City Park

140 NW Park Drive  |  Est. 1908

In 1906, visionary residents raised $2,400 to create McMinnville’s first public park. The following year,
the city sold park bonds and purchased 8.5 acres at the west end of Third Street on land that once
belonged to McMinnville’s founder William T. Newby. Contractor and landscaper J. A. Gilbertson
designed the layout. Early plans called for a grandstand, playground, lake with sprinkling system and
water tower for irrigation, pavilion, and tennis courts.

Completed on the park’s east side in 1908, the pavilion served as a National Guard armory and early
community center. A pond offered a popular swimming hole with a slide and Lady Liberty statue, and a
small zoo housed bears, deer, and other animals. Later improvements included a concrete driveway, a
gazebo-style bandstand, and public restrooms.

In 1912, banker and McMinnville Water and Light Commissioner Walter S. Link planted a sapling near
the new Carnegie Library, which grew into the towering giant sequoia known today as the “Big Mac,”
Christmas tree. In 1927, park bonds enabled the purchase of the old Star Mill property, including water
rights and the millpond. The city drained the pond soon thereafter, expanding the lower park and
building tennis courts. In 1928, the city installed the iconic Soper Fountain, commissioned by local
farmer Fred T. Soper in memory of his brother George. In 1957, workers moved the fountain to the entry
plaza, making way for a new municipal swimming pool.

In 1986, the city replaced the old pool with an Aquatic Center. The Greater Yamhill Watershed Council
led a restoration project along Cozine Creek, in 2026, to improve riparian habitat and water quality. For
more than a century, City Park has served McMinnville as a community gathering place, offering shady
lawns, play areas, swimming, and peaceful spots to read.

For images of the the property, and further details, check out the links below:

Historic Resources Inventory Documentation - City Park
Historic Resources Inventory Documentation - Fountain