The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-11-19
Amusement City Being Built
at Camp Funston.
Includes Theaters, Cafes, Stores
Banks, Shops, Etc.
BUILDING 3 SHOW HOUSES
Movie, Vaudeville and "LegitS, !"
Place for Each.
Arcade Building Covering Block
to House 40 Stores.

! Camp Funston, Kan, Nov. 19.-An
entire city is being built for the &C
commodation, amusement and benefit
of the boys of the Eighty ninth DlVl-
sion stationed at Funston, known as
the Zone of Camp Act1Vltles anu
! Anusements" Hundreds of thousands
IF doIiars are being expended, and
when the last building is flnlshed ana
! doing business on January L, some
thing will have been accomplished
here that never before has been zone
| in the history of America.
| The zone will be filled with all
J kinds of amusement places, restaur-
ants stores, banks, and every hlhs
| else that goes to make up business
! section of a big city, CITY OIL LOFTY
| thousand inhabitants, where every
citizen is a man of voting age. Here
/ the men can gather during the even
| ings and on Saturdays ana SUNDAYS;
and during their off PERIODS ana
! amuse themselves, do their shopping,
| visit or lust kill time. An average OF
| 121h per cent of the gross receipts OF
| the zone will be divided among the
various mess funds.
Private, Once Theater Magnate
The war department granted per-
mission September % to bulld the
| zone. and Capt Harry Rowland, as
sistant chief of staff, was placed IN
| charge The active management or
the zone was turned over to Lieut.
Dick B. Foster. a former Kansas
and is experimenting the construc-
ton of the buildings and the light,
water and power plant being built in
connection with the zone. Harry
Buckley, former manager OF TOUR
! theaters in st. Louis and now prl-
vate in the Eighty-ninth, has been
made chief of the department of
theaters. Sergt. V. F. Wilson, former
vice-president of the Interstate Trust
and Savings Company of Denver and
| a former director of several corpora
tions before he was drafted for ser
vice in the national army, has charge
of the finance department. Both
men have been recommended Tor
| commissions since coming to camp.
The buildings are arranged in four
blocks, constructed on the exposition
type of architecture, with, mission
feeling A boulevard will pass in
front of the zone, and 4O-foot streets
will divide the blocks. The east end
will be occupied by public library,
the Y. M. C. A. auditorium, the
| Knights of Columbus auditorium, the
civic theater and a swimming POSI-
All the business buildings will be
| grouped on the west end of the zone.
Two bank buildings, each to cost
approximately $4,000, are being
erected. One. known as the Army
Bank of Camp Funston, is a. branch
sas City. The other, the Bank of
Funston, is a branch of the Central
National bank at Junction City. The
second floor of both buildings will be
equipped as living quarters for the
employees. Both buildings will be
completed within a week. At present
the banks are housed in temporary
structures.
Largest Pool Hall in State.
Three theaters are going up, a
vaudeville theater, a theater to play
only stock and a movie theater. Each
building will have main floor and a
balcony with seating capacity of
1900 persons.
A billiard and pool hall. the largest
one in the state of Kansas, will open
about the end of next week. 1t will
contain ninety billiard and pool tables
The barber shop that is going up will
contain fifty chairs, and be all white
| enameled on the inside.
The Arcade building will be dis
t--4ctive feature in itself. 1t will COW
er one entire block and will contaiR
forty small stores, all of which have
i already been contracted for. There
| will be opticians, delicatessen storS>-
confectionery stores, soda fountains.
athletic goods, manufacturer of
candy, the division exchange stores
kodaks and kodak supplies, a whole
sale jeweler, a roastery, where chick
ems, pork, veal and beef are barbecued
right in the window and sold in the
back, and manyFother kinds of stores.
The cigar store will contain a huni-
2 dor sixteen by sixteen by fifty feet big,
$ large enough to keep one million
: cigars moist at one time.
May Build 8O-Room Hotel.
Restaurants will be dotted all thru
the zone. There will be one where
5 nothing but hot waffles are sold; an
other where nothing but fish and oys-
r tiers will be served; another will handle
a nothing but chile, and another first
= class restaurant that will handle most
anything an up-to-date restaurant has
+ on its bill of fare. Negotiations are
a now going on to build an SO-room
+ hotel for the accommodation of civ
I ilian visitors.
e Maj. Gen. Leonard Wood, command
a ing the division, is trying to get the
consent of the war departme to al.
low the employment of women in the
zone. At present no women are al.
lowed in camp. But General WooC
believes that the wives and mother,
of many of the men here would bs
glad to come here and work if for NJ
other season than to be near theil
| relatives, and this class of woman
| labor would be much more acceptabI,
than any other. The war department
has the matter now under considera
! ton.
The zone is the first one of its kline
ever built in an American army camp
and the buildings are being put III
in such a manner that they will b,
permanent.