Opened in 1890, this was the first park in the City of Anaconda. In the same year a city tramway system was constructed, with a line running from the city centre out to the park. With such easy access the park became a social centre, seeing events and picnics, both impromptu and company sponsored, filling the park through the summers. This is a beautiful park with Warm Springs Creek running through, many playgrounds, tennis courts, a basketball court, workout area, swimming pool and a baseball field.
The City Park, now known as Washoe Park, developed a zoo and installed a state fish hatchery in 1907. The fish hatchery, the oldest in the state, is still in operation today, though the zoo is long gone.
One of the highlights of the park is the
Glover Cabin, the first building to be erected in the Anaconda area and today a National Historic Place.
In 2015 the city was able to use well over a million dollars in grant money to do some improvements in and around the park. The Missoulian ran an article on the park and its improvements in October 2015, the majority of which may be read below.
Duck pond and connecting trail at Anaconda's Washoe Park complete
SUSAN DUNLAP for The Missoulian Oct 10, 2015
ANACONDA – The blacktop is so new it still looks wet.
But the best part of the newly completed work at Washoe Park has to be the duck pond. This time of year with the leaves in the cottonwoods – some of which are more than 100 years old – turning yellow, the ducks quacking, the geese honking, and the early morning light twinkling through the treetops, hitting the clear water in the pond just right, the newly improved pond is attracting visitors.
Elmer Chiddix, who said he's lived in Anaconda since 1947, was out walking his dog, Mandy, a long-haired mini dachshund, Monday morning along the edge of the duck pond. Chiddix said he comes out to walk in the park every day, and he's happy to see Washoe Park improved.
The improved trail connects Washoe Park to the North Cable Road pump house, where a bridge is expected by this time next year to cross the creek and provide access to the Hefner’s Dam Nature Area. Currently, there is no access to the nature area.
Washoe Park is about 50-percent complete according to Sweeney. The improvements on Washoe Park have been ongoing since 2014. Workers completed the duck pond and connecting trail last Thursday.
There are other features to the $1.5 million project that are complete. A new sign welcomes visitors into the park, as does an improved entry way. There is also new curbing. Next to historic Glover’s Cabin, workers took out an old wooden boardwalk and replaced it with a wood-simulated concrete walkway to improve safety and durability and retain the historical feel of the place. A modern culvert took the place of an open trench under the walkway to make it more stable. Glover’s Cabin is one of the oldest buildings still standing in Anaconda. A homesteader built the cabin, Sweeney said.
From The Missoulian, Page 371