Lake Drained in 1952 to Add Picnic Grounds in Lower Park

This grassy area was once part of the lake at Rock Springs Park. (1970)










According to Billboard, June 7, 1952, manager Robert L. Hand ordered a full-scale operation to fill in the lake at Rock Springs Park “in order to provide additional picnic space.” The work was done prior to the 1952 summer season. Two new rides were also added at that time – the Bisch-Rocco Kiddie Airplane (pictured) and the B.A. Schiff Kiddie Boat Ride (pictured). The 3.5-acre lake was created fifty-two years earlier by then-owner C.A. Smith at a cost of $50,000. In 1906 a report by The United States Bureau of Fisheries under the subject “the propagation and distribution of food fishes ,” reported that the lake at Rock Springs was stocked with 150 “fingerlings, yearlings, and adult” large-mouth black bass. Of course, those who remember the lake in later years saw it substantially reduced in size with only small fish and no boating (see picture). What remained of the lake was drained in 1974-75 when the park was razed to make way for the redirection of Route 30 and the approach to the new Jennings Randolph Bridge.






Kiddie Airplanes and Kiddie Boats in Rock Springs Park (1968)