Omaha as a city had been in existence for 18 years and had just a single park which consisted of just a single block. That park, located at 15th and Chicago was Jefferson Square. Noting the lack of green space in the quickly growing city, Andrew Hanscom and James Megeath donated 57 of the 400 acres they acquired for a new park in 1872. The park would be named after Hanscom as the majority landholder. The remaining land would be used for a new development called Hanscom Place.
The donated land which was considered too hilly for residential development sat on the western edge of the city bordering 32nd Ave. In accepting the donation, the city had to agree to five conditions: 1. It must remain a park forever, 2. It will always be named Hanscom Park, 3. The city must invest in beautifying and ornamenting it, 4. The city must build a road around the park and 5. The city must maintain the park forever.
The park offered respite from the city particularly for those with automobiles and those living nearby though the neighborhoods surrounding the park were just beginning to sprout up. By 1888 however, the city hadn’t quite lived up to its end of the bargain, so the donors threatened to reclaim the land. That prompted the city to finally create a parks commission which would plan, control and care for the park. To kick off that process, they hired prominent landscape architect Horace Cleveland to come up with a design. If that name is familiar, it’s because he also had a hand in designing the boulevard system as well as Elmwood Park.
Once the renovation was done and the streetcar line was extended to the entrance of the park, its popularity exploded. At one point, the streetcar was making stops every 10 minutes. Once visitors arrived, they found lots to like. In addition to the fresh cut grass and large flower beds, it had a bandstand and dancing platform for Sunday afternoon concerts, fountains, lagoons, a green house and abundance of trees to provide refuge from the sun.
At some point, the city banned dance parties and removed the dancing platform. At least they added a nice pavilion which had burned down three years later. They replaced it with an even larger two-story open-air structure that included a wrap around porch that overlooked the lagoon. The pavilion also included caretaker quarters on the second floor. Fortunately, the city didn’t ban ice skating. In fact, they encouraged it by renting out skates. The lagoon was also popular for fishing. Other features included two metal slides that were hitched together, a merry-go-round and teeter totters as well as other items.
Following the tornado in 1913, the Joslyn Conservatory was donated to the city and moved from the castle to the park. Even back then the greenhouses were used to nurture plants year round so that they could be planted in Omaha’s boulevard system. This was also the year that the city’s only president was born just across Woolworth Ave in a house that overlooked the park.
The new pavilion became a popular meeting place until it too caught fire in 1927. When they rebuilt it a second time, it moved it to the other side of the lagoon. The much sturdier replacement also had a wraparound porch but wasn’t nearly as grand. It was around this time that the park we see today began to take shape. The city donated a cannon dating back to the Spanish-American War for the World War II metal drive. The bandstand, deemed unsafe by the mid-1940’s was torn down and eventually replaced with a gazebo. While the upper lagoon was filled in, the lower lagoon was spared thanks to the citizens. The natural spring was rerouted to the sewer before being plugged. The concrete slabs from the earlier pavilions were repurposed and used to create tennis courts which were the city’s first. The swimming pool was added in 1961. By 1967 an indoor tennis facility was built within the park grounds. Professional tennis player Pancho Gonzalez played an exhibition match while he was there to dedicate the courts.
While Hanscom Park has changed dramatically over the last 150 years, it’s still a vital part of the community. Its swimming pool was renovated in the 1990’s provides children with a place to cool off in the summer. The original greenhouses and conservatory were replaced in 1968, and its plants were used at more than 300 locations across the city. Unfortunately, 90% of the glass in the ceiling was destroyed by hail from storms that hit Omaha in June 2024.
The playground was replaced in the 1990’s and again in 2017 giving kids a place to slide, climb, swing, and play in the sand. The dog parks were added in 2011 allowing man’s best friend ample space to play, sniff and roll around. The hills which weren’t ideal for houses back in the day make for a challenging 9-hole disc golf course. The gazebo which was burned down in 2022 in a suspected case of arson is in the process of being replaced with a steel structure that should stand the test of time.
I’d love to hear what you have to say so please feel free to comment. Until next time, keep exploring!
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