Cascades Park Memorial Plaza

Sparks Foundation County Park features an area dedicated to four memorials of local and national significance. Near the intersection of Randolph and High Streets, parking is available nearby along the roads.

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8

9-11 Memorial 

In remembrance of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, Cascades Park includes a piece of structural steel. The steel was an outside support beam for Tower 2, and it was found nearly 40 feet underground at the corner of Church and Liberty Streets in New York City, about a block from its original foundation. 

USS Arizona Exhibit

The USS Arizona, a battleship built for the United States Navy in the mid-1910s, was attacked by torpedo bombers during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. After one of their bombs denotated in a magazine, the Arizona exploded violently and sank, with the loss of 1,177 officers and crewman. The wreck still lies at the bottom of Pearl Harbor beneath the USS Arizona Memorial.

Spearheaded by local citizen Stanley Mazur, a 4-foot-by-4-foot steel piece from the USS Arizona's deckhouse was presented to Jackson County for display in 2021. The exhibit also features four plaques, including one containing the 28 names and hometowns of the Michigan officers and crew who died during the ship's attack. 

James Francis Mentink Memorial - Jackson's Victims of Violent Crime Memorial 

Dedicated to the memory of people killed during violent crimes in Jackson, this memorial was constructed in 2005. The existing structure includes the names and photos of more than 100 victims from Jackson County.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Plaque

The Never Forget Garden Project is a nationwide invitation to all Americans and freedom loving people to plant gardens as a visual way to represent unwavering commitment to our sacred duty to recognize, remember, and honor our veterans and their families now and for many years to come. In 2022, the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution led and effort to place a plaque within Cascades Park.