Schuetzen Park (Iowa)
| Schuetzen Park | |
|---|---|
Streetcar Station
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| Type | Privately owned park |
| Location | Davenport, Iowa |
| Coordinates | 41°31′28″N 90°37′24″W / 41.52444°N 90.62333°W |
| Area | 23-acre (0.093 km2) |
| Created | 1870 |
| Operated by | Schuetzenpark Gilde |
| Open | April - November |
| Official name | Schuetzen Park Street Car Pavilion |
| Designated | August 5, 1998 |
Schuetzen Park is a privately owned 23-acre (93,000 m2) park located in the west end of Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was developed by the Davenport Schuetzengesellschaft as a location for the practice of target shooting in the traditional German style called "Schuetzen". The park is now owned and operated by the non-profit Schuetzenpark Gilde.
The park opened on June 12, 1870. At its zenith, the park consisted of an Inn, music pavilion, dance hall, shooting range, refreshment stands, roller coaster, bowling alleys and a zoo. Many organizations are associated with Schuetzen Park, however, the best known of these is the Davenport Turngemeinde. Many Turngemeinde members were also members of the Schuetzengesellschaft and the Turners also had an athletic field at the park for their outdoor track events. A monument in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Davenport Turngemeinde (2002) can be seen in the park.
The park flourished until the outbreak of World War I, when anti-German sentiment rose in Davenport and across the country. The German language was outlawed, German books were removed from the library, citizens of German birth were interrogated about their loyalty to the United States, many German businesses changed their names, the Schuetzenverein was renamed the Davenport Shooting Association and Schuetzenpark was renamed Forest Park.
In 1923 the park was sold to the Chiropractic Psychopathic Sanitarium for $3,500. There was an understanding that the sanitarium would allow the public to use the park, and the shooting club would be allowed to use the shooting range until the real estate contract was completed. After the final payment was made in 1939 the shooting club created another shooting range on Utica Ridge Road in Davenport and eventually moved to a site near Princeton. The sanitarium remained on the property for forty years. The grounds and the buildings from the park were either renovated or replaced to fit the hospital's needs. In 1960 the sanitarium complex was sold to the Good Samaritan Society for use as a nursing home and assisted living center. The nursing home still remains in operation on a small portion of the site.
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