Aug. 20, 2026 8p
(WGTD)---A big celebration commemorating the 50th anniversary of Kemper as a county-owned park will take place Saturday.
Kenosha had been in danger of losing the collection of historic buildings on the city's lakefront when the Episcopalian girls school that occupied the site shut its doors in the mid 1970s. Plans were being prepared to demolish the structures and build condos when a citizens group led by Penny Palmer Enroth stepped in.
They raised a quarter-of-a-million dollars in donations and grants to buy the campus, then persuaded the county to take it over. With both county and city support, a non-profit has run the place ever since, renting out spaces for weddings, funerals and other events. In 1989, the Anderson Arts Center was established in a mansion adjacent to the original Kemper property.
Gary Groenke, chair of the non-profit, boasts that the Kemper Center has something for nearly everyone including interesting architecture, historic buildings with period furnishings, music, art, picturesque lakefront settings and even soccer fields. Click here for Gary's appearance on WGTD's Morning Show.
The line-up on Saturday includes the "Art of the Car" car show, the usual Saturday Public Market, tours of the historic Durkee Mansion and food and beverages. Two bands--SouthBound and Yesterday's Children--will perform during the late afternoon and evening hours. An anniversary cake will be cut by Penny Enroth herself, and the day's events will be capped with a fireworks show.
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