Racine Journal Times: Sunday, June 26, 1955
Shoop Pagoda to Come Down; Long a Lakefront Landmark
The breeze was cool off Lake Michigan, and everyone settled down for a quiet chat as they watched the moon rise. Songs drifted out over the lake.
A group of Racine’s early settlers were spending another pleasant evening in the pagoda Dr. C. I. Shoop had built on the bluff overlooking the lake in the 700 block of Lake Ave.
“Times Have Changed”
“But things have changed and the pagoda is in disrepair,” sighed the property’s present owner, Mrs. Elizabeth Lockwood, of 735 Lake Ave.
At one time, Lake Michigan’s waves lapped softly against the cliff nearby. But the lakeshore has long since been filled in to the breakwater and “the view just isn’t the same,” she said.
Mrs. Lockwood explained that she has kept the pagoda in repair as long as possible. But the 33 foot long summer house now must be torn down.
City Landmark
“The pagoda brings back memories of many pleasant family gatherings,” Mrs. Lockwood added. “I think half the town has had a good time there at one time or another.”
The structure has been a Racine landmark and has caught the eye of many visitors to the drill and playing field below the bluff.