The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1913-05-01
Kenosha Supporters of Play
Grounds Movement Meet
on Saturday Evening.
WELLER TELLS OF GREAT WORK
Kenosha People Decide to Take Definite
Action and Proceed at Once to Out
line Program to Secure Play Places
for the Children of the city.

Definite action to secure Fairgrounds
for the children Of Kenosha was taken
at a meeting held at the city hall on
Saturday evening when the park COM
mission was instructed to proceed at
once to have a survey Of the city made
under the direction Of an engineer to
be furnished by the National Play
grounds and Recreation Association.
When this survey is made program
will be outlined for the work to be
done in Kenosha. This program will
be based on scientific and practical
study of the exact needs Of the city
Of Kenosha and while it may take sew
eral years and possibly decade to
carry out the program it is certain
that when the work is completed Ke-
nosha will have comprehensive plan
Of taking care of the recreation of its
children and it's adults. The fund Of
six or seven hundred dollars needed to
provide for the proper survey of the
city will be raised among interested
people and the city will not be asked
to make an appropriation for this pur
pose. It is expected that when the
program is definitely outlined that the
city will make proper appropriations to
take care of the work. At the present
time the work will be in charge of the
park commission and the members of
this board have given the assurance
that they will 60 carefully into the
matter with a view of getting the best
results for the people of the city.
The meeting on Saturday evening
proved very interesting one. More
than hundred of the people of the
city interested in this big movement,
including some of the people who had
originated the work in Kenosha were
present. Mayor Head and majority
of the members Of the common council
and many Of the members of the board
of education and the board of park
commissioners were also interested
spectators.
Charles Frederick Weller, vice presi.
dent of the national playground or
ganization was present and gave a
very interesting talk on the subject.
1t was a talk to the point. Play
grounds have been talked to death in
Kenosha and Mr.. Weller declared that
what Kenosha needed was to get busy
and build Fairgrounds and secure
proper supervision for them. He de-
clared that the most important feature
Of the great play movement was the
question of supervision and he said
that proper supervision of Fairgrounds
was more necessary than the play
grounds. He showed the failure of
the movement in many cities where the
men and women at the head of the
movement had sought to secure play
places rather than play supervisors.
Mr.. Weller spoke of the work that has
been done in other places and he de-
clared that the success Of the ma
tIonal organization in working out
plans for these cities led him to be-
l1eve that the problem in Kenosha
would prove an easy one if the proper
sort OF supervision was given to the
work
lie suggested that the city seek the
AID OF the national organization in
finding out just what the conditions
were In Kenosha and that after this
report had been secured the men and
women would be in better shape TO
work out the needs Of the city. There
were short addresses by Mayor Dan
Q. Head, George Bachelor, one of the
orlglnators of the play grounds move
ment in Kenosha; S. G. Newman. G.
Il. Curtis, G. d. Barnes and 2. e. Sim
mons. It was suggested that the money
now IN the hands of the old play
ground association be used for making
this survey and Mr.. Simmons volun-
teered to add hundred dollars to the
fund. Assurances were given that the
money needed could be secured Mr.
Weller at once notified the national or
ganization of the action taken and it
IS expected that some plan to furnish
an expert in these lines will be work
ed out within few weeks.