|
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
|||||
|
Within its first five
years at its new location, Prairie Dog Town became world famous and a
favorite tourist attraction with its own Goodwill Ambassador, Prairie
Dog Pete. To this day, Prairie Dog Town still captures the imagination
of visitors as evidenced by the 2004 Lubbock Convention and Visitor’s
Bureau tourism study. The survey showed Prairie Dog Town as the 5th
most visited attraction in Lubbock by visitors from outside the city.
|
|||||
|
Click on photo to enlarge!
Ruth Oden at Prairie Dog Town (late 1930's
to 1940's) |
|||||
|
|
|||||
|
|||||
Of
all Nature's wild creatures, none is more appealing and entertaining to
watch than the Prairie Dog. Prairie Dog Town was established in
Mackenzie Park in the early 1930’s by Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy N. Clapp. It
was started with four dogs and two burrows and was the first protected
prairie dog colony of its kind. In 1935, the colony was moved to
it’s current location when Mackenzie Park became a state park. For
his contribution to Lubbock and prairie dogs, Mr. Clapp was named Mayor
of Prairie Dog Town in perpetuity.
In
2004-2005, Prairie Dog Town underwent a major renovation with funding
from Premier Golf, management company for the City of Lubbock’s
36-hole Meadowbrook Golf Course for the past eleven years. Enhancements
to Prairie Dog Town included: a pavilion and viewing area, interpretive
signage, sidewalks, a new parking area with a turnaround and bus
parking, perimeter fencing, and ADA accessibility. In addition,
irrigation was installed on the interior of the town in order to
establish native grasses for the prairie dogs. With the renovations now
completed, visitors will again be able to enjoy watching the prairie
dogs and burrowing owls in their native habitat.
