Parks

After the passage of the first state parks legislation in 1917, the State Board of Conservation, under the leadership of Louis Pammel, quickly set to work establishing state parks within Iowa. Backbone State Park, Ledges State Park and Dolliver Memorial State Park were the first three parks acquired by the State Board of Conservation. Backbone State Park was acquired in 1919,1 and Ledges State Park and Dolliver State Park were acquired in 1921.2 All three parks have a history of their own with a variety of geologic, botanical, and historic features.



  • 1. "Iowa State Parks," The Annals of Iowa 13 (1921: 140-144. Online version, accessed September 25, 2017, http://ir.uiowa.edu/annals-of-iowa/vol13/iss2/14/.
  • 2. Dolliver State Park Recreation Use Plan, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, accessed September 25, 2017, www.iowadnr.gov/portals/idnr/uploads/parks/pdfs/DolliverRUPjs.pdf; Ledges State Park Recreation Use Plan, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, accessed September 25, 2017, www.iowadnr.gov/portals/idnr/uploads/parks/pdfs/LedgesRUPjs.pdf.