being purchased by Albert Wells Pettibone in 1901. Mr. Pettibone promptly deeded the land to the Pettibone Park Commission for use as a public park by the citizens of La Crosse, even though it remained in Minnesota until 1918, when an act of Congress transferred the island to the state of Wisconsin, and it could be annexed by the City in 1919. A.W. Pettibone was a leading lumber merchant who was elected mayor of La Crosse in 1862,1863, and 1864. He spent $80,000 on improvements to the Park, including dredging and filling in the marshy land. The City of La Crosse established two park districts and a Board of Park Commissioners on May 15, 1908, largely through A.W. Pettibone’s example.

In 1902 a beautiful gazebo was constructed of native Minnesota sandstone and is still enjoyed by visitors today. A bathhouse was constructed in 1903 and was replaced in 1926 with a bathhouse designed by Otto Merman in the Mediterranean Eclectic Revival style. This building is still standing and was renovated in 2001.  In 1930 the Lagoon Shelter was constructed, and in 1931 the Lagoon Bridge was built.

Disc Golf Course

Located in the heart of Pettibone Park, the Disc Golf Course was built for your use and enjoyment with the help of Gundersen Lutheran and members of the Seven Rivers Disc Golf Club. 

The original 9-hole course was designed and built in 2003 by Dr. K Knoll and D. Tiffany. The course has since grown to include 27 holes, with a variety of alternate baskets. This beautiful course circles around the Pettibone Lagoon and alongside the Mississippi River. The front 18 holes include tighter fairways and dense tree cover, allowing for more technical play. The last 9 holes are more open and play alongside the Mississippi River. 

Features of the course include concrete tee pads, hole signage and Prodigy T1 main layout baskets with several holes offering second Mach I basket locations. The course is cart friendly. There are portable bathrooms available and plenty of parking. 

 

Location

101 Pettibone Drive S, La Crosse, WI 54601  View Map

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Photo Gallery

A sandy beach in the foreground with a calm body of water beyond, and a city skyline with buildings in the distance under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Beach

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A wide steel truss bridge spans a river, viewed from a sandy beach under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Beach Bridge View

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Interior of a building with arched doorways, a balcony overlooking the main hall, and large open doors leading outside.

Pettibone Beach House

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A building with picnic tables in front of it, a river and bridge in the background.

Pettibone Beach House North Plaza

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The Pettibone Beach House in La Crosse, with a textured white facade and dark lettering above the entrance.

Pettibone Beach House Sign

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A white building with a red-tiled roof, featuring picnic tables in a courtyard surrounded by white walls and trees.

Pettibone Beach House South Plaza

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A wide sandy beach borders a calm blue river, with a distant treeline and several buildings visible under a clear sky.

Pettibone Beach Riverside View

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A sandy beach with volleyball nets in the foreground, a body of water and a bridge in the background, and a building on the right side of the image.

Pettibone Beach View Southeast

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A sand volleyball court with nets set up, adjacent to a body of water with trees in the background under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Volleyball Courts

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A sun-dappled park lawn with scattered trees and fallen leaves. Tall trees with green foliage cast long shadows across the grass.

Pettibone Disc Golf

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A wide grassy field with scattered trees and a body of water in the distance under a clear sky.

Pettibone Disc Golf Course

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A paved road winds through a park with mature trees on a sunny day. A body of water is visible beyond the trees.

Pettibone Drive

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A wide view of a calm body of water with buildings and trees on the opposite shore under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Drive City

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A wide river flows under a clear blue sky, with a tree-lined shore on the opposite bank and a building visible in the distance. Rocks and sparse vegetation line the foreground on the right bank.

Pettibone Drive Mississippi River Channel

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A wooden pier with benches sits on the edge of a calm river, surrounded by lush green trees under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Fishing Dock

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A paved walking path curves through a grassy park with mature trees and a body of water with a white dock on the left.

Pettibone Foot Path

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A circular stone pavilion with a domed roof sits in a grassy park surrounded by trees.

Pettibone Gazebo

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A covered picnic shelter with multiple picnic tables and benches, surrounded by a grassy park with trees.

Pettibone Gazebo Interior

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A wide view of a park with green grass and trees under a clear blue sky. A bench is visible in the distance.

Pettibone Gazebo View

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A park with many mature trees casting shadows on the grass, with fallen leaves scattered on the ground.

Pettibone Green Space

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A grassy park with mature trees and a small, red-roofed building in the distance under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Green Space

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A calm body of water reflects the trees and a bridge in the distance under a clear sky.

Pettibone Lagoon

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A wide, calm body of water reflects the clear blue sky and the lush green trees lining its distant shore.

Pettibone Lagoon

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A covered picnic shelter with stone pillars and a wooden roof overlooks a body of water surrounded by trees.

Pettibone Lagoon Pavilion

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A covered picnic shelter with a stone fireplace and chimney next to a calm river on a sunny day.

Pettibone Lagoon Shelter

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A covered structure with shelves holding kayaks and canoes, with paddles leaning against a wall.

Pettibone Rentals Facility

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A park with green grass and numerous mature trees casting long shadows across the lawn on a sunny day.

Pettibone Trees

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A calm river with a fallen tree branch in the foreground, on which several birds are perched. Trees line the far bank of the river under a clear blue sky.

Pettibone Wildlife

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A calm river with trees on the opposite bank. A park bench sits on the grassy shore in the foreground.

Pettibone Wildlife Drive View

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Tagged as:

Facility Snapshot

Features

  • Canoe/Kayak Access
  • Canoe/Kayak Launch
  • Disabled Parking Spaces
  • Disc Golf Course
  • Drinking Fountains
  • Fishing Access
  • Gazebo
  • Green Space
  • Indoor Bathrooms
  • Lighting
  • Memorial
  • Off Street Parking
  • Open Air Shelter
  • Portable Bathrooms
  • Power
  • Programming
  • Reservable Space
  • Scenic View
  • Showers
  • Trail Access
  • Volleyball Court

Hours

City of La Crosse parks are open daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.

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