Babcock Memorial Park

Babcock Memorial Park, also called Babcock Wayside, is a highway rest area and public boat launch on the Mississippi River in Elk River, Minnesota at the intersection of U.S. 10 and Route 169. Its name honors Highway Commissioner Charles Merritt Babcock, who was from the area and is regarded as the originator of the modern Minnesota State Highway System.[1][2] The state owns it but has turned maintenance over to the city.[3]

A stone picnic table in the park
Babcock Park
Coordinates45°17′35″N 93°33′33″W

The park was built by the National Youth Administration in 1938 and 1939 and preserves two fieldstone council rings, a stone picnic table, and a hand-operated pump from that era. A geological marker, modern toilets, and other amenities were added later. It contains about 16 acres (6.5 ha), but it was considerably larger before the adjacent highways were expanded with cloverleaf interchanges.[4][5]

References
  1. Castleman, Monte (June 1, 2018). "A History of Minnesota's Highways: Part Four". streets.mn.
  2. Lileks, James (October 18, 2018). "Minnesota Monument: Honoring the father of Minnesota's highway system". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. There's also a Babcock Park in Elk River. Fittingly, it's a highway rest area.
  3. "Babcock Park". City of Elk River. Retrieved November 21, 2018. The park is owned by the state and maintained by the City of Elk River.
  4. Minnesota Department of Transportation (1998). MNDOT HISTORIC ROADSIDE DEVELOPMENT STRUCTURES INVENTORY: Babcock Memorial Park (PDF) (Report). SH-ERC-028 CS 7101.
  5. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (2016). A State Water Trail Guide to the Mississippi River: St. Cloud to Anoka - Map 7 of 9 (PDF) (Map). Babcock Highway Rest Area, Minnesota Department of Transportation, concrete plank trailer access with gravel surfaced parking lot, rest area with picnic facilities, toilets, and water.
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