Fort Wayne in Allen County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Early Effort To Build A Park

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 30, 2008

1. Early Effort To Build A Park Marker

Inscription. Around the turn of the century, the nationwide “City Beautiful” movement found local expression through the efforts of Charles Mulford Robinson and nationally known landscape architect George Kessler. Seeking to reclaim the natural beauty of our rivers, Mr. Kessler incorporated them into a sweeping plan of riverside drives and parks that would bring the Indiana landscape into the heart of the city. Proposed in a report presented to the City's Park Board just days before the devastating flood of 1913, the plan was permanently delayed by the advent of World War I. Despite the lesson of the 1913 flood, no further efforts at natural reclamation of this site were seen until 1929. In that year, Robert B. Hanna, acting as a consultant to the City Plan Commission, published a vision for “A Great River Park.” This park would extend, in his words, “up and down the St. Joseph, St. Mary's, and Maumee Rivers, for many miles within and beyond the city, including the development...of the region about the confluence of the rivers and known in history as the ‘Gateway to the West’.” Central to his vision was the scenic landscaping of the

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site on which we stand. Eighty years previously this land had been owned by his grandfather, Samuel Hanna; seventy years later, his dream would be realized by the generation of his grandsons.

Erected by City of Fort Wayne and The Shoaff Family.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Parks & Recreational Areas • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1913.

Location. 41° 5.137′ N, 85° 8.352′ W. Marker is in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in Allen County. It can be reached from S Clinton Street. Marker is one of a series that ring the Great Meadow in Headwaters Park. This marker is about 100 feet east of Clinton Street and about 200 feet NNW of the Fountain Plaza. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 127 S Clinton St, Fort Wayne IN 46802, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Northern Indiana.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the

Photographed by Joel Seewald, July 22, 2023

2. Early Effort To Build A Park Marker

Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Headwaters Park (within shouting distance of this marker); The Floods (within shouting distance of this marker); Shanty Town And The Depression (within shouting distance of this marker); First Americans (within shouting distance of this marker); The Fur Traders and the Military at Fort Wayne (within shouting distance of this marker); Miami Legend of the Sandhill Crane (within shouting distance of this marker); League Park (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Little Turtle (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Fort Wayne.

Great Meadow in Headwaters Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 30, 2008

3. Great Meadow in Headwaters Park

Several markers along path circling the Great Meadow, looking north with Clinton Street on the extreme left and the Hamilton Women Plaza on extreme distant right of photo. Fountain Plaza area is in right foreground.

Photographed by Craig Doda, May 1, 2022

4. Early Effort To Build A Park Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on November 2, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 1,877 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 2. submitted on August 21, 2023, by Joel Seewald of Madison Heights, Michigan. 3. submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 4. submitted on May 3, 2022, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.