The Soldier Statue & Cannon / The Lyon Park Property History

The Soldier Statue and Cannon, also, The Lyon Park Property History. . , The Soldier Statue and Cannon , On Friday, September 4, 1904 a statue of a soldier, known as the "American Volunteer," and a surplus cannon were placed by the Joe Hooker Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, a Civil War veterans organization, on the grounds of Central School, presently the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science. Hundreds gathered for the ceremony, including school children, veterans, and dignitaries. In 1935, when the last phase of the school was constructed, the statue and cannon were moved to Lyon Park. The statue was removed by a city parks worker in 1964. The head of the statue was retained by one of the city parks workers for several years, and donated to the Siouxland Heritage Museums in 2007. The cannon still resides here in the park., The Lyon Park Property History , This property was originally owned by Artemus Gale, a Sioux Falls man that lived in a home just behind the Arkota Ballroom (currently the El Riad Shrine Mosque). In the early 1870s, Gale had gone to Lake Madison and returned by horse-drawn wagon with several transplanted Cottonwood seedlings. Upon establishment of the transplanted trees, the property was known as Gale's Grove. Unfortunately, when Phillips Avenue was paved in 1913, many of these original Cottonwoods died due to the changes in the grading of the land and altered water flow. Gale eventually sold the property to the James H. Dyer Group in 1889., The property was foreclosed upon in 1901. In two purchases, Lyon acquired the land in 1901 and 1911. The property was henceforth known as Lyon's Grove., In May 1928, the Lyon family gave a portion of the land to the City of Sioux Falls. This area included the land from 14th Street extending 300 feet south, between Phillips Avenue and the alley. Over the next several days, newspaper accounts tell of various civic clubs and organizations praising the Lyon Family for their gift., In 1944, Mrs. Lyon gave additional land adjacent to the park. This portion included a sunken garden, lily pool, and a pergola., Information courtesy of the Siouxland Heritage Museums.