Ramsey County History – Winter 2005: “Union Park in the 1880s—Band Concerts, Balloon Ascensions Once Lured 10,000 People in a Single Day”

Union Park in the 1880s—Band Concerts, Balloon Ascensions Once Lured 10,000 People in a Single Day
Author: Minnesota Junior Pioneers

In 1880, the Milwaukee Short Line Railroad opened up development in today’s Macalester, Groveland, and Merriam Park neighborhoods, then on the outskirts of St. Paul. Union Park, as it was called, was a thirty-acre site that contained Lake Iris. Land there was purchased by people for an entertainment area with a pavilion and bandstand that could be rented out by church groups and was soon opened to the public. One of the more exciting events at the park was the balloon ascensions. The site was eventually platted into lots for homeowners, with streets following the natural contours of the land. John O. Hinkel, one of the developers, built a fine house on Feronia Avenue. In the 1960s, this house was torn down to make room for the Episcopal Home.
PDF of Union Park article