Historic South Park was Lawrence’s first park and part of the original townsite founded in 1854. It was originally used as a public area where residents grew crops and grazed livestock. It is Lawrence’s most historic park because it is the oldest park and because it was the staging site for Quantrill’s pre-dawn raid on Lawrence on August 21, 1863, which left more than 150 male inhabitants dead and a large portion of the city in ashes. South Park is home to the Theodore Roosevelt Fountain, dedicated when Theodore Roosevelt visited Lawrence on Wednesday, August 31, 1910. The fountain stands near the William Kelly Bandstand, constructed in 1906 for $600 with donated bricks from a local manufacturer. The park also includes the South Park Recreation Center, built in 1963 and now housing the Parks and Recreation administrative offices.