The Klamath Falls Vererans Memorial Park is a recreational park located on Lake Ewauna

Lake Ewauna

Lake Ewauna is a lake in Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States. It is the headwaters of the Klamath River. Fed by Link River from Upper Klamath Lake and controlled by the release of water from Keno Dam downstream, Lake Ewauna stays at a constant level throughout the year.At just over 6,500 feet ...

 in downtonw Klamath Falls

Klamath Falls, Oregon

Klamath Falls is a city in Klamath County, Oregon, United States. Originally called Linkville when George Nurse founded the town in 1867, after the Link River on whose falls this city sat, although no falls currently exist; the name was changed to Klamath Falls in 1892...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. It was established in 2007 as a memorial honoring those who have served and/or are serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, Coast Guard and Wartime Merchant Marine. Construction of the 3.3 acre (0.013354638 km²) park was overseen by the 173d Fighter wing, Oregon Air National Guard

Oregon Air National Guard

The Oregon Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is, along with the Oregon Army National Guard, an element of the Oregon National Guard...

 located at Kingsley Field

Klamath Falls Airport

Klamath Falls Airport , also known as Kingsley Field, is a joint civil-military public airport located four miles southeast of Klamath Falls, in Klamath County, Oregon, USA. The airport has two runways...

. The city of Klamath Falls oversees the maintenance of the Memorial. The park features memorial bricks for past and present military personnel, an informational kiosk, a covered pavilion and a display of Locomotive #2579

Southern Pacific 2579

Southern Pacific Railroad 2579 is a heavy 2-8-0 type steam locomotives built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1906, a typical example of over 350 locomotives called "Consolidations". 2579 was retired from service in 1956 and is currently in display in the Veterans Memorial Park in Klamath Falls,...

 used by the Southern Pacific Railroad.

Location

Klamath Falls Veterans park is located where US Route 97

U.S. Route 97 in Oregon

In the U.S. state of Oregon, U.S. Route 97 is a major north–south United States highway which runs through the state of Oregon . In Oregon, it runs from the Oregon-California border, south of Klamath Falls, to the Oregon-Washington border on the Columbia River, between Biggs Junction, Oregon and...

 passes over the Link River

Link River

The Link River is a short river connecting Upper Klamath Lake to Lake Ewauna in the city of Klamath Falls in the U.S. state of Oregon. Draining a basin of , the river begins at the southern end of Klamath Lake and flows a short distance to the Link River Dam and continues to the head of Lake Ewauna...

, at the southern end of downtown Klamath Falls. Because of its location at the north end of the Klamath River

Klamath River

The Klamath River is an American river that flows southwest through Oregon and northern California, cutting through the Cascade Range to empty into the Pacific Ocean. The river drains an extensive watershed of almost that stretches from the high desert country of the Great Basin to the temperate...

, the park has boat access to Lake Ewauna.

History

A volunteer committee was created to oversee the proposal, design and construction of a memorial park to honor veteran servicemen. The original project was designed to take place in multiple phases to include future expansion. With the assistance of the local military organizations and civilian clubs, the Oregon National Guard, the city and county of Klamath, as well as multiple donations of citizens, the first phase of Klamath Falls Veterans Park broke ground in August of 2007 and was completed and dedicated three months later, on Veterans' Day, November 11th, 2007. Phase 1 of construction included a covered pavilion and benches, flag poles, concrete walkways with red, white and blue fiber optic lights, bronze plaques representing the military branches, monuments depicting various wars, initial memorial brick pavers and landscaping.

A second phase dedicated on Memorial Day, 2008 included a Blue Star Memorial Highway

Blue Star Memorial Highway

Blue Star Memorial Highways are highways in the United States that are marked to pay tribute to the U.S. armed forces. The National Council of State Garden Clubs, now known as National Garden Clubs, Inc., started the program in 1945 after World War II. The blue star was used on service flags to...

 marker, which pays tribute to all of the armed forces that have defended the United States. The second phase also included memorial brick pavers.

Geothermal system

Because the city of Klamath Falls is located in a Known Geothermal Resource Area, all sidewalks and the memorial brick bases in the Veterans Memorial Park contain piping for a geothermal heating

Geothermal heating

Geothermal heating is the direct use of geothermal energy for heating applications. Humans have taken advantage of geothermal heat this way since the Paleolithic era. Approximately seventy countries made direct use of a total of 270 PJ of geothermal heating in 2004...

 system. This natural heatsource allows the Memorial to provide direct geothermally heated snowmelt system

Snowmelt system

A snowmelt system is used to remove snow and ice via embedded electric cables or hydronic tubing. Common areas for snowmelt systems are: driveways, walkways, parking areas, stairways, loading docks, and around car washes. A snowmelt system is usually installed during the original construction in...

s during the winter months.