- City:
- Rapid City, SD
- Site Type:
- Parks and Recreation, Marinas and Aquatic Parks
- New Deal Agencies:
- Work Relief Programs, Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Works Progress Administration (WPA)
Description
"Canyon Lake Park was developed around the 1890s by the Upper Rapid City Company, who planted the Lombardy poplar trees that still line the roads of the park. Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy was a partner in the company that planned to develop Rapid Creek and Canyon Lake as a resort with a hotel and a railroad from the downtown area. The lake flooded out in 1907, and thirty years later the WPA rebuilt the lake and dam, adding the rock landscaping. Working in conjunction with the WPA, enrollees at the Custer State CCC camp spent two years in a side camp located at Canyon Lake and developed a road system throughout the recreational area. Much of Canyon Lake Parks original landscaping had to be replaced or repaired after another flood in 1972 swept through the park that today borders Jackson Boulevard."
Source notes
Bunkowske, Kathy. "Works Progress Administration Projects in Rapid City, South Dakota: Surviving into the 21st Century." https://moh.tie.net/content/research/default.htmContribute to this Site
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