News: Kid's Castle History

Date Published	Author
	Recreation Department

Kids Castle is an eight story wooden playground structure designed & named by children of Doylestown Township through an art contest in 1996. On February 5, 1997, Kids Castle Committee, Township staff, residents and children of the community met with architect Bob Leathers of Leathers Associates, Ithaca, New York to work on refining the initial playground design. Thanks to the efforts of over three thousand dedicated volunteers and the generosity of numerous sponsors, Kids Castle became a reality on Sunday, June 22, 1997. In October 1996, the playground committee chaired by Jeff and Dawn Byers began the overwhelming task of overseeing the entire playground project. The committee raised over $200,000, recruited volunteers and acquisitioned countless tools, construction materials, tents, trailers, food service, and child care. This culminated in the monumental task of constructing the playground in a twelve day period! The call went out, and the community responded. Volunteers young and old came together to work side by side with the architectural staff to bring the children's vision of a dream playground come to life. As you cross over the drawbridge, you enter a magical world that includes a 35-foot high castle with a huge twisty slide, a very friendly dragon, a tree house, a barn yard, a rocket ship, a downtown promenade for toddlers, a multitude of slides and swings and a children's amphitheater.