J. Hudson McKnight Memorial Fountain

The 1927 will of Mrs. J. Hudson McKnight included a generous bequest of $25,000 for the construction of a memorial fountain at East High School as a tribute to her late husband, J. Hudson McKnight. The McKnight family had originally owned the sixty eight acres of land on which East High was built.  In their early married life, J. Hudson and Eva Gettner McKnight came to Kansas as pioneers.  She, a pretty, educated young girl, and he, a self-educated successful cutlery and silverware salesman, bought the “Black Farm,” the land on which East and the former Roosevelt Intermediate now stand.  They were quite active in community affairs.  At the height of his career, McKnight became ill and died, leaving his widow $25,000, which she used to construct the memorial.

A committee was formed to oversee the selection of the fountain’s design. In 1929, the committee awarded a contract to Alexander Phimster Proctor (at left), an internationally famous sculptor from New York, for the creation of the McKnight Memorial Fountain. The Board of Education accepted the proposed gift and determined that the fountain would be located between East High School and Roosevelt Intermediate School, aligned with the front of the buildings.

The unveiling of the McKnight Memorial Fountain took place on September 14, 1931. Phimster Proctor, the sculptor, visited Wichita to inspect his work of art, which featured bronze figures. The dedication ceremony for the fountain was held on Friday, September 16, 1931.

In 1976, due to the construction of a new shared library for East High and Roosevelt, the McKnight Memorial was moved from its original location between the two school buildings to its current location closer to Douglas Avenue.

The McKnight Memorial, with its pioneer and Native American figures, continues to serve as a memorial to J. Hudson McKnight and remains an important landmark on the grounds of East High. Students used the fountain as a meeting place and for photo ops. The photo at right from the 1960 Echoes shows Pete Meeds ’60 and Alice Smith ’60.

 (Thanks to Skip Granger for identifying Alice.)