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Finding
"In the year 1884 the Grand Commandery of the Knights Templar secured ten acres of land on what was then known as Kingman's Point. -
Meeting
It was not until 1890 they held their first meeting on the ground. This concave was held in a tent and a little later a building and dining room was erected with offices on the first floor. -
Tornado
This building was destroyed by a cyclone (tornado) in 1898. -
Donation
George Bever donated a headquarters building. -
Building
A new frame building was built to accommodate the Knights and their families, building first a north wing with fifty rooms, later a south wing with like number of room and lastly a wing on the west with a rotunda in the center. This gave the Knights 150 rooms. They also erected a large frame structure; the lower floor was used for dining room, the upper floor for an assembly room, with the west wing being used for kitchen and quarters for the caretaker. -
Dance
A dance pavillion was erected from contributions collected by Past Grand Comander, John Pettibone. -
Fire
In June 1917, all the buildings were burned to the ground leaving only a building used as headquarters for Grand officers. The fire also destroyed nearly 200 beautiful shade trees. -
The End Result
A new structure was erected on the site of the old one which was fireproof. The new structure was patterned after the old apartment building. The social center of the whole park is maintained in the rotunda of the main building, 40 x 80 feet in dimensions and two stories high. All rotunda porches were glassed and screened in and heating was provided by a furnace and four large fie places. The main building was over 300 feet in length with three floors having 150 rooms all alike in dimensions, eq -
Period: to
Moorish
The present rambiling, 3 story, $141,000, fire proof hotel of Moorish architecture was dedicated. -
The Arch
The archway at the entrance to the Park was donated by Grand Commander Ace Webster. -
Pavilion
A new $25,000 pavilion was dedicated. -
Alice Mendenhall
Alice Mendenhall was the "Program Director" during the summer of 1946. -
Yacht Club
The Okoboji Yacht Club used to have social parties at member's homes and other places and one was held at Templar Park. -
New Owner
Templar park was bough by a new owner. -
The Destruction
The destroying of templar park was a hard project aprently the wals were about 6 in thik conkreet. -
The Last Stand
The year of the flood the last standing building was destroied from flood damage.
