Julia Davis Park, Boise (must see)

In 1862, Thomas and Frank Davis, two orphans who traveled west, became the Romulus and Remus of Boise, Idaho. They came from Cincinnati, Ohio, looking for gold. They didn't find much but they staked a claim and built a cabin on Cottonwood Creek. As Fate would have it, the cabin was located in what later became Julia Davis Park.

On the Fourth of July in 1863, the Davis boys were followed by the U.S. Army. The soldiers built a fort and called it Fort Boise. That got the Davis boys to thinking. They met in the cabin with some friends and founded the City of Boise. Yep, there's gold in a dream if not in the ground.

Gold never did pan out, but there was always real estate. Thomas Davis was a key player in Boise. He had bought hundreds of acres on the river by 1868. In 1871 he married Julia McCrumb, who had traveled to Boise from Ontario. Dreams were coming true.

The Davises were generous. They offered land to the city for a public use as a park. The offer was not accepted until 1907 after Julia Davis had died. Thomas deeded 40 acres of land to the city in memory of his wife. He insisted that the park would be "always and forever" called Julia Davis Park. Thomas died in 1908.

Many additions and improvements were added to the park by the city. Union Pacific's engine, "Big Mike". Zoo Boise, the Boise Gallery of Art, The Bob Gibb Friendship Bridge, The Idaho Historical Museum, and the Idaho Black History Museum.