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378:(2010), shot and set in Lincoln. The premise of the film--that the area was a largely uninhabited wilderness--is entirely false as most of the area was actually a popular resort with an average of 3,000 residents a day. The remaining portion of the park was owned by an electrical utilities company which lit most of the park with incandescent and arc lighting. Furthermore, there is no evidence that any woman was ever killed for suspected witchcraft or kidnapping in the park. The writer and director of the film have confirmed that the film is entirely fictional.
42:. Because of the nature of the unrestricted flow of the Salt Creek in this area, the lay of the park changes over time. Flooding and erosion as well as seasonal fluctuation in the flow of the streams in the area mean that land that is perfectly dry in midsummer or midwinter becomes completely inundated and impassible in Spring or Fall.
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The second legend claims that in the early twentieth century, Wilderness Park was a wooded wasteland at the edge of town inhabited by a mysterious old woman. According to the legend, the disappearances of several young children were blamed on the old woman who was deemed a witch before being killed
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of varying architecture and age. In 2010, the center of one bridge in the south end of the park collapsed roughly fifteen feet as around 20 children from a day camp were crossing the structure. Although no one was seriously injured in the fall, the incident prompted a review of all bridges in the
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were consolidated to create
Wilderness Park. Although vegetation, erosion, flooding, and settling have obscured much of the former features of both Epworth Park and Lincoln Park, evidence of the developments in the area can still be found such as pieces of the concrete dams and metal pipes.
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Wildlife in the area includes foxes, deer, raccoons, opossums, frogs, hawks, owls, songbirds, and squirrels, as well as small fish and aquatic invertebrates. It is possible that the area may support larger carnivores such as coyotes, but evidence of this remains to be seen.
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Boundaries are S 1st St on the west, S 27th St on the east, Van Dorn St on the north and
Saltillo Rd on the south - however, not nearly all of the land between these boundaries resides in the park. The park is much wider in the southern segments. Among smaller streams,
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The growing popularity of the park, an average of 3,000 residents at its height, led to the construction of a village of cabins, a 60-room dormitory, and a 150-room hotel, as well as four restaurants, a grocery store, bakery, bookstore, and post office. Burlington and
241:. Families no longer needed to physically attend major speeches or concerts as they could now listen to them on the radio. Similarly, automobiles meant that families could quickly drive wherever they pleased for relatively low cost and no longer relied on the
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Wilderness Park features a vast network of dirt walking trails, single-track biking trails, and horse trails. Each trail type is denoted by signs along the trails. The hiking trail was designated part of the
National Recreation Trails Program in 1977.
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In 1903, the
Epworth Association opened Epworth Park selling 1,500 tickets a day in its first week and audiences grew to 5,000. In its first season, Epworth Park made $ 10,000 of which it donated "$ 800 - to worn out preachers and $ 1,000 to
106:. In 1873, Cooper dug a cave in the area to store the ice during the summer. Cooper sold the land to Lincoln attorney and mayor A.J. Sawyer in 1887. Sawyer rebuilt the dam in concrete in 1900 and opened the area as Lincoln Park.
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In 1935, 14 inches of rain fell over the course of one week, causing flooding which destroyed most of the buildings in the park. Unsuccessful efforts were made to reopen the park, but
American culture had changed with the
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troop formed in
Nebraska in 1910, quickly becoming immensely popular, and began meeting in Lincoln Park in 1912. In 1916, the park was purchased by Lincoln Traction Co. who used the
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186:. Fed by water from the Salt Creek, Epworth Lake allowed park-goers to swim and canoe. Epworth Lake was also the site of the park's "Venetian Nights" in which families could rent
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and buried in the park by the townspeople. The story claims that the witch's ghost still haunts the park and her grave must not be disturbed lest she rise again to take revenge.
167:, to Nebraska. The Epworth Association held its first retreat in Lincoln Park but subsequently purchased its own 40-acre lot of land directly south of Lincoln Park to develop.
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147:. The Cornhusker Council continued using the park as a campsite, eventually buying the land and renaming it Camp Minis-Kuya. Camp Minis-Kuya later closed.
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Additionally, the original entrance to
Epworth Park, a stone archway, can be found on the south side of 1st and Calvert streets at the edge of the park.
30:. The park is the largest in Lincoln and is separated into several branches. S 14th St, a north-south street dissects much of the south end of the park.
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is mostly located within the park. South of
Saltillo Rd, Jamaica North connects to the Homestead Trail corridor, which as of July 2012 reaches to
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By 1915, Epworth Park featured an open-air pavilion which could seat 5,000, a boy scout cabin, and two foot bridges which connected to the
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surround
Wilderness Park. One legend claims that the ghosts of the 1894 Rock Island Railroad wreck are still present in the park.
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acquired Camp Minis-Kuya (formerly
Lincoln Park) for $ 60,000. Epworth Park, Camp Minis-Kuya, and several other parcels of
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The main focus of the park was religious outreach, but the park also featured animal shows; musical acts such as the
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to operate Lincoln Park and more importantly to use Salt Creek as a water source for their
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In 1866, the southern portion of the land that would become Wilderness Park supported a
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Historical Marker at the site of the 1894 Rock Island Railroad Wreck
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675:"Pedestrian bridge at Wilderness Park fails; no serious injuries"
588:"Epsworth Lake Park, Lincoln, Nebr. :: Omaha Public Library"
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organization called the Epworth Association sought to bring the "
487:"Homestead Trail between Lincoln and Beatrice ready for riders"
654:"Historical train crash marker dedicated southwest of Lincoln"
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ferried passengers to the park at half-price from Lincoln.
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Wilderness Park is heavily wooded, but also includes some
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This legend is actually the plot of an independent film,
612:"Epilogue: A forgotten mystery of death and destruction"
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Some time after this, the land was purchased by the
561:"Lincolnites oncefound recreationat Epworth Park"
524:"Jim McKee: From Lincoln Park to Wilderness Park"
450:. Lincoln Parks & Recreation. Archived from
104:pond for the purpose of making ice in the winter
700:"Ghosts of Wilderness Park - Lincoln, Nebraska"
249:which had helped to make Epworth Park thrive.
143:The park was closed in 1935 and leased to the
473:"Wilderness Park Hiking Trail - NRT Database"
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350:Wilderness Park is home to at least a dozen
22:is a 1,472-acre (596 ha) mostly-public
182:called "Oxford Isle" in the center of the
633:"Original story from 1894: Death by fire"
522:Star, JIM MCKEE For the Lincoln Journal.
257:In 1966, Epworth Park was donated to the
140:, earning it the nickname Electric Park.
448:"lincoln.ne.gov/maps/parks/wildrns.htm"
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749:"Witch horror movie shoots in Lincoln"
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190:to leisurely ride around the lake.
677:. Lincoln Journal-Star. 2010-07-21
656:. Lincoln Journal-Star. 2010-08-09
635:. Lincoln Journal-Star. 2010-02-22
614:. Lincoln Journal-Star. 2010-02-22
489:. Lincoln Journal-Star. 2012-07-24
428:Protestantism in the United States
163:" style of retreat popularized at
155:Concurrently in the late 1890s, a
58:, passes through Wilderness Park.
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704:Mid-Western Ghosts and Hauntings
77:, and will ultimately extend to
398:1894 Rock Island railroad wreck
280:1894 Rock Island railroad wreck
274:1894 Rock Island Railroad Wreck
69:The crushed limestone 6.5-mile
16:Biggest natural park in Lincoln
811:Geography of Lincoln, Nebraska
130:power generated by the damming
121:located southwest of Lincoln.
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145:Boy Scouts Cornhusker Council
403:History of Lincoln, Nebraska
261:. Four years later in 1970,
725:Wake the Witch (Video 2010)
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388:Parks in Lincoln, Nebraska
290:occurred passes above the
408:Salt Creek (Platte River)
196:Union Pacific railroads
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215:William Jennings Bryan
787:40.75222°N 96.71667°W
698:Jackmc (2013-10-25).
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314:40.74389°N 96.71250°W
267:land in public domain
184:man-made Epworth Lake
138:incandescent lighting
126:Boy Scouts of America
26:located in southwest
223:Booker T. Washington
165:Chautauqua, New York
792:40.75222; -96.71667
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753:The Daily Nebraskan
413:History of Nebraska
393:Jamaica North Trail
319:40.74389; -96.71250
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292:Jamaica North Trail
111:Burlington Railroad
71:Jamaica North Trail
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239:mass communication
211:Theodore Roosevelt
79:Marysville, Kansas
75:Beatrice, Nebraska
821:Nebraska folklore
816:Parks in Nebraska
423:Christian revival
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50:, a primary
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790: /
317: /
219:Howard Taft
48:Beal Slough
40:prairieland
34:Description
24:conservancy
805:Categories
778:96°43′00″W
775:40°45′08″N
758:2018-10-23
731:2018-10-23
709:2018-10-23
681:2012-08-02
660:2012-08-02
639:2012-08-02
618:2012-08-02
597:2018-02-27
570:2018-02-27
533:2018-02-27
493:2012-08-02
458:2012-08-02
434:References
418:Chautauqua
323: (
304:96°42′45″W
301:40°44′38″N
288:derailment
286:where the
247:streetcars
124:The first
119:roundhouse
100:Salt Creek
56:Salt Creek
363:Two main
157:Methodist
96:corn mill
52:tributary
382:See also
346:Bridges
284:trestle
85:History
355:park.
243:trains
225:, and
245:and
237:and
136:and
294:at
175:."
134:arc
54:to
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