Joseph Landa purchased the land that now encompasses Landa Park in 1859. Centered on Comal Springs, the largest group of springs in the American Southwest, the site used the Comal River to power gristmills, cotton and woolen factories, an ice plant, and a brewery, and during the Civil War it also included a saltpeter processing plant. Joseph's son Harry Landa opened Landa's Park as a tourist site in 1898 after the International and Great Northern Railroad built a spur to the site. By 1900, the I&GN and the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railway ran weekend excursion trains there, and visitors enjoyed picnics, dancing, and steamboat excursions on Landa Lake. Landa later sold the park to a San Antonio investment group, which operated it until financial problems closed it in 1933. In 1936, concerned citizens led by Erhard P. Nowotny petitioned the City of New Braunfels to buy the park, and residents voted three to one in favor. The park has remained open to the public since then. Over the years it has expanded in acreage and gained many improvements. In the 1930s, Works Progress Administration employees built concession stands, restrooms, parking areas, and retaining walls. Later additions included a miniature golf course, playgrounds, and nature trails. Since the early 1960s, Wurstfest, an annual celebration of food and music, has been held there each November. Today the park continues to serve the public as a leisure destination for New Braunfels residents and area travelers.