Templar State Recreation Area

Templar State Recreation Area occupies 10 acres on the western shore of Big Spirit Lake near Orleans in Iowa’s Great Lakes region. Though small, it provides practical public access to the state’s largest natural lake, with a sheltered boat ramp on a lagoon, fishing areas, and picnic buildings. The site began as Templar Park, owned by the Knights Templar, who built a hotel there in 1890 for members and their families and used it for Iowa’s annual Grand Conclave. After the first hotel burned in 1917, a replacement was built, but the property was sold after its 1977 historic listing and the hotel was later demolished.

Orleans, Iowa · United States