Observation park, high on the west bluffs at the southeast corner of Twentieth and Holly streets, is a little park of 4.47 acres, acquired in 1899 when the city purchased grounds for the water works. The space not used for a reservoir was assigned to the Park department for park purposes. A 1914 souvenir booklet describing city parks stated: Observation park's unique position on a high point on the western bluffs, with low ground all around, makes it a central point of observation and presents from its summit a magnificent view of a large part of the city and of Kansas City, Kansas and Rosedale across the state line. A combined bandstand and comfort station was built of native stone in 1909. The superstructure of this building, as shown on the 1916 post card has been removed, and the comfort station, on the lower level, closed, since a new and separate building was erected for this purpose.The view has been impaired by some 70 years of nearby building construction and the growth of trees and shrubs. Street car tracks still are to be seen, reminding one that a car line once carried passengers to the sightly summit. The reservoir of the city water works is no longer standing, and the ground it once occupied is now a baseball field. Basketball courts and soccer fields, swings and playground apparatus also are available for the neighborhood today, and the grassy lawns furnish a cool and sightly spot for nearby home owners and residents of two large housing projects, Pennway Plaza and West Bluff. Kansas City Times, September 19, 1970.
Reproduction (printing, downloading, or copying) of images from Kansas City Public Library requires permission and payment for the following uses, whether digital or print: publication; reproduction of multiple copies; personal, non-educational purposes; and advertising or commercial purposes. Please order prints or digital files and pay use fees through this website. All images must be properly credited to: "Missouri Valley Special Collections, Kansas City Public Library, Kansas City, Missouri." Images and texts may be reproduced without prior permission only for purposes of temporary, private study, scholarship, or research. Those using these images and texts assume all responsibility for questions of copyright and privacy that may arise.
