Dwight Davis Park

Lillian and Oriole Avenue
Saint Louis, MO 63120

1 Comfort Station
1 Playground
1 Basketball Court
2 Softball Fields
1 Baseball Field
1 Multi-Purpose Court
1 Soccer Field
2 Tennis Courts
1 Spray pool

History:


Dwight F. Davis, a civic leader and donor of the David Cup in tennis, was a Cabinet member, Governor General of the Philippines, notable soldier and internationally known devotee of sports As Secretary of War under Calvin Coolidge, Davis was the youngest member of the Cabinet.

He returned to his home in St. Louis after college and becoming a world-class tennis player, Davis was appointed to the St. Louis Public Baths Commission. He served on the Public Library and Art Museum Boards and was elected to the city's House of Delegates. In 1911, he was appointed St. Louis Park Commissioner. Intensely interested in recreational facilities, he had the conviction that public parks were intended for public use, not merely for appearance sake.

He laid out baseball diamonds, tennis courts, golf courses and stirred up enthusiasm for outdoor sports. He was the father of municipal baseball leagues, which played in parks throughout the City. Davis took the "Keep Off The Grass" off park lawns and invited the public to make free use of every facility offered by his department. Public parks, he argued, belonged to the public. As a result, the organized use of municipal parks for recreation centers spread throughout the country.

Dwight F. Davis was born in 1879 and died in 1948.

The park named in his honor was dedicated on August 1, 1962.
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