Wichita's Riverside Parks

"Wichita was founded in 1870 at the junction of the Little and Big Arkansas Rivers in south central Kansas. From the very beginning, the rivers have been a focus for social and recreational activity. Parks, both public and private, were established along these waterways near downtown to capitalize on this natural asset and have gone through many changes. Some of these parks are now over 100 years old, but one no longer exists, having literally been dug up and hauled away in wheelbarrows in 1933. This book chronicles many of the colorful activities and events that have occurred in these parks over the years, and shows how vital they are in the Wichita of today"--Back cover.

James E. Mason is an interpretive naturalist for the Wichita Parks Department, working at the Great Plains Nature Center. He grew up in Wichita, only a few blocks from the Arkansas River. Mason began his career with the parks department in 1978 and worked for several years at the zoo in Central Riverside Park, where he first became aware of the long history of the riverside parks and started giving public presentations on the subject. That program developed into this book.