Rock Point Park News

Eleven inquisitive minds gathered yesterday to enjoy a walk around the Rock Point Nature Area, exploring the terrain and looking for signs of the past. The weather was perfect, and we all had a great time! As predicted, the poison ivy was abundant, and although everyone did their best to avoid the "menace of the forest", the next few days will tell us how well we did. Still, we got into the woods a bit, and got to see the locations of many of the former amusement park’s features. 

It was great fun to get to know everyone, and spend time sharing insights about the park and it’s history. I look forward to doing it again in the fall, possibly mid-October. I’ll keep you posted!

Kathy took pictures of the day’s activities and was nice enough to post them for us to enjoy. Please click here.

Also, as a result of the outing, I was able to make several updates to the RockPointPark.com website. Check out the Website Updates section of the main page.

Posted on August 31st, 2008 by Bruce
See more: Events, Fun stuff, News, Website updates | Leave a Comment »

Bob Bauder, feature journalist for the Beaver County Times, wrote a wonderful article that was published in today’s paper. Bob pieces the story together very nicely, and it is sure to draw widespread attention to this beautiful place! The article was so well done, it was even picked up by Yahoo News for their national audience!

Thanks, Bob. Great work!

Click here to read the story at the Beaver County Times Online.

Posted on July 27th, 2008 by Bruce
See more: News | Leave a Comment »

This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine! The year is 1908. One hundred years ago. What a difference a century makes! Here are some statistics for the Year 1908:

• Rock Point Park was having one of its best years ever!
• The average life expectancy was 47 years.
• Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
• Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
• There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
• The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
• The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower.
• The average wage in 1908 was 22 cents per hour.
• The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year .
• A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
• More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .
• Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as ’substandard’.
• Sugar cost four cents a pound.
• Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
• Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
• Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
• Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
• Five leading causes of death were:
  1. Pneumonia and influenza
  2. Tuberculosis
  3. Diarrhea
  4. Heart disease
  5. Stroke
• The American flag had 45 stars.
• The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was only 30!!!!
• Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn’t been invented yet.
• There was no Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.
• Two out of every 10 adults couldn’t read or write.
• Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
• Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, ‘Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.’
• Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
• There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A.!

Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years…

IT STAGGERS THE MIND!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted on June 22nd, 2008 by Bruce
See more: Fun stuff, General | 1 Comment »

Hello friends!

My apologies for not posting more often. Life has been busy with spring cleaning, lawn care, new grandbabies, and work. I hope to be able to make it up to the park property soon. Tracie suggested that we all take a walk up the Beaver River from the park to see if we can find the Buttermilk Falls feature shown on one of the old postcards. That sounds like a good idea, and once my schedule settles down, I’d like to plan on doing that. Maybe we could fit it in sometime in June?

Over the last 6 months, many of you have sent pictures that I’ve used in the newsletter. I appreciate that very much, and I’m sure our readers do too! And, I hope that there are some more folks out there who would be willing to share their stories and experiences about Rock Point Park with all of us. I’d love to post your article here in the newsletter for all to read! Just email me your article, and I’ll publish it for you. You can use your name, part of your name, or remain anonymous if you wish. I know there is a wealth of information out there about Rock Point Park just waiting to be written. Here’s your chance!

Click here to email your article.

Posted on May 24th, 2008 by Bruce
See more: Events, General | Leave a Comment »