Overton Park in Memphis; Tennessee; is a gem in the midst of a sprawling Southern city. In 1900; as Memphis emerged from bankruptcy and yellow fever epidemics; the Progressive movement encouraged Memphians to rely on the government for a better quality of life. The Memphis Park Commission; chartered that year; purchased 342 acres of land at the eastern edge of the city. Landowner Overton Lea of Nashville earned $110;000 from the sale. George Kessler was hired to build Overton Park; and the intervening years saw such amenities as the citys first zoo; the Brooks Museum of Art; the Overton Park Shell (the site of Elvis Presleys first public performance); Memphis College of Art; war memorials; and hiking trails through the worlds only old-growth forest in an urban setting.
#2207058 in eBooks 2004-07-27 2004-07-27File Name: B00946NGB6
Review
