Built in 1912, the Huaco Club was very much a playground for Waco’s wealthier residents. From golf and tennis to social events, affluent Wacoans enjoyed spending time at the country club, located near Sanger Avenue and Twenty-Ninth Street.

Desiring to create a membership-only leisure space that would be comparable to those found in larger cities, several leading society figures organized and signed the charter for the Huaco Club on May 20, 1910. The charter called for $40,000 to be raised with 200 members purchasing shares of $200 apiece. The charter stated: “The purpose for which this corporation is formed is to support and maintain a country club for the promotion and encouragement of outdoor life, the games of golf and tennis and other innocent sports and amusements.” In 1913, the shareholder number met its goal. By October 1915, it had 183 stockholders with 63 associate members.

Roy E. Lane, the respected architect behind the Amicable building and St. Francis on the Brazos Catholic Church, designed the three-story building to suit the leisure preferences of Waco’s affluent. The clubhouse included two dining rooms, offices, living rooms, a parlor, reading room, and ballroom. Its spacious fifty acres allowed room for a bowling alley, tennis courts, and a nine-hole golf course. In fact, the Huaco Club was the first golfing facility of its kind in Waco.

The club was more than just about sports—it was a meeting place for many Wacoans and out-of-town visitors. Many well-known Waco businessmen and prominent male and female citizens were on its membership rolls. The club frequently hosted “high-society” functions such as luncheons, dinner parties, dances, weddings, and banquets. 

Unfortunately, the success of the club was to be shortlived. On January 4, 1917, the Huaco Club lost its clubhouse and surrounding structures to a devastating fire. The next morning’s Waco Morning News reported: “Not a stick of the building or its contents was saved.” The club’s president, Dr. J. W. Hale, estimated that the fire’s destruction of the facility amounted to $70,000. In 1917, that was a hefty sum—in today’s money, that would equal nearly $2.3 million. Apart from the clubhouse and its furnishings, the club’s stock of golf equipment for sale and members’ personal gear were lost as well.

A report published soon after the fire in Safety Engineering, “Recent Fires and Their Lessons,” stated “Cause unknown” for the Huaco Club fire. But fire investigators concluded that losses were aided in part by the club’s late fire alarm system causing a delayed response by firefighters. It was also believed that its construction of easily combustible material enabled flames to quickly engulf the structures.

Even though the Huaco Club and its contents were insured for approximately $26,000—far less than the $70,000 loss caused by the fire—plans for another golf facility soon went forward. Chartered on August 27, 1917, and built circa 1920, the remaining club members opened a new facility, Spring Lake Country Club, at Day’s Lake in what is now Lacy-Lakeview. It included a larger course with eighteen holes and an elaborate clubhouse. In a similar fashion as its predecessor, the new club continued to carry on various recreational as well as social functions. Meanwhile, the land the club occupied around Twenty-Ninth and Sanger Avenue was developed into one of Waco’s early “suburbs."

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In the early 1950s, McLennan County voters approved a $1.2 million bond towards the construction of a new agricultural and entertainment venue. Contractors Farnsworth and Chambers of Houston, Texas, worked alongside local architect Harris H. Roberts to design a fair-ground and coliseum that could house a yearly exposition that would recall the glory of the Texas Cotton Palace. Although cotton was no longer king, the exposition was intended to “serve as a showplace for the finest yields of the soil” and the “best” of the region’s livestock. Echoing sentiments expressed by his Cotton Palace predecessors, Waco Mayor Ralph Wood hoped that the fair would “be an inspiration to lead to still greater progress and prosperity” within the region.

Though the original plans for the grounds had to be slightly scaled back due to the advent of the Korean War and ensuing labor and material shortages, the grandiose vision of fair organizers was largely realized. Totaling 253 acres, the fairgrounds were the largest of their kind west of the Mississippi. Additionally, upon its completion in 1953, the coliseum boasted the largest indoor arena in the state and was the second largest coliseum in Texas, measuring 366½ feet long and 246½ feet wide.

The coliseum (and fair by extension) found its name through a nationwide contest. Fair organizers received five thousand entries from not only Texan hopefuls but individuals in such faraway states as South Carolina, California, and New Mexico. The winning submission, “Heart O’ Texas Coliseum,” came from Mrs. John Cousins of McGregor, Texas. She received $100 in prize money for her effort.

For those seeking a return to the glory days of the Texas Cotton Palace exposition, the inaugural 1953 Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo did not disappoint. Regional livestock and produce took pride of place in the fair’s multiple exhibition tents. The Women’s Division presented the best Central Texas had to offer by way of handicrafts, baked goods, and preserves. Renowned rodeo producer Tommy Steiner oversaw such popular events as trick riding and steer wrestling in the main arena. Other notable fair attractions included: a special military display featuring miniatures of the aircraft carriers the U. S. S. Alamo and U. S. S. Shangri-La, a Texas wildlife display, fireworks, and a performance by the King of Rock and Roll himself, Elvis Presley.

Although the first half of the twentieth century was not kind to the Texas Cotton Palace, its latter half saw the Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo flourish via outside accolades and civic investment. In 1974, the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) named the Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo one of its top rodeos, a high honor indeed for Waco and McLennan County. Steady attendance records and continued community support also made possible a $20 million dollar face-lift to the coliseum and the renovation of its adjacent buildings in 1996. The Show Pavilion also received necessary upgrades in 2000. 

The Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo introduced a scholarship program in 1991. Initially, nineteen $100 scholarships were awarded to a single student from each of McLennan County’s high schools. As the program progressed, the amount of financial aid available to deserving students increased. In 2013, the Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo Scholarship Fund awarded $40,000 to the youths of McLennan County with an additional $5,000 given to two worthy students as part of the 4-H Youth Development Foundation Awards Program.

The Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo has proven itself to be a worthy successor of the Texas Cotton Palace exposition due to its showcasing of Central Texas culture and commerce.

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Lake Waco is a reservoir and artificial lake which serves a variety of functions for the city of Waco. The dam was built in 1929 in order to control flooding of the Bosque River and to provide the city with a reliable water source. In 1961, a modern earthen dam replaced the original structure, increasing the surface area of the lake considerably from approximately two thousand seven hundred acres to around nineteen thousand four hundred acres. Today, lake is maintained by the US Army Engineering Corps and the Brazos River Authority.

The creation and subsequent enlargement of Lake Waco displaced several communities in the surrounding area. Many citizens were forced to move or abandon their homes or businesses, and the enlargement of the lake in the 1950s destroyed entire town sites such as the Speegleville community, a small farming town west of Waco. Many people felt that the lake distanced communities and destroyed the once tight-knit community atmosphere.

Though the lake’s primary purpose is to provide a reliable water source for Waco, it has also served as a center of recreational activity for many years. In the 1930s, the Waco Tribune-Herald described Lake Waco as a “mecca for hundreds daily in the summer,” providing more than just a beautiful sight but also a spot for social gatherings. Through the years, boating became a highly popular pastime on the lake. By the 1950s, it was typical to see the lake covered in boats and the shoreline dotted with swimmers and sunbathers.

The construction of the new dam opened up conversation among the Waco community concerning the development of community centers around Lake Waco. Many citizens saw the lake as a matter of civic pride and desired to develop the services the park could offer the community. The US Army Engineering Corps encouraged the creation of features such as wildlife habitats and parks alongside the dam.

Four parks maintained by the corps surround Lake Waco: Airport Park, Midway Park, Reynolds Creek Park, and Speegleville Park. These parks offer facilities for camping and picnics and contain several boat ramps and two marinas. They also provide areas for activities such as water sports, hunting and fishing, boating, and hiking. The Lacy Point Nature Trail in Reynolds Creek Park is recognized in the National Trails System. During the summer, educational programs are offered for the public on topics such as wildlife, lake history, and water safety.

The upper end of Lake Waco houses the Waco Wetlands, an environmental project established in 2001 to lessen habitat loss when the city raised the reservoir seven feet. This site, managed through cooperation between the city and Baylor University, serves as a living laboratory for research, education, and recreation.

At first a civic project, Lake Waco has become an important gathering point for the city through the educational and recreational benefits it offers the city.  

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Waco rapidly industrialized in the early decades from its founding. The arrival of the railroad and the building of the Suspension Bridge increased the numbers of travelers through the region, and the city soon became a thriving urban center. In 1871, Peter McClelland, a local civic leader, built the McClelland House Hotel at the corner of Fourth Street and Austin Avenue in order to meet the growing demand of visitors. The hotel opened in 1872, and served as an important attraction for businessman and travellers until McClelland’s death in 1886. Issues with his will arose, and in the 1920s the hotel was put up for sale in order to pay attorney fees associated with settling the estate. Conrad Hilton, who would later become known for his international hotel chain, bought the property at that time. The third Hilton Hotel in Texas opened in Waco in 1927.

Despite Hilton’s early success, the Great Depression took a toll on his finances. Forced to give up three of his eight hotels, Hilton decided to sell his Waco business to local investors. At that time, the new owners left the original style of the hotel largely intact, changing only the name. In 1934, the hotel became known as the Roosevelt Hotel, in honor of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal.

The Roosevelt Hotel soon became known as the “acme of hoteldom,” according to the Waco Tribune-Herald in 1936. Owned and staffed completely by Wacoans, the hotel’s friendly atmosphere and vigilant attentiveness to guests’ needs established it as a Waco institution. Many visitors expressed that the hotel’s desirability came from its unique combination of modernity and hospitality. The Tribune-Herald also noted that the hotel brought in a constant stream of transcontinental tourists and traveling men to the city, stimulating economic prosperity. During the 1940s, the hotel's Cadet Club was a popular hotspot where Waco Army Airfield cadets and their dates could enjoy the dancefloor and the music of the day.

The Roosevelt Hotel stood strong through the mid-twentieth century, surviving the Great Depression and even the 1953 Waco tornado. It was one of three buildings in the deadly storm’s path to remain standing. The building’s solid architecture and steel frame ensured that it incurred little damage; even the large sign on the roof remained intact. Yet the hotel could not survive the serious blow dealt to downtown when large retailers began moving out into the suburbs. As more and more retailers left the city, business slowed for the Roosevelt. The hotel closed in 1961.

In 1963, the Roosevelt Hotel became the Regis Retirement Home after Allan McDonnell bought the building and donated it to the Catholic Church. The retirement home added an outdoor terrace and sundeck to the former hotel and renovated several other aspects of the building. In 2003, the retirement home moved all of its residents to Providence Park and placed the historic building up for auction.

Local builder Mike Clark bought the building in 2004 and began a renovation project converting the former hotel into luxury high-rise offices. The renovations included opening the first floor to restaurants and retail and the creation of ten floors of office space. The grand ballroom on the second floor has been restored and can be rented out for parties and events. The majority of office space in the Roosevelt Tower is now occupied by businesses interested in reinvigorating downtown. The renovation of historic buildings such as the Roosevelt Tower provides a unique opportunity for the community to participate in Waco’s future by supporting its history.

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A picturesque limestone bluff situated high above the Bosque River, Lovers’ Leap is as dangerous as it is beautiful.

On June 28, 1917, the Cameron family purchased a tract of sixty acres featuring the cliff area known as Lovers’ Leap. Though it had been the site of many picnics and romantic excursions, Lovers’ Leap had yet to receive formal designation as a park site. The Camerons originally leased the land to the federal government with the understanding that when Camp MacArthur troops no longer needed it as a recreation space, it would be added to Cameron Park. On September 3, 1920, the Cameron family acquired the remaining 191 acres between Cameron Park and Lover’s Leap, thereby ensuring the bluff would remain a central attraction in one of Texas’ largest municipal parks.

Associated with the cliff is a folktale involving two star-crossed Native American lovers. As recounted by Decca Lamar West in her popular 1912 booklet The Legend of Lovers’ Leap, Waco Indian maiden Wah-Wah-Tee secretly accepted a marriage proposal from a handsome Apache brave despite the enmity between their tribes. The two hoped to elope but were thwarted in their effort to run away quietly at night by Wah-Wah-Tee’s father and brothers who objected to the union. Cornered at the edge of a steep cliff above the Bosque, Wah-Wah-Tee and her brave chose to embrace one another and leap into the swollen river below rather than face a lifetime apart. The bodies of the two, still holding tightly onto one another, found a final resting place on the banks of the river close to the site of their first meeting. While stirring, no historical basis exists for the tale. It is most likely a byproduct of late-Victorian romanticism and efforts to promote one of Waco’s natural wonders to outsiders.

Since its establishment as an official outlook, Lovers’ Leap has presented a genuine safety concern. In an effort to safeguard the public from the cliff’s edge while not obstructing the splendid view of the surrounding countryside, park authorities constructed short stone walls. However, select visitors in pursuit of a better vantage point sometimes ignored these barriers, leading to personal injury or in certain cases death. In order to improve safety at the outlook and spruce up its appearance in time for the park’s centennial, the city of Waco constructed new fences in 2009 and removed foliage on the cliff face to enhance the view from the designated overlook plaza. 

For more than one hundred years, Wacoans and tourists alike have been drawn to the dangerous beauty of Lovers’ Leap.

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In the late nineteenth century, Waco became known as the “Athens of Texas” due to the several colleges and classical schools, eight newspapers, and scores of well-known politicians and writers located there. Despite this reputation for quality education, the city did not have a public library. Recognizing this deficiency, Isaac A. Goldstein joined with Willie Durham House, the first female head of schools in Waco, to form a library association of concerned residents desiring to establish a privately run library. Though there was much debate over the location, Waco’s first library eventually settled in a free room at Central High School.

The library moved to its own building on North Eighth Street in 1900. As more and more of the Waco community became interested in the library, space became an issue. Goldstein convinced philanthropist Andrew Carnegie to provide $30,000 in the form of a Carnegie grant, on the condition that the City of Waco agreed to pledge no less than $3,000 per year for the upkeep and maintenance of the library. The city agreed to the terms, and on November 28, 1904, the Carnegie Library, located at the intersection of Austin Avenue and Twelfth Street, opened to the public.

In his speech at the opening of the library, Goldstein hailed the building a “classical Temple” in which the “the noblest examples of the world’s greatest and wisest men and women” were enshrined. He declared the library ready to serve its purpose of assisting Waco’s teachers and guiding Waco’s children, bringing all of Waco “closer together for the highest and best purposes of pure and enlightened citizenship.”

In 1923, the River Street Branch of the library opened at Moore High School to serve African American citizens. In 1929, a fire destroyed the entire school, including the library. In 1937, an anonymous donor provided a building on North Sixth Street in order to establish a permanent library branch to replace the one in Moore High, becoming known as the Wheatley Branch of the library in 1939.

Interest in library activities lagged until 1934 because of the Great Depression, and though it picked up once again in the years following, the library was short on space. In 1941, Frederick Schumacher donated the William Waldo Cameron residence, at 1717 Austin Avenue, to the Waco Library Association on the stipulation that the building be used for at least twenty years as a library. After extensive renovations to the Cameron residence, the library was relocated.

The library’s offerings had expanded considerably by 1950 to include services such as microfilm newspapers and books in Braille. In 1950, the Cooper Foundation made a donation for the creation of a Bookmobile. The Bookmobile served as a mobile library, traveling throughout Waco to places such as schools, nursing homes, apartment complexes, and the county jail.

In the late 1950s, the Waco Public Library yet again struggled with space. The only place left to store books in the Cameron House was the basement, which routinely flooded whenever heavy rains hit Waco. Also, the structure of the building had begun to weaken, making it clear that the Cameron House would not last to the end of the Schumacher agreement. In 1960 the Waco Library Association handed control of the library completely over to the City of Waco, and in 1962, the city established a new building at Eighteenth Street and Austin Avenue. In 1965, the Waco Public Library merged with the McLennan County Library.

Before Isaac Goldstein and the Waco Library Association argued for the creation of a public library, education in Waco was available only to those who could afford it. Through its continuous service to the public, the Waco Public Library made the education of the “Athens of Texas” accessible to all citizens, fulfilling Goldstein’s dream of uniting the community through knowledge. Today, this legacy is carried on through the four branches of the Waco-McLennan County Library.

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Fort Fisher is an excellent example of how a historical site can be reimagined to fit contemporary needs. Comprised of a few shanties in the mid nineteenth century, more than 130 years later the Waco Chamber of Commerce breathed new life into the fading historical memory of Fort Fisher by transforming the site into an attractive tourist destination on Interstate 35.

In 1837, Colonel William S. Fisher, secretary of war for the Republic of Texas, ordered a company of thirty-eight Texas Rangers to build a small fort near the site of a deserted Waco Indian Village. Hastily constructed, the encampment did not resemble a fort so much as a humble grouping of temporary shelters. After a few weeks, Colonel Fisher deemed the site to be too remote for sustained use and commanded the Rangers to abandon it. In perhaps mock tribute to the man behind the short-lived endeavor, the Rangers christened the vacated post Fort Fisher. It remained a mere footnote in Waco’s history for more than a century.

  The arrival of Interstate 35 in the early 1960s led to the repurposing of the memory of Fort Fisher to help develop tourism as well as a functioning center of law and order. Hoping to entice passing motorists to stop in Waco, the Waco Chamber of Commerce’s Publicity Committee considered a myriad of proposals for a roadside attraction. In 1963, Waco businessman and gifted salesman James R. LeBlond put forward the idea of a revived Fort Fisher. Located roughly within the vicinity of the original camp at the west end of the Interstate 35 bridge across the Brazos, the “new” Fort Fisher would be a multipurpose facility with space allotted for a tourist information center, the headquarters of Texas Rangers Company F, and a small museum to display Ranger memorabilia. Intrigued by LeBlond’s pitch, the Waco Chamber of Commerce approved the formation of a special Fort Fisher Committee. Along with LeBlond, notable members of the committee included Texas Ranger Captain Clint Peoples, historian and former mayor of Waco Roger N. Conger, and publisher Robert E. Davis. The committee faced a distinct challenge in that it had to obtain not only municipal approval for the project but permission from Colonel Homer Garrison, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, to relocate Texas Rangers Company F to the site. Fortunately for the committee, Colonel Garrison consented to the project. In 1967 the Waco City Council approved the construction of the 1 ½ acre Fort Fisher complex on a budget of $125,000. It would be situated within a larger thirty-five acre Fort Fisher Park managed by Waco’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Fort Fisher’s October 25, 1968 dedication ceremony drew not only interested locals but numerous active duty and retired Texas Rangers. Dignitaries such as Chief United States Marshal James McShane and the director of the Department of Public Safety, W. E. (Pat) Speir, were in attendance. Perhaps most exciting to the crowd was the presence of popular Gunsmoke actor James Arness who lent a little Hollywood star power to the occasion.

While the revived Fort Fisher bore its predecessor’s name, it was a far cry from the hurriedly assembled quarters of the original inhabitants. Architect David Carnahan designed Fort Fisher’s buildings to resemble authentic log cabins from the early 1880s. Some of the period detail on Fort Fisher’s two buildings included large stone fireplaces, covered front porches, and wooden shutters with bars or straps covering the windows. The Homer Garrison Jr. museum gallery helped reinforce this period feel as it exhibited an extensive collection of early Ranger armaments and uniforms. The buildings of Fort Fisher still stand but the site is now known as the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum.

With Fort Fisher's revival and repurposing as a tourist destination and law enforcement center, Waco made a civic statement to visitors and denizens alike, that the city was not only an appealing stop alongside the interstate but an urban center in which law and order were respected in the tumultuous late 1960s.

Though designed to appeal to visitors, the construction of Fort Fisher also caused a local impact that extended beyond tourism and statements about law and order. When Waco decided to erect Fort Fisher, it did so on land associated with First Street Cemetery. The cemetery—the oldest in the city—suffered from poor record keeping and constant neglect; making it ideal for development. Building Fort Fisher meant relocating some of the cemetery’s headstones and remains. However, expansion of Fort Fisher in 2007 unearthed remains and showed only the transfer of headstones occurred in the 1960s. The revelation sparked scholarly and community endeavors over the next decade. Fort Fisher’s connection to the land on which it was developed may prove as instructive to tourists and Wacoans as what they find in its museum.

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One of the largest municipal parks in Texas, Cameron Park has provided Wacoans with ready access to natural beauty and recreational activities for over one hundred years.

Though it is hard to imagine Waco without the 416-acre Cameron Park, the city at the turn of the twentieth century had very little public-designated green space. This changed when prominent Waco citizens, inspired by the Progressive Era’s City Beautiful Movement, began petitioning for more parks and playgrounds to be created for the benefit of those with lower incomes. Proctor Springs, a picturesque 100-acre tract of land, was put forward as a potential park location. While the city deliberated over its suitability, Proctor Springs was sold for $25,000 to businessman W. C. Lawson. At first it appeared the land was lost for good. However, it was announced on May 24, 1910, that the deed to Proctor Springs had actually been purchased and subsequently donated to the City of Waco by Mrs. Flora B. Cameron and her three children with Lawson acting as emissary. Seeking to honor the memory of her late husband, Mrs. Cameron gifted the deed as well as a sum of $5,000 in order that the property might be developed into a public park. The gift did come with certain stipulations: the land was to be used exclusively as a public park, private commerce on park property was prohibited, the city had to provide sufficient funds for maintaining the park, and it must forever be known as Cameron Park. The city eagerly agreed to Mrs. Cameron’s terms.

As was fitting for a park set aside for the “pleasure of the people,” Cameron Park’s May 27, 1910 dedication ceremony was a community affair. Mayor H. B. Mistrot invited all of Waco’s citizens to participate and made the date a half holiday so that schoolchildren could be present. Embracing the festive spirit of the occasion, Wacoans decorated businesses, cars, and homes with bunting in the colors of the Cameron Clan: crimson, white, and navy. An estimated crowd of 12,000 to 15,000 people gathered at Fifth Street and Herring Avenue to witness young Eleanor Cameron christen the park’s entrance with a pitcher of pure spring water and to hear speeches from public figures such as Baylor President Dr. Samuel Palmer Brooks and future Texas governor Pat Neff.

Despite the fanfare surrounding its opening, much work remained to be done on Cameron Park. Throughout the park’s first decade, the board of commissioners had to figure out creative ways to preserve the park’s natural environment while adding improvements such as benches, picnic areas, and playgrounds. The board wanted to employ respected landscape architect George E. Kessler to design a naturalistic plan for the park, but his fees proved prohibitive. Instead, the board hired A. L. Rose, the head landscape architect for Brown Brothers Company in Rochester, New York. Rose carried out geological surveys of the land and submitted a plan for creating a small lake, series of drives/walks, wading pools, and picnic shelters that would complement the natural beauty of Proctor Springs.

The Cameron family showed themselves to be long-term benefactors of the park by making two additional significant land donations in 1917 and 1920. On June 28, 1917, the Cameron family purchased a tract of sixty acres featuring the cliff area known as Lovers' Leap. Then on September 3, 1920, the Cameron family acquired the remaining 191 acres between Cameron Park and Lover’s Leap. A massive extension to Cameron Park, this last donation included the confluence of the Bosque and Brazos rivers, a series of limestone bluffs (known as The Devil’s Backbone), and the old Waco Country Club building and property.

Drawn to Cameron Park’s natural beauty and recreational opportunities, Wacoans made the park their own from 1920 until the late 1960s. During this period, Cameron Park was generally perceived to be a safe haven. Children treated the park like a giant communal backyard, spending countless unsupervised hours exploring the woods, enjoying the playground equipment, and cooling off in the various wading pools. Courting couples went for scenic rides through the park and cozied up to one another at lookout points. Families made frequent use of the park for reunions, picnics, and recreational activities such as hiking, fishing, swimming, horseback riding, and tennis. It seemed to be living up to the promise of all that Flora Cameron hoped it would be.

The end of the 1960s saw Cameron Park enter a troubled thirty-year period. Controversy brewed over the construction of a bridge at Herring Avenue. The city built the bridge to provide citizens from East Waco with direct access to the park and to alleviate traffic congestion at Waco Drive. However, many complained that the bridge significantly altered the character of the park by discouraging pedestrian traffic and compromising the scenic beauty of the original entrance. Budget cuts, droughts, dated facilities, and an increase of criminal activity within the park added to the park’s loss of reputation among Wacoans in the late twentieth century.

Seeking to change perceptions that Cameron Park was dangerous and unappealing, many revitalization efforts were launched in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Retired Congressman W. R. Poage donated $100,000 for the development of a wildflower preserve next to the Cameron Park Clubhouse. It was named Miss Nellie’s Pretty Place after Congressman Poage’s late mother. A park ranger program was launched to enforce parking regulations and provide on-site security. In order to bring families back to the park, the Junior League of Waco pledged $50,000 for the construction of a new playground, and voters approved a $9.6 million bond issue to relocate the Waco zoo to Cameron Park. Sports enthusiasts were drawn back to the park via the inclusion of a disk golf course and the development of competitive mountain biking trails.

In 2010, Cameron Park celebrated its centenary. It continues to remain the heart of recreational life in Waco and a natural refuge in the midst of urban sprawl.

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