Riverside Park had a 'Scenic Railway' 1910 till unknown date.


Riverside Park, located on the west-bank bluffs of the Mississippi River just north of Interstate 94, appears at first glance to be a quiet, typical neighborhood park. Given a closer look, though, the park reveals complex layers of historical and natural interest. Similarly, while the recently-completed park refurbishment was, in some respects, typical of the many neighborhood park renovation projects which occur throughout the city, it also featured some unusual twists.

This forty-acre park is actually one of the oldest in the city. Riverside Park is located on two levels, with the steep, wooded river bluff, with its WPA-era stone stairs and walls, separating the upper and lower areas. The first 20 acres were acquired by the fledgling Board of Park Commissioners as Sixth Ward Park in 1883, and the park was among the first to be supplied in 1906 with "gymnastic equipment," as playground equipment was then termed. Expansion of the park acreage followed in the ensuing decades, and the quaint stone bathhouse was added to the park in 1933. Over the decades, the neighborhood around the park also evolved under the influence of new immigrant groups and nearby colleges and universities.



CREDITS: City of Minneapolis