Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park |
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A view of Creve Coeur Lake, part of the park.
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| Type | County Park |
| Location | 2143 Creve Coeur Mill Rd., 63146, Maryland Heights, St. Louis County, Missouri, United States |
| Area | 2,145 acres (8.68 km2) |
| Created | 1945 |
| Operated by | St. Louis County Government |
| Website | Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park |
Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park (also called Creve Coeur County Park) is a huge park in Maryland Heights, Missouri. It covers about 2,145 acres (8.68 square kilometers)! This makes it the biggest park in the St. Louis County Parks system. The park is home to Creve Coeur Lake, which is one of Missouri's largest natural lakes. It's an "oxbow lake," meaning it used to be a bend in a river that got cut off.
The park offers many fun things to do. You can have picnics, play tennis, or use the multi-purpose sports fields. There's even an archery course! If you like golf, the Crystal Springs Quarry Golf Course is an 18-hole course right inside the park.
Connecting Trails and Bridges
In 2003, a new bridge called the Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park Bridge was finished. This bridge is part of Missouri Route 364. It connects St. Louis County to St. Charles County and crosses the southern part of the park.
When the bridge was built, Creve Coeur Lake was also "dredged." This means mud and dirt were removed from the bottom to make it deeper. A smaller "siltation lake" was also added. This helps keep the main lake clean and prevents it from needing to be dredged again soon.
The park has an asphalt walking trail that goes all around Creve Coeur Lake. This trail was built at the same time as the bridge. It also connects to a special lane on the bridge that crosses the Missouri River. This lane then links up with the famous Katy Trail, which is a very long trail for walking and biking across Missouri.
Wetlands and Wildlife
A big part of Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park and the area around it is made up of wetlands. Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil, or is present near the surface, for all or parts of the year. These areas are very important for nature. The park is used to study different kinds of waterfowl, which are birds that live near water, like ducks and geese. This helps protect these animals and their homes.
Park History
Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park was the very first park in the St. Louis County Park system. It officially opened in 1945. But even before it became a park, Creve Coeur Lake was a popular place. It used to be a resort where people would go for fun.
The lake itself is about 320 acres (1.3 square kilometers). Many years before the park opened, it was famous for hosting boating events. For example, in June 1882, the Mississippi Valley regatta was held there. A "regatta" is a series of boat races.
The lake also hosted the Creve Coeur Regatta and the Annual Races of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen in 1904. This was a very special event because it was the rowing competition for the 1904 Summer Olympics!
A local rower named Jacob Gaudaur often competed at Creve Coeur Lake. He even won a big sculling match (a type of rowing race) against John Teemer in 1884. Jacob Gaudaur was married to a woman from Creve Coeur.
As part of the bridge project, a smaller lake was also built. It's called Mallard Lake and covers about 66 acres (0.27 square kilometers).
