William Allen White (8 Wonders of Kansas - People) and his wife, Sallie, donated the land for this park in memory of their daughter, Mary, who died in 1921 at age 16 in a horseback riding accident. The Whites named it Peter Pan Park because Mary, like Peter Pan, never wanted to grow up. At the south edge of the lake is a bust of White, dedicated in 1950 by former President Herbert Hoover, along with White's moving editorial to his daughter. A statue of Peter Pan stands at S. State and Kansas near the wading pool.