Lagoon and rowboat at Riverview Park, Omaha, Nebraska
Description
Black and white photograph (25 x 20 cm.) of a tree-lined lagoon in Riverview Park at 3625 South 10th Street in Omaha, Nebraska. Visible is a rowboat with two women and two men. The women have on white dresses and white hats. On the reverse side in pencil is written: Riverview Park.
Riverview Park was established in the late 1890s and early 1900s. In keeping with H.W.S. Cleveland's philosophy that parkland should be secured before city growth reaches the area, Park Commissioners selected a parcel of land located along the Missouri River and between Omaha and South Omaha. The property was so hilly that: the land could not support a table on four legs (City of Omaha Planning Dept., p. 16). Problems arose with landowners over the purchase and the city acquired 111.57 acres by condemnation proceedings between 1893 and 1899, paying a total of $90,053.50 for the land. From 1899 to 1917 the city spent $125,000 for improvements and maintenance (Wakeley, p. 161). Present boundaries of the park are Interstate 80, Riverview Blvd, and Grover street on the north and east, Gifford Drive and railroad tracks on the south, and 10th street on the west. The spectacular vistas of the Missouri River gave the park its name. Cleveland was unsure about incorporating the terrain of the
