After crossing the Iron Truss Bridge, you’ll find the Eleanor Brackenridge playground and Joske Pavilion, where you may have spent birthdays or holidays. The playground, named for George Brackenridge’s sister, has been around since the 1920s. The Joske Memorial Pavilion, one of the park’s signature structures, took $10,000 to build, gifted by the estate of retailer Alexander Joske.
The structure of dark, random‐coursed stone was designed by Emmett Jackson and erected in 1926. It has massive chimneys at the north and south ends. The chimney on the south end has a splayed base with inset, arched openings that reflect larger openings on the east and west sides of the structure. A tall chimney pot tops the structure on the south. An interior stone stairway with wrought iron railing leads to a balcony overlooking the river on the south end. The north end features a parapet in the “Alamo” style. A stone stairway with wrought iron railing accesses a second-story balcony that overlooks the playground and river. The projecting balcony is supported by round stone columns.
