Memorabilia sought for park anniversary

The park started with 72 acres and has grown to 227 acres.
BOARDMAN -- To help mark its 60th anniversary, township park officials are asking community members to share their collective memories.
Established Nov. 4, 1947, Boardman Park, the "Green Oasis," is celebrating 60 years in the heart of the township.
A celebration is planned for June 30 in the Maag Outdoor Arts Theatre.
Dan Slagle, park superintendent, is looking for old photographs of park events, programs, family gatherings, landscape and nature scenes to help the park staff document park history.
Park memorabilia such as program fliers or newsletters, posters, brochures, newspaper articles and other items that tell a story about the park also will help as well as any other information regarding the park's history, such as stories about individual experiences.
Call Slagle at (330) 726-8107 to help.
The seed for the park's establishment may have never been planted if it were not for the generosity of William F. Maag Jr., who in 1946 donated 72 acres to the township in order to establish a community park.
The seed for the park's establishment may have never been planted if it were not for the generosity of William F. Maag Jr., former publisher of The Vindicator, who in 1946 donated 72 acres to the township in order to establish a community park.
Growth
Another important element in the park's history has been the acquisition of property. Over the years, the seed has grown into a community park, rich in natural beauty, comprising 227 contiguous acres located in the heart of Boardman.
The size of the park has more than tripled since 1947, where today it provides 60 acres for active recreational purposes and preserves 167 acres as undisturbed natural habitat.
On Jan. 11, 1972, the Boardman Historical Society saved St. James Meeting House from demolition and moved it to the park. It has since become a prominent historical landmark and represents a significant aspect of the township's heritage.
On Sept. 15, 1992, the park board adopted the first master plan for the park. The significance of the plan was twofold.
It contained the mission statement: To provide a diversity of recreational and educational opportunities in an environment that lends itself to pleasant family experiences, and to preserve areas of natural habitat.
Also, the plan laid out a unique and diverse footprint of recreational facilities. Specifically, it facilitated the development of several recreational assets: Kids' Town and Tots' Town playgrounds, the Maag Outdoor Arts Theatre, the Beard Family Cabin, the Hofmaster Pavilion, the hike and bike trail, Masters Pavilion, the Lariccia Family Bocce Pavilion and the acquisition of 33 acres of property.