Eagle Point Park

Eagle Point Park is one of the most outstanding parks in the Midwest. This park is 164 acres which overlooks the Mississippi River and Lock and Dam No. 11. It also offers a stunning view of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Eagle Point Park is located at 2601 Shiras Avenue.  Admission is $1 per car, $5 per bus. Bicycles and pedestrians are free. The park is open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday, from the first Saturday in May through the fourth Sunday in October.

Season Pass

Season passes may be purchased at the Eagle Point Park Toll Booth or the Parks and Recreation Department, 1157 Central Ave. A valid driver’s license and vehicle registration must be present at the time of purchase. For questions, call 563-589-4263.

Season Pass Rates

  • Dubuque Resident: $10
  • Non-resident: $15
  • Senior Citizen: $5 (Must be 62 and retired to receive a discounted pass price.)
  • Low-income Resident: $5

Park History

The idea for the park was conceived in 1907 when Charles M. Robinson, a noted eastern park specialist, visited Dubuque. After touring scenic locations in the city, Robinson made this comment to his hosts: "I have never seen a place where the Almighty has done more and mankind less, than Dubuque." Most of his listeners were hurt by the remark, but one person decided to do something about it. He was Judge Oliver Shiras, one of Dubuque’s leading citizens.

A citizen’s committee was formed in April of 1908, and Judge Shiras was elected chairperson. In June of 1908, with aid from the Civic Division of the Dubuque’s Women’s Club, one hundred acres were purchased from A.L. Rhomberg. The property was then deeded to the city and became Eagle Point Park. Since the original purchase, 17 parcels have been purchased or donated, which brings the park to its present size.

Streetcar traffic began to serve in 1912. Union Electric Company constructed the track, turnaround and wait station at Eagle Point Park where the information booth is now located. Prior to Lock and Dam No. 11 being built in 1933, a bathing beach was available for park goers.

The park took on a new look in the 1930s when the City hired Park Superintendent Alfred Caldwell. A $200,000 Works Progress Administration grant was received and the gifted landscape architect began work. His love of Frank Lloyd Wright prairie architecture is very recognizable in the buildings and gardens. Caldwell’s exceptional use of native construction materials, craftsmanship and unique designs make the park one of the most beautiful in the midwest.

Native Stone Shelters

The Indian Room, Veranda Rooms, and Bridge Complex were built in the 1930s during the Great Depression. A Historic Structures Report on the three buildings and their immediate surroundings, focusing on the work of Alfred Caldwell, was completed in 2025.

The Riverfront Pavilion is the oldest in the park, having been constructed in 1910. The riverwalk was constructed in 1950 and has quickly become one of the more popular locations at Eagle Point Park due to its views of the Mississippi River and the tri-states.

The Shiras Memorial Pavilion is located at the riverwalk’s end and was constructed in 1921, honoring Judge Oliver Shiras. The Log Cabin Pavilion was constructed in 1939 with funding from the National Youth Administration.

Indian Room Native Paintings

In June of 1936, Joe Dillon, a Dubuque artist, completed a series of a dozen “Indian Lore” mural panels that extend across the tops of the walls in the Stone Shelter’s first story public room. The project was sponsored by the WPA. Although “the artist admitted before he started the work that he knew little about Indians, except in drawing types,” the theme may have been inspired by Caldwell’s plans for some of the landscape features of the park. (The Stone Shelter began to be called the Indian Room by late summer of 1938 on account of the murals.)

In 2011, the Bridge Complex rehabilitation project received a Historic Preservation Award from the Dubuque County Historical Society. As part of the same program, the restoration of the Indian Room murals also received an award. Initiated by Cindy Steinhauser, the Dubuque Assistant City Manager and granddaughter of the original muralist, Joseph Dillon, the mural restoration project had been undertaken five years earlier. Steinhauser had several artists in her family and elicited the help of her mother, two sisters, and a niece to restore the mural. Herb Klinkhammer of Colonial Painting and Decorating was also involved. The group removed the dark stain and graffiti that covered the 1936 mural and repainted its original elements.

2019 Land Donation Honoring Wayne Anthony

Dubuque’s Eagle Point Park, overlooking the Mississippi River and providing a spectacular view of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, is one of the most beautiful places in the Midwest.  The park is the “crown” of Dubuque’s park system, which features 49 parks covering nearly 1,200 acres.  Another jewel was recently added to that crown thanks to a generous land donation to the City of Dubuque.  Read more...