Merriam Park
Mission, United States
President Ulysses S. Grant dedicated a spectacular park on this site on July 1, 1880. Built by the Ft. Scott & Gulf Railroad and designed by the famed landscape architect George Kessler, the park covered 40 acres from Shawnee Mission Parkway to 65th Street and from Grandview to the Railroad tracks.<br><br> An attraction visited by thousands, Merriam Park featured a zoo with bear pits, a lagoon used for summer sailboating and winter ice-skating, and a horse-drawn carousel.<br><br> Park visitors also enjoyed tennis, croquet, baseball and square dancing. A personal dream of park superintendent George Kessler was realized when he brought to the park a tree from every country in the world.<br><br> On stepping off the train platform, visitors were greeted by the sound of band concerts and the vision of "MERRIAM" spelled out in flowers.