I remember my cousins from Soiux Falls, SD talking about a playground called Dennis the Menace Park. I found this online
As more and more emphasis at Sherman Park switched to the upper portions of the park, the area of the old swimming beach and picnic ground next to the river declined in use. The project to channel the river had left several stranded oxbows of the river, and the area became somewhat neglected. But on February 13, 1958, the Junior Chamber of Commerce, or the Jaycees as they were known, came up with a new idea for the park. They spoke to the board regarding their idea for a unique playground for children, equipped with unusual items for children to play on. The board asked the Jaycees to prepare a plan of their idea, and on May 12, 1959, the board approved the plan. The area was named the Dennis the Menace playground after the popular cartoon character. The playground was located at the south end of the lower portion of the park adjacent to an old oxbow of the river. In 1959, one of the first items brought to the park by the Jaycees was an F-89 jet fighter plane from the SD Air National Guard! That was followed by a 1915 Seagrave fire truck, a WW II armored personnel carrier, and an anti-aircraft artillery gun. Over the years the Park Department would continue to add play items to the park, always trying to use the unusual item at the park. By the 1970s the airplane, the tank, and the fire truck became too dangerous for children to play on due to sharp edges and rusting metal. In July of 1973 the jet plane was returned to the Jaycees, and eventually it ended up on private land near Newton Hills State Park south of Canton. The 1915 Seagrave fire truck was returned to the Fire Department and has been completely restored to running condition. The Park Department began to remove the other items, and by 1988, when the tank was sold, the area was no longer being used as a playground. The Dennis the Menace playground passed into history, and was replaced by the new children's playground at the new Sertoma Park. The land was turned over to the Great Plains Zoo, and is now part of the African savannah. The train ride at the zoo passes through the old playground, and perhaps the sound of children's laughter from long ago can be heard if you listen hard enough.
