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    Celebrate 95 Years Of Conservation, Education And Recreation With Cleveland Metroparks

    News & Press | July 2012

    Celebrate 95 Years Of Conservation, Education And Recreation With Cleveland Metroparks

    Posted: July 10, 2012
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    FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:



    BOB ROTATORI - 216-635-3263- or -



    ALYSSA COOK-ALEXANDER - 216-635-3274



    In an address to the Probate Court of Cuyahoga County in 1918,
    the Cleveland Metropolitan Park Board quoted Charles Eliot,
    president of Harvard University, saying �The vital question of
    modern life is how to feed the mental health and spiritual growth
    of multitudes.�



    For William A. Stinchcomb and the commissioners of the Cleveland
    Metropolitan Park Board, the answer to this question was to create
    one continuous outer parkway encircling Cuyahoga County. The Park
    Board believed that the move away from the city would foster the
    right environment to relax and heal the common problems of the
    city, which included stress and inactivity.



    This plan would be the formation of the �Emerald Necklace� or
    the system of greenspace that make up Cleveland Metroparks.



    On July 23, 2012, Cleveland Metroparks celebrates 95 years of
    progress and serving the people with a Park District that includes
    22,000 acres of various landscapes and attractions for visitors to
    enjoy. Following the vision of the first director-secretary,
    William Stinchcomb, the Park District today continues its mission
    of conservation, education and recreation.



    The first decade of its existence, Cleveland Metroparks pushed
    to acquire more land for conservation, working with local owners
    and community organizations that were already looking for park
    development in their neighborhoods.



    During the 1920s, the park board obtained 9,000 acres in nine
    reservations - Rocky River, Huntington, Big Creek, Hinckley,
    Brecksville, Bedford, South Chagrin, North Chagrin, and Euclid
    Creek - putting Cleveland Metroparks at the forefront of the county
    park movement in the United States.



    With the economy hurting due to The Great Depression, Cleveland
    Metroparks moved from land acquisition and hired as many men as
    possible to work on park development, building more drives, trails
    and picnic grounds. By 1936, 5,000 men were working through the
    Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Work Projects Administration
    (WPA) programs, building roads, trails, bridges and shelterhouses,
    as well as making other improvements.



    The board labeled 1931 �A Year of Progress,� saying �All of this
    represents real progress in converting the reservations to their
    ultimate purpose - that of serving the people.� This year became a
    model for Cleveland Metroparks working to anticipate the needs of
    visitors.



    By 1950, the Park District held title to 13,000 acres and land
    acquisition slowed. Construction was started on dozens of new
    projects to meet increasing demands for recreational
    opportunities.



    Now, Cleveland Metroparks owns 16 reservations and eight golf
    courses, over 100 miles of parkways and Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
    Its goal is to enhance people's lives with outdoor education and
    recreation.



    Since Cleveland Metroparks first began, a primary goal has been
    educating and cultivating curiosity in youth. Focusing on young
    children and getting them outside and involved started as early as
    1929 in the parks. Then, youth groups like Girls Scouts, the
    Kiwanis Club and the Y.M.C.A. held outdoor and overnight camps in
    the parks through permits. These camps and groups did such work as
    tracking constellations and learning about native wildlife and
    plants.



    In the earlier years, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History
    collaborated with Cleveland Metroparks to supply a naturalist,
    Arthur Williams. By 1931, the first trailside museum was opened.
    Thousands of children visited the center, meeting the museum's
    �pets� and taking part in outdoor discussions and lectures. In
    1951, Harold Wallin succeeded Arthur Williams and Cleveland
    Metroparks Outdoor Education Division officially began.



    Now, Cleveland Metroparks features four nature centers
    (Brecksville, Garfield Park, North Chagrin and Rocky River);
    CanalWay Visitor Center; Look About Lodge; three EarthWords Nature
    Shops; many traveling historical and environmental programs; and
    NatureTracks and Eco-Explorer - mobile education units that take
    nature programs to the community. The nature centers have programs,
    like hikes, walks and other events, as well as annual events like
    Bug City, Nature at Night and Fallfest: 18th Century
    Festival.



    The commitment to recreation has been a focal point to Cleveland
    Metroparks vision. The �80s brought construction of new all purpose
    and physical fitness trails, shelterhouses, picnic areas and new
    golfing opportunities. Cleveland Metroparks hosts many recreational
    programs from golfing at eight courses, to the new mountain bike
    trail in Mill Stream Run Reservation, to four swimming areas and
    fishing in a number of places.



    Ninety-five years after Stinchcomb envisioned his plan,
    Cleveland Metroparks has evolved and transcended anything he could
    have ever dreamed, with over 100 miles of parkways providing
    driving pleasure and easy access to Cleveland Metroparks facilities
    and areas, including: picnic areas and playfields; wildlife and
    waterfowl management areas; hiking, bridle, mountain bike, physical
    fitness, and all purpose trails; swimming, boating and fishing
    areas; sledding, skating, and cross-country skiing areas; six
    outdoor education facilities; eight golf courses and three driving
    ranges; twin ice toboggan chutes; a variety of affiliate
    organizations; and the Zoo.



    See more of the Park District and enjoy it with a list of 95
    things to do in Cleveland Metroparks available at
    clevelandmetroparks.com



    Celebrate 95 years of conservation, education and recreation in
    at least 95 ways with Cleveland Metroparks - part of your
    life, naturally.



    -30-

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