The Issaquah History Museums receive generous annual support
from the
and
Buildings & Sites
Memorial Field
Memorial Field is a peaceful place in the heart of downtown Issaquah.
Come on a sunny day to enjoy the ball fields, playground, good views of the
surrounding green hills.
August 2000 photos by David Bangs
Children Playing in Memorial Field's playground.
August 2000 photos by David Bangs
The new police station was designed to blend in to the park setting, and it
does!
History
The piece of land that is now Memorial Field was once owned by the Superior
Coal Company. Superior Coal, a German-owned company, purchased the plot in 1913.
When World War I began, their claim to the property was no longer recognized.
The family who owned the field prior to its sale to Superior Coal was not able
to reclaim ownership due to a tangle of mortgages and sales agreements. The
field sat, neatly fenced and unused, in the middle of town. By 1918 it was a
cutover woodlot.
Issaquah’s ball team (who also happened to be the volunteer firemen) had
their eye on the field, as it was tough to find a place to play ball that was
not liable to snapped up for use as a homestead site or livestock pasture. They
decided to take on the challenge of purchasing the field and clearing it of
stumps, which involved fundraising and a lot of manual labor. The purchase of
this field was a real community endeavor; most of the necessary funds were
donated by coal miners, many of whom donated a full day’s pay to the venture.
In the end, the firemen had enough additional capital to purchase an adjoining
piece of land to be used for a new city hall. In 1930, City Hall was moved from
the old Gilman Town Hall into a building on this site (today the site of the
Police Station).
Issaquah Historical Society Photo
Rodeo at Memorial Field: "Bucking Bronco at Issaquah Round-Up,
Aug 30-Sept 1 1924. Gowan Photo, Seattle"
Memorial Field was also the home of the Issaquah Rodeo. In the early 1920’s
a group of Issaquah businessmen promoted rodeos, held at first on the Fourth of
July and late on Labor Day as well. Each rodeo kicked off with a parade through
town; a photo of one such parade shows few riders and onlookers, indicating that
the rodeo may not have been an event of great interest. While lack of interest
among the citizens may have contributed to the end of the annual rodeos,
photographs of rodeo riders in the midst of the action convey the thrill and
excitement of the sport; a number of captivating Issaquah Rodeo photos are
preserved at the Gilman Town Hall Museum.
Today Memorial Field is a public park administered by the City of Issaquah.
In Memoriam. . .
August 2000 photo by David Bangs Dedication Marker at Memorial Field
This war memorial was dedicated on September 5,
1949. It was originally located about where the main steps go up to
the new police station, and was later moved to its current location near
the library. The memorial honors local residents who gave their lives in
the 20th century's major wars.
World War I, 1917-1918: Pete Erickson and Albert Larson
World War II, 1941-1945: Alfred Ambrose, Robert Baskett, Clifford
Benson, Harold Gleason, George Larsen, Jack McQuade, Louis Petersen,
Robert Philp, Raymond Smart, Joe Tondreau, Robert Watson, Elizabeth
Erickson, Laurence Lortie
Viet Nam, 1964-1975: Robert Arndt, Robert Hoskins, Emmett McDonald,
James Patrick Brady
