Cottonmill Lake

Kearney Hub – May 29, 1905
--In the large basin of the fountain in the Kearney Grocery company’s store is a curiosity in the shape of a silver bass weighing nineteen and one half pounds. This monster fish was caught by Mr. Travelpiece in the cotton mill lake and is the largest specimen of its kind ever caught in these waters.

BCHS Archives file –

Like it Was –
1952 Annual Hub carriers picnic at stone lodge at Cottonmill State Park

Hub – 1973
The park has 107 acres

Cottonmill Lake Recreation Area owned by NE State GameCommission

Ceded to Buffalo County & City of Kearney

Approved by State Legislature 46-0 with emergency clause to take affect as soon as the governor signed the bill.

Bill was sponsored by Sen. Gerald Stromer, Kearney, Sen. Maurice Kramer, Aurora, and Sen. Dennis Rasmussen, Scotia.

Other State Recreation Areas transferred to local government ownership were Stolley Park to Grand Island, Arnold Recreation Area to Custer County, and Long Bridge Special Use Area to Merrick County.

Bill was first introduced two years earlier but was attached as a rider to another bill which was vetoed.

Dean Canon was chairman of the County Board of supervisors
Ray Lundy was Kearney City Manager
A separate Board was to be created.

They plan to apply for federal and state funds to help with reconstruction. Plan to hard surface roads and parking areas, put in domestic water system [irrigation type well for swimming area], restrooms, playground equipment, lighting, caretakers home, mechanical shop and equipment storage.
No plans to dredge the lake.

Hub – May 1, 1973 –
County Board approved the Cooperative Agreement with the city. Vote was 6-1 with Ray Johnson voting against because he thought we have enough parks in the Kearney area.

[Since then Kearney has added 4 parks – Baldwin, Harvey, West Lincoln Way, Yanney]

City Council had already voted on the agreement.

Advisory Cottonmill Lake City and County Recreation Park Board was established

2 Kearney residents appointed by the mayor
2 County residents appointed by the County Board
1 person chosen by the other 4

[At some point between then and now a change was made to put Cottonmill Park under the responsibility of the city parks advisory board.]

Hub – July 20, 1973 –
Kearney budgeted $143,000 for Parks & Recreation. Most was to be used for development ot Cottonmill Lake.

City and County to take over the 98.4 acre lake area from the State on Jan. 1

Kearney liked it for the camping and outdoor cooking opportunities not available in other city parks

Hub – undated –
Pictures of the stone lodge in 1940 when it was built and the present [1974?]

Originally had stone chimneys at each end. Big one at north end for fireplace. Smaller one at east end. [Was there a fireplace there also?]

Stone retaining wall across the front by the road was originally even with the top step and extended clear across the front of the lodge.
Second picture shows remnants left.

Hub – Dec. 23, 1974 –
Picture of work on shelter at north 4end of lake at the city-county park.

Nebraska Game & Parks Commission
Cottonmill Lake was purchased from U. S. Trust in 1960 for $40,000.
 

Sources Online

http://company.monster.com/ustrust/
The U.S. Trust Corporation is one of America's oldest investment management and trust companies. Founded on Wall Street in 1853, U.S. Trust's earliest clients were entrepreneurs - railroad barons, merchants, shipbuilders, industrialists - and the corporations they created. Later, we helped their heirs preserve the wealth these pioneers built.

http://www.forbes.com/markets/2006/11/20/bank-of-america-markets-equity-cx_jl_1120markets12.html
Bank of America To Buy U.S. Trust
Josh Lipton 11.20.06, 5:02 PM ET
Bank of America announced Monday will that it will buy U.S. Trust, the wealth-management subsidiary of Charles Schwab in all cash deal for $3.3 billion. The resulting entity will be the largest manager of private wealth in the U.S.
Based on assets under management by private banks, Bank of America is currently the second largest manager of private wealth in the U.S., while U.S. Trust is the fourth. The combined entity will be first, according to Bank of America, with a total of $261 billion in assets under management.
Schwab first bought U.S. Trust for about $2.8 billion in 2000…