What a gorgeous Park this is! Bayliss Park is named after Samuel Bayliss, who donated the land for the park in 1854. He was a businessman, entrepreneur and city council member. I enjoyed my visit because this Park is chock full of sculptures, statues and memorials. Still, it is a relaxing place for families to visit and children to play.
The water fountains were particularly entrancing to me. They were designed by a sculptor named Brower Harcher, which accounts for their artistically beautiful features.
On www.councilbluffslibrary. org., I read that Bayliss Park had a funny way of coming about.
"In 1854, Bayliss donated a portion of the land he owned to build a county courthouse; but, when the county inspectors arrived they dismissed his land and instead purchased a plot one block to the south to build on. Despite the fact that the original purpose for his donation had been ignored, the city still began to develop the land for city use. Ten years after the donation the city began to plant trees on the plot and even put up a large wooden fence to surround the park. All of this was done without any known objection from Mr. Bayliss."
It was not until 20 years later, that Mr. Bayliss demanded his land back and sued the county, and subsequently the city of Council Bluffs. He died in April 1874 while the trial was still pending & his widow continued the fight! The very Park named after Samuel Bayliss was being sued by none other then the family of Samuel Bayliss! Finally, in 1878, a Judge ruled in favor of Council Bluffs, stating that, although the land was not used as Mr. Bayliss had originally intended, he had still donated it willingly and had never objected to its use before.
That's good enough for me. This focal point of downtown Council Bluffs is a very nice Park and a great place to visit, 4 YELP STARS! read more
