MINNESOTA ARCHITECTURE - HISTORY INVENTORY FORM Property Location

Transcription

1 MINNESOTA ARCHITECTURE - HISTORY INVENTORY FORM Property Location Property Name: Washington Park Address: 215 N 4th Street County: Blue Earth City/Twp: Mankato PIN: R Legal Description: Lots 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, in block 46, in the Town of Mankato according to the recorded plat thereof made by Elias D. Bruner, and being block 66, according to the recorded plats of said town made by John J. Everett and A.D. McSweeney, Lots 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, in block 65, in the town of Mankato according to the recorded plat thereof made by A.D. McSweeney the same being the north westerly ½ of block 65, in the town of Mankato according to the recorded plat thereof made by John J. Everett, and being the north-westerly ½ of Market Square in the Town of Mankato according to the recorded plat thereof made by Elias D. Brunner, and sometimes called Block 47, according to said plat, for a public park only to be always open to the public without changes, under regulations by the common council of said city Property Information Architect: Not known Style: Open Space State Historic Context: Railroad and Agricultural Date Constructed: 1915 Development Historic Use: Park Property Type: Site NR Status: Not listed Present Use: City Park Local Historic Context: Civic Services 1850s-1950s Survey Name: Mankato Local Designation Survey Prepared by: Courtney Kramlinger Survey Date: September 27, 2013 Description: Washington Park is located in the central part of the City of Mankato and is bounded by N. 4 th Street, E. Mulberry Street, Washington Court, and E. Washington Street. Washington Park encompasses 3.08 acres and offers amenities such as a playground, picnic tables, benches, passive green space, and mature trees. Washington Park contains a variety of tree species including Hawthorn, Hackberry, Spruce, Linden, Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Norway Maple, Cedar, Ash, Oak, Elm, Pine, and Honeylocust. There are walking trails which intersect the park forming an "X" on each half of the park which were present in the park as early as The paths were originally a combination of dirt and gravel and were paved in 1978 as part of a bond referendum. In 2001, part of E. Plum Street was vacated which previously ran through the middle of Washington Park connecting both halves of the park and providing more green space.

2 Playground equipment was introduced in the late 1970's when a steel climber was installed. Wooden playground equipment was installed in the early 1980's which was replaced in The steel climber and wooden playground equipment were removed from Washington Park as they were deemed unsafe. History: The Washington Park neighborhood is clustered along the long, wide central park space. Most of the early residents in the Washington Park neighborhood were German, Irish, Scandinavian, and Lebanese immigrants; this was the blue collar area of Mankato. They built their houses in the popular Victorian architectural style, but were more modest than those of the more wealthy neighborhoods. Their homes were of smaller scale and included mass-produced embellishments that were ordered through catalogues. The houses reflect the neighborhood's status as a working class district, occupied by laborers, shop employees and trades people. The proximity of the neighborhood to the central commercial and industrial core meant many of these people could easily get to work. During the summer of 1868, the Minnesota Valley Railway Company contracted more than five hundred people to grade and lay ties and tracks from Kasota to Mankato, reaching Mankato on October 3, The main railroad line was known as the "Fourth Street Route" and the railroad yard occupied the Fourth Street right-of-way from Madison Avenue to Mulberry Street. A timber-framed depot was the showcase of this route; there is a "Heritage Plaque" located near the center where the depot once stood. Directly north of the depot, across Washington Street, was a freight house, a fourstall brick engine house, turntables, and a nearby stockyard. A branch line of the Mankato Streetcar Railway Company also provided horse-drawn transportation between the depot grounds and downtown Mankato. The Minnesota Valley Railway Company would become part of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis, Omaha Railway Company, locally known as the Omaha Line. By 1882, it was under control of the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company, which also served Mankato. The Omaha line decided to abandon its tracks on Fourth Street in favor of a route along the Minnesota River; however, they did not officially vacate the site until March 11, Former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and later Vice President to President Ulysses Grant, Schuylor Colfax, was passing through Mankato on January 13, 1885 in route to Rock Rapids, Iowa. It was reported to be 20 degrees below zero that day when Vice President Colfax arrived at the Milwaukee station and walked across town in the severe weather to the Omaha depot on Fourth Street near the present Washington Park. Vice President Colfax sat down in the waiting area and passed away. The City of Mankato purchased the property for $8,540 in 1913, and in 1915, Washington Park was dedicated by the City of Mankato officials and citizens. The final papers in the transfer of Washington Park to the City of Mankato were turned over to City Clerk Bates on March 30, 1915 by Judge Lorin Cray. The purchase of the Washington Park was not a smooth process. Judge Lorin Cray purchased two one-half blocks of railroad property in 1906 between Washington and Mulberry Streets for the city; this land would later become Washington Park. At that time, the Civic League, mayor and the majority of the council approached Judge Lorin Cray to draw a contract for the purchase of the land and property owners along N. 4 th Street raised $2,100 toward the purchase; two councilmen and the city recorder were opposed. The city recorder refused to sign the contract for the purchase time and time again at council meetings. The mayor and the people wanted the park, and it was decided by law that the city recorder had no right to hold up what the majority of the council voted for. Like other parks in Mankato, Washington Park was once dominated by a large fountain which has since been lost. The fountain was located in the southwest portion of the park, adjacent to N. 4 th Street. The fountain was removed in the mid 1960's due to neglect and the foundation of the fountain was still in place up until the 1970's. The area where the fountain used to sit is now covered with grass.

3 Evaluation: The site is not currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Integrity: Washington Park has good integrity historically for its role as a social gathering space when it served as the location of a depot and as a park as it has for over 100 years. Significance: Washington Park has significance locally because it has character, interest, and value as part of the development and heritage of the City of Mankato. Washington Park is also significant for its physical characteristics which represent a familiar visual feature of the Washington Park neighborhood and City as a whole. Condition: Washington Park is in good condition. The lawns are well groomed and maintained. Sources: Blue Earth County Historical Society. Vertical Files. Accessed September 25, Zahn & Associates LLC, Thomas R. (2010) City of Mankato Historic Context Study. Retrieved from Park.pdf Photographic Documentation: Photo of former fountain at Washington Park; Photo of former fountain at Washington Park; November 5, 1941.

4 Photo Washington Park as it appears today.

5 Sanborn Maps: October 1884 Sanborn Map: Shows location of former railroad.

6 December 1914 Sanborn Map: Shows the vacated railroad, Washington Park runs along N. 4 th Street from Mulberry to Washington.