Wintersmith Park was a "New Deal" work program, created during the Great Depression by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to improve communities and provide wages for unemployed people.

Frequent use, low level of maintenance and the elements combined to press the amphitheater into a worn out state.

Dr. Marvin Kroeker, a longtime Ada resident and East Central University history professor emeritus, hoped to save the amphitheater and bring it back to its former glory.

In 2000, Dr. Kroeker took Oklahoma State Historic Preservation Office deputy Melvena Heisch on a tour of the park and the amphitheater.

He sought to convince Mrs. Heisch to nominate the amphitheater for designation on the National Register of Historic Places.

Following the designation, Dr. Kroeker saw the opportunity to solicit funding from the Oklahoma Centennial Commission for restoration of the amphitheater.

Upcoming construction plans call for concrete drop off area and parking, concession and ticket buildings, walkways and a stage.

Soon after restoration, a special production reintroducing the amphitheater, celebrating Oklahoma's centennial and recognizing the 75th anniversary of America's New Deal is expected.

It was moved to the Kerr Lab area in 1976, where it was painted red, and then its current location in Wintersmith Park in 1990.