Since 2001 when Lake Drummond was dedicated with the opening of Close Memorial Park, this urban water refuge has provided tranquil walks, beautiful views and spots to stop and sit a spell for many thousands of visitors.

The lake was named for Anne Case Drummond, a civic force who inspired and mentored generations of Ozarks women. Her likeness is memorialized in bronze sitting on a park bench lakeside near the garden’s southern entrance. A financial gift in 2021 from private citizens is making this area more accessible with sidewalks and additional landscaping.

There is a 0.7 mile walking trail that encircles Lake Drummond. In 2014, the City’s Public Works Department completed a major stabilization and beautification project at the Lake Drummond spillway and in 2017, a native pollinator garden was made possible on the northern edge of the lake through the Missouri Department of Conservation Community Conservation Program. The Lake Drummond garden hosts a wide variety of native plant species to support birds and pollinating insects. Research suggests that large geese populations are deterred by interrupting the waterway and great lawn with the large plantings.