February, 1916 
THE WAY DAVENPORT, IOWA, DID IT 
Beautified the City Through Its Back Yard and Successfully Solved a Difficult Problem—A Citywide 
Contest That is Practicable for Many Other Communities 
O. R. GEYER 
W ORKING on the theory that a city is as beautiful as its 
back yards and alleys, Davenport, Iowa, a city of 
40,000, believes it has solved many of the problems that attend 
the usual city beautiful campaigns. Incidentally it has in¬ 
troduced a new spirit in municipal circles, and the result has 
been that the city beautiful question bas become the most im¬ 
portant issue in scores of smaller municipalities throughout a 
wide territory, and, in fact, throughout the entire state of Iowa. 
One out of every 
six of Davenport’s in¬ 
habitants has joined 
hands in what is prob¬ 
ably the biggest yard 
and garden contest in 
the country. Annual 
prizes aggregating 
$500 have proved suf¬ 
ficient to arouse the 
keenest anxiety as to 
the appearance of 
hundreds of back 
lawns and alleys 
throughout every 
quarter of the city. 
Perhaps the principal 
reason for this 
anxiety is one of the 
rules of the contest 
which forbids the 
awarding of a prize to 
any person whose 
alley is not thoroughly 
cleaned. 
How the Movement 
Started 
The contest, 
launched three years 
ago by members of 
the Rotary Club, has 
been the means of 
bringing about a 
closer spirit of co¬ 
operation in the municipal affairs which promises even more 
surprising results within the next few years. The plan has 
been copied in numerous Iowa cities and towns, the experiences 
of the Davenport gardeners forming the basis for an official 
State bulletin on city beautiful contests. 
The first year, 1913, saw a promising start made when one 
out of every sixteen persons entered the contest. A year later 
it had been increased to one out of every six inhabitants, a 
record which was equaled again this year. In this period scores 
of homes, many of which had become eyesores because of 
neglect and carelessness, have been beautified and improved un¬ 
til they stand out as the most impressive examples of what can 
be done when the city beautiful spirit takes deep root in a city. 
Not the least important feature of the contest has been the 
severe setback given the high cost of living in many homes. 
Gardens have become 
the rule, and back 
yards w h i c h pre¬ 
viously had served no 
other purpose than 
that of a dump for 
trash have been made 
to contribute an im¬ 
portant share of sum¬ 
mer food supply. 
Rules for Con¬ 
testants 
The contestants 
were divided into 
three classes, but the 
money prizes are re¬ 
stricted to those en¬ 
trants who do their 
own work. Class One 
includes those persons 
who do their own 
work, Class T w o, 
those persons w h o 
hire some one to do 
part of their work, 
and Class Three, all 
those who employ a 
permanent gardener. 
Members of the last 
two classes may com¬ 
pete for honorable 
mention awards, how¬ 
ever, and the competi¬ 
tion in these classes 
is almost as keen as it is in the first class. 
Rotarians went out among the homes urging the families 
to join the contest. “You win if you lose,” was the battle 
cry of a publicity campaign which continued without let-up 
throughout the summer, both in the newspapers and on the bill¬ 
boards. Other attractive slogans, “Be it ever so humble, make 
it attractive,” and “Make your neighbor sit up and take notice,” 
The contest was entered eagerly by rich and poor alike. Here is one of 
the honor award gardens in the wealthy section of the city 
A typical down-town back yard 
in its original and subsequent conditions. The improvement 
accomplished in a thoroughly practical way 
is characteristic of what the contest has 
