The City of Humboldt takes pride in providing clean safe parks, trails, green spaces, and recreational facilities for the benefit of citizens and visitors. The Humboldt Parks Department is responsive to and directed by the diverse and changing needs of our patrons as we plan for the future growth and expansion of park facilities and trails. We strive to enrich lives by providing safe and welcoming facilities for the enjoyment of people of all ages, income, backgrounds, and abilities to play and learn to be good stewards of the environment. We continually strive to improve existing facilities while seeking opportunities for future development.
Parks Shop is located at 1306 3rd Ave N
Phone: 515-332-4280
Email: parksdept@ci.humboldt.ia.us
Visit a Humboldt Park Today!
Park Hours
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM Year-Round
Picnic tables are available at all City Parks. Call the Parks Shop for picnic table needs.
COMING SOON!
Eagle Ridge Park - 33 Acres
Eagle Ridge Park will be a 33-acre park located Northeast of the new Eagle Ridge housing development. The beautiful space will have trails and many opportunities for enjoying nature.
Parley Finch Plaza
Located in the heart of downtown Humboldt on Sumner Avenue. Parley Finch Plaza was constructed in 2013 during Humboldt's sesquicentennial year. The defunct Finch building was demolished, making room for this open greenspace with benches and the Lady of the Mist statue formerly located in Taft Park.
Bicknell Park
Located at 1st Avenue North and 9th Street North. Shelter, picnic tables, grills, and playground equipment are available in this area. This park is the location of the Frank Gotch statue. Excellent view of the Des Moines River. Very scenic in a heavily wooded area.
George Beebe Park - .75 Acres
Located on 1st Avenue North and 10th Street North. Beebe Park has a shelter thanks to the Jack Bradley family, who contributed to the park and the shelter.
Hampson Hillside Park - 1.5 Acres
Located on Sumner Avenue and Hall Street. An excellent spot for rest and relaxation. This is Humboldt's best sledding hill during the winter months.
John Brown Park - 2.5 Acres
Located at 2nd Avenue South and 5th Street South. Includes a historic Liberty Fountain as the centerpiece, playground equipment, a baseball/softball backstop, open areas, and many benches to just sit and relax. This park is the second oldest in the city. Picnic tables are also provided.
Lake Nokomis Park - 1.3 Acres
Located near the West Des Moines River Dam Site. The park shelter offers electrical service and a beautiful view of the Des Moines River looking West over Lake Nokomis with natural surroundings with picnic tables, horseshoe pits, grills, and a concrete boat ramp.
Rainbow Park - 1 Acre
Located North of Rainbow Drive, this park has playground equipment, basketball courts, and horseshoe pits.
Turtle Park - 1.1 Acres
Located on South 9th Street. Nice Nature area on the bank of the West Fork of the Des Moines River with a playground.
Tourist Park - 2.2 Acres
Located below Sumner Avenue Bridge on the West Fork of the Des Moines River. Very popular fishing area and a nice natural setting with picnic tables available.
Worthington Park - 2 Acres
Located at 6th Avenue Southwest, across from Our Saviour's Lutheran Church. Recreational facilities for youth and adults, including new playground equipment for the kids and a wonderful gazebo and park shelter.
Taft Park - 9.4 Acres
Located on North Taft Street and 3rd Street North. Our largest park features newly remodeled basketball courts, sand volleyball, playing areas, picnic tables, grills, benches to sit and relax, and a shelter. The shelter can be used on a first-come-first-served basis for the outer area, you can also rent the inside with bathrooms at a cost. You can contact the Parks Department regarding rental. Adult softball league and many little league games are held at the main ball diamond located here. A skate park is also located here. Taft Park has Humboldt's largest community playground, Wildcat Wonderland. This impressive site includes slides, swings, merry-go-round, and much more.
Attractions
Located on 200 5th Street South in John Brown Park
Liberty Fountain was created by Father Paul Dobberstein, the famed builder of the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, IA. It was built in segments in West Bend and then assembled on-site in Humboldt. The fountain was dedicated on September 22, 1918.
Liberty Fountain was built as a memorial to Fay Hessian, a young girl from Humboldt, who died of tuberculosis in 1912. Her father commissioned Father Dobberstein to build the fountain with a statue of Fay Hessian as a memorial to his beloved daughter.
The words LIBERTY, VICTORY, HUMANITY, and JUSTICE were created in stones on the rim, suggesting that the Fountain is both a memorial to Fay Hessian and a commemoration of American patriotic values, which were especially strong in 1918, at the end of World War 1.
By 2009 the fountain was inoperable due to deterioration caused by years of chlorinated water eating away at the mortar. The Humboldt Parks Department commissioned Preservation Services, Inc. to undertake a two-year restoration project.
Liberty Fountain was restored to its original splendor and functionality in 2011. The project was supported by the Rotary Club, the Humboldt Area Arts Council, Friends of the Park, the Humboldt Historical Preservation Commission, and individual donors.
On July 4th, 2012, the eight-foot tall bronze statue that shows Gotch in black tights and top, with hands on hips, gazing out over the land was unveiled. It stands on a three-foot pedestal in Bicknell Park, the very spot where Gotch trained for his epic match with George Hackenschmidt, The Russian Lion, in 1911. Gotch was born on a farm three miles south of Humboldt and became the world heavyweight champion of professional wrestling on April 8, 1908, when he defeated Hackenschmidt in Dexter Park Pavilion in Chicago.
If you would like more information about Frank Gotch, there are brochures available at City Hall. The brochure has some wonderful information about his life, as well as a map with points of interest related to Mr. Gotch in the area. Click on a page below to see a scan of the brochure.
Trails in Humboldt
Humboldt County has some wonderful walking and water trails.
Walking Trails
The City of Humboldt has a couple walking trails running through it.
The Cottonwood Trail is a paved trail running along the river from Joe Reasoner Dam to Beebe Park. It is three-quarters of a mile in length, with benches along the way to enjoy the views.
The Three Rivers Trail in Humboldt runs from Highway 169 just south of the new Humboldt Business Park to the Dakota City Memorial Park (and beyond). The Three Rivers Trail is part of a much larger 32-mile trail that runs on the old Chicago and Northwestern Railroad right of way between Rolfe and Eagle Grove. It is a crushed rock trail that is great for biking and offers some beautiful scenery.
The Gotch Park Trail is a 6-mile spur off the Three Rivers Trail. It connects with the Three Rivers Trail by the fairgrounds and runs south through town.
Click HERE to see the map of trails in Humboldt.
Water Trails
The Humboldt County Conservation Office has information on the 6 river float trails in the county. Feel free to contact the Conservation Office with questions on where to locate these trails at 515-332-4087 or hccb@goldfieldaccess.net. Brochures are also available at the City Municipal Building.
