Picture a schoolyard with a castle, fat-bellied dragon, and soaring spaceship, surrounded by rainbow-colored barrels, bouncing rope bridges, towers, turrets, and twisting mazes. If that sounds like something a child would dream up, it’s because it is. In an October 1984 issue of Ford Times, writer Brenda Chapin spoke to New York architect Robert Leathers about his unique approach to child-led design.

Leathers fell into playground design almost by accident. What started as a project for his own children’s schoolyard quickly drew nationwide attention when the result was unlike anything nearby communities had seen before.

Every playground project started with a “Design Day,” when Leathers asked students to describe their dream play spaces. Out poured requests for rocket ships, dungeons, robots, and a fun house with monsters. Leathers wove them together, turning a curving slide into a dragon’s belly and blue-painted tires into a castle moat.

What made these playgrounds truly remarkable, however, was how they were built. In the spirit of an old-fashioned barn-raising, parents, kids, neighbors, and local businesses gathered for a weekend of sawing, drilling, and hammering. The events were so popular they often drew more than double the registered volunteers.

The result was a storybook brought to life, a place where kids could be knights, astronauts, or explorers. More than 40 years later, it’s a reminder that the best things are built together.

Read the story via the Ford Times archive, October 1984. Browse more at FordHeritageVault.com.