Thanks To Generous Support From Our Membership
The Panther Fountain Restoration Is Complete
BEFORE
A MAJOR KPSHA PROJECT 2021-2023
Panther Fountain
Mostly untouched since its construction over 90 years ago, the Panther Fountain was in dire need of restoration. Not only was the concrete crumbling on all sides (see our photos here), but also the fountain could not hold water and the plumbing was broken. Thanks to over $150,000 in generous donations from residents of the Neighborhood, this beautiful fountain has been fully restored for the next 100 years.
Kingston Pike Sequoyah Hills Association
Restoration Projects in the 21st Century
Talahi Park was the heart of developer Robert Foust’s original plan for a 100-acre subdivision called “Talahi,” which Foust claimed, was Cherokee for “in the oaks.” In fact, the Cherokee word for white oak is tă’lû’ or t’ala, and the white oak remains a dominant tree in our neighborhood. Although the Depression prevented Foust from fully realizing his grand plan for Talahi’s public park and monuments, nevertheless by 1928, the Sunhouse Fountain, Papoose Park, and Panther Fountain were completed.
The decades after were not kind to these notable structures with their Art Deco elements and Cherokee symbols. Erosion, distruction from tree roots, and sadly, even some vandalism added to the damage.
With over $300,000 contributed by the neighborhood over several years, KPSHA completed the restoration of Papoose Park in 2014 and of Sunhouse (FROG) Fountain in 2018. With the completion of the Panther Fountain in 2023, Talahi Park has now been returned to its original beauty with two functioning fountains.
