We are joined by Professor Jeff Stein at Bricker-Price Block in Earlham. We will be discussing how the city of Dubuque prevented juvenile delinquency.
At the turn of the 20th century, some Dubuque leaders were concerned. How could they keep city children involved in positive activities over the summer, when school was not in session? Rural children had no problem keeping busy on the farm, but there wasn't enough for city children to do.
Audubon Elementary School principal B.J. Horchem had an idea. In 1907, he established an outdoor camp where boys planted gardens and studied nature. He hoped that the public schools would eventually became year-round, and these new summer outdoor classes would be part of the curriculum. His motto was "Form, Not Reform", as in "reform school".
On April 21, 1911, the program was officially incorporated under the name Park Life, with a board of trustees that included two dozen of Dubuque's most prominent business and professional leaders. Principal Horchem began with a small number of boys who set up tents, tended a garden and cooked their own food. Park Life received national attention in the May 1912 issue of American Magazine, and attracted great interest when discussed at that year's meeting of the National Education Association in San Francisco.
Money was always a problem, however. Horchem paid for things himself in the early years, and the financial aid to the project declined, as did attendance as other youth organizations developed. In many respects, the high point of the unique Park Life project occurred when community leaders rallied behind it financially, and legally incorporated the effort on this date in 1911. And that's Iowa Almanac for April 21st.
Jeff stein will be in studio with us next week! Later on he will visit:
Indianola Activity Center, Tue. Apr. 25--2 p.m. 2204 W. 2nd Ave. Indianola, IA
Bondurant Public Library, Tue. Apr. 25--6 p.m. 104 2nd St. NE. Bondurant, IA