Kemp’s Woods to Kutztown Park (1900 through 1910)
By Scott A. Weyman
(NOTE: Mr. Weyman was an intern at the Kutztown Area Historical Society in 2003 when he was a student at Kutztown University. This article was printed in “Along the Saucony,” Volume 26, pp 15 - 22.)
From its origins as a stately wooded parcel to its status as one of the finest outdoor gathering places of its kind anywhere, the Kutztown Park has offered residents and non-residents alike a safe and inviting spot for congregating and recreating. Today’s park, replete with manicured athletic facilities, modern recreational equipment, and an array of outbuildings and pavilions, retains its centuries-old welcoming air. The protective hardwood trees (many of which were planted near the dawn of the 20th century) blend with the undulating landscape to create an alluringly hospitable environment for the young and the old, the individual and family, the athlete and observer.
Prior to the turn of the twentieth century, Kemp’s Grove (also commonly referred to as Kemp’s Woods) had already garnered a reputation far and wide as a place of great beauty and serenity that made it the envy of most other communities in the Berks County are. The fine white oaks that covered most of the property were, by owner John Kemp’s estimation, “of fine growth, fine foliage, and venerable age.” Although the grove and its numerous natural attributes had been drawing visitors to the Kutztown area for some time, Mr. kemp made public his decision to sell the property. As the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed the rapid development of the greater Lehigh Valley area, the overwhelming sentiment among Kutztown residents was that Kemp’s Grove should remain preserved for the benefit of future generations and the betterment of the surrounding community. Fortunately, Mr. Kemp shared the desire to preserve and perpetuate this majestic parcel in its natural state.
As word spread that Kemp’s Grove was to be sold, local sentiment to save the wooded grove from development grew at a rapid pace. By August 1901, the park association was hastily being formed with an eye toward organizing effective community leadership in an effort to procure the funds necessary to purchase the property. Mr. Kemp, reaffirming his desire to sell the park “for preservation rather than destruction,” offered the property to the newly formed park association at $350 per ace (for what was originally thought to be a parcel slightly over eight acres) with an $800 down payment. Mr. Kemp further agreed to let the balance of the mortgage stand indefinitely at five percent interest. Overwhelming public sentiment was to purchase and save the grove by whatever means necessary, as evidenced by an editorial account from the Macungie Progress of the day, which asserted: “the Kutztownians who succeed in securing the park, will so find they have accomplished a most creditable work and future generations will bless them for it.” By late September 1901, the Kutztown Park Association entered into an agreement to purchase Kemp’s Grove and maintain it as a park for public use.
To further underscore the intensity of the local movement to preserve the woodland in late 1901 and early 1902, one need only examine the organization of the then newly formed Kutztown Park Association itself. The fervor to capitalize upon the nearly tangible public sentiment to purchase and preserve kemp’s Grove prompted local business and community leaders to press ahead with the formation of a proper association dedicated to that end. Beginning in the summer of 1901, several well-attended meetings were held, the association was given its official name, and an agreement to purchase the grove was executed (as indicated above). Ironically, in light of the precise execution of each of these steps, the Kutztown Park Association had no formally elected body of leaders until April 1902. More than six months after the original purchase agreement was recorded, the association’s first board of directors, constitution, and by-laws were voted into place. The first board of directors of the te Kutztown Park Association consisted of Dr. H.W. Saul, President; W.E. Herman, Vice President; B.F. Reider, Secretary; Fred N. Baer, Treasurer.
Interestingly, by the time of the purchase, the Park Association had accumulated and secured most of the original down payment funding through donations and, what were referred to as “subscriptions.” Donations came from a variety of both resident and non-resident sources, while subscriptions (or shares) were created and sold to interested individuals, like single shares of stock. Each subscription (or share) was priced at $1.00, and each individual was entitled to purchase virtually any amount desired. In return for the investment, each subscriber was given the right to attend the annual subscriber meeting and take an active role in the associate by voting on key issues such as the election of directors or officers, planning, and budget concerns.
By 1904, many improvements had been made to what was by then known as the Kutztown Park. Due in large part to the efforts of the original board of directors, the park had seen a number of trees planted (nearly 200 to date), brush and clutter cleared, a new 20’ x 50’ dining hall constructed, and general park maintenance being performed in a more timely and efficient manner. With these elements in place, the board of directors began to focus their efforts on a variety of fund raising activities aimed at “freeing our park from its indebtedness.” The challenge that lay ahead was to keep the community interested in and attentive to the ongoing financial needs of the park instead of allowing public interest to wane as the fervor to purchase and preserve the woodland faded.
One public relations strategy that the Board of Directors implemented was focused upon the park’s annual opening. In 1904, the opening of the park was delayed until late June so that a suitable event could be planned. The annual strawberry festival of St. Paul’s Reformed Sunday School, normally held in the Kutztown Music Hall, was deemed such an event. As a result of a great deal of cooperation between the directors of both the Kutztown Park Association and the Music Hall, the event was billed as the official opening of “Kutztown’s Famed Pleasure Resort.” In addition to the strawberry festival, the opening also featured an outdoor supper (said to be for those fond of feasting in the open), and concert music by the Kutztown Band which would conclude the highly anticipated event. The success of this opening night would influence the annual opening of the park for many seasons to come.
In July 1902, the directors of the Kutztown Park Association purchased four acres of land on the southwest side of the park from Mr. James S. Treichler. At nearly the same time, a town meeting was held to organize what became known as the Kutztown Athletic Association, the original directors of which were Dr. E.J. Sellers, President; E.D. Fisher, Vice President; Isaac Grimley, Secretary; Solon A. Stein, Treasurer. An agreement was struck between the directors of the Park Association and the Athletic Association which would set aside the recently purchased four-acre plot for the purpose of constructing a baseball diamond that would be considered among the best in the state. The Kutztown Athletic Association, following the example of the park association, began offering subscriptions (or shares) in the new baseball diamond. Proceeds from the subscription sales were spent on excavation and construction costs and, ultimately, general maintenance and upkeep of the state-of-the-art facility.
The partnership formed between the Kutztown Park Association and the Kutztown Athletic Association proved to be a fruitful one practically from its inception. The new baseball diamond, much like the rest of the park, quickly became the envy of surrounding towns and a great drawing factor for local leagues in both regular and post-season play. Sporting a “diamond as smooth as a floor,” the baseball field quickly became the site of many high-profile championship contests.
As spring 1905 began to unfold, the park was poised for its most successful season to date. Many summer attractions, including church services, Sunday school picnics, and camp meetings, were already booked, and a season of thrilling baseball action loomed on the horizon. The first baseball game of the year was set to “open the season in style” with a match up featuring Kutztown (sporting new uniforms) vs. Easton, a pre-game parade, and music provided by the Kutztown Band. The game was scheduled for 13 May 1905 with the official opening of the “pleasure ground” scheduled for 27 May 1905 featuring the annual strawberry and ice cream festival.
Throughout the remainder of the opening decade of the twentieth century, both the Kutztown Park Association and the Kutztown Athletic Association continued to develop the park’s reputation as one of the finest public facilities in this part of Pennsylvania. The calendar of events grew each season to include Sunday school picnics, camp meetings, family reunions, fireworks, and concerts. Concurrently, the Athletic Association continued to promote and host a full regular season slate of baseball games as well as many highly publicized championship contests. By decade’s end, the Kutztown Park was emerging as the leading social, cultural, athletic, and family gathering between Reading and Allentown.
The years 1907 through 1909 each featured a notable event in the history of the park. As the regular calendar of church, family, community, and athletic events continued to grow, each of these happenings could be viewed as a mile marker in the park’s history.
On 11 August 1907, during the parks’ annual Kutztown Day festivities, the 1876 Centennial Monument was rededicated in the park. Mr. Conrad Gehring, a well-known former resident of Kutztown and one of the originators of the 1876 Monument, was one of the many guest speakers and dignitaries that highlighted the day. The 1876 Monument originally bore a Latin inscription which was removed and replaced with one that read, “This monument was erected on the Kutztown State Normal School Campus on July 4, 1876. Removed and re-dedicated to the Kutztown Park 1907.” The festivities of the day also featured a number of reflections on our nation’s independence, including reenactments, costumed performers, a grand parade, a community supper, and several sacred and classical musical concerts.
Independence Day celebrations held during July 1908 brought news of the park’s first tragic accident: “The most appalling accident that ever happened here at a Fourth of July celebration occurred in the Kutztown Park on last Saturday evening, when a young lady, who was blossoming into womanhood was killed almost instantly by a defective sky rocket. No one dreamt that such a sad catastrophe would be the climax of a day full of enjoyment for everyone.” To add to the tragedy, the young woman killed in the accident, Miss Katie F. Machemer (age 19 years), was to be married to her fiancé, Mr. John Breininger, just two weeks later. As a result of a coroner’s inquiry, the official cause of death was listed as accidental, and the directors of the Kutztown Park, as well as the fireworks company conducting the event, were exonerated from any wrongdoing.
The approaching park season of 1909 seemed poised to restore some sense of normalcy to events following the tragic fireworks mishap of the previous summer. The park calendar was booked well in advance, and a number of first-time visitors to the area sang the park’s praises. One such gentleman, Mr. Harry Berlin of Reading’s Christ Episcopal Church, literally wroth lyrical praises of the Kutztown Park to the tune of “On the Pier at Dreamland.” Mr. Berlin visited the park for a family picnic and was moved to write the following:
Where we picnic each summer time;
Where the boys and the girls
Have the time of their lives
If the weather is rain or shine,
‘Neath the tall shady trees,
Where there’s a most pleasing breeze,
You have all the pleasures that Cheer,
And a homeward you ride
You will sing with great pride
Of Kutztown’s Park.
CHORUS
At the Park at Kutztown
Merry, happy Kutztown;
Here’s the place to enjoy yourself
From morn to dark
At the Park at Kutztown
Blissful, dazzling Kutztown,
The picnic just fine
And we’re having a great time
At Kutztown’s Park.
Mr. Berlin’s sentiments were said to echo throughout the area in praise of the warmth and splendor of the experience to be had at Kutztown Park. His heartfelt praises bolstered a return to happier days as the summer season unfolded.
As the first decade of the twentieth century was drawing to a close, the directors of the Kutztown Park Association found themselves faced with several daunting challenges, among them continuing to plan for and execute needed improvements and additions to the park, curbing mounting incidents of vandalism and petty crime in the park, and, perhaps most importantly to the future of the park itself, paying off the remaining mortgage balance.
Over the course of the next decade, the directors of the Kutztown Park Association and other interested parties would continually encourage all residents of Kutztown and surrounding communities to not only make use of the facilities, but also to become park patrons by offering much-needed financial support whenever possible.
If the Kutztown Park was to remain the envy of all surrounding communities, it was very clear that its stewards would have to place the park’s fiscal affairs at the top of their priority list. The park itself, based upon its natural attributes and the improvements and additions made by the directors, had garnered a stellar reputation among the region’s churches, professional organization, businesses, and individuals as the finest facility of its kind between Reading and Allentown. Looking forward, the directors of the Kutztown Park Association would search for ways to make the financial foundation of the park as solid as its enduring reputation in order to ensure a rightful future as storied as its rich and majestic past.
