Merry-Go-Round Concessions

Photographs, taken by Clarence Durbin in the waning years of Rock Springs Park (1968-1970), show concession stands along the midway near the Merry-Go-Round. Many today recall the cotton candy stand at the top of the staircase which led past the spring and the lower picnic park and the lunch stand next to the octagonal carousel pavilion. However, the photograph below, part of a series belonging to Sayre W. Graham and illustrating the many structures built by The Finley Brothers Construction Company, reveals for the first time that during C.C. Macdonald’s time as owner of the park, concession stands were constructed as part of the carousel’s waiting platform. An ice cream stand (right) and a popcorn stand (left) border the entrance and share the red and green striped roof in 1928.

(Courtesy of Sayre Graham, Jr.)

C.C. Macdonald's Park

“Charles (C.C.) Macdonald and wife, Grace, owners of Summit Park in Akron, Ohio, purchased Rock Springs Park in 1926. Macdonald pledged, according to Susan Weaver in a 1985 edition of Goldenseal Magazine, “to bring the park back in popularity and in improvements to the days when it was a popular playground and outing spot in West Virginia.” Part of Macdonald’s plan to modernize the park included replacing the scenic railway with a $25,000 state-of-the-art wooden roller coaster, adding a small zoo, and upgrading the dance pavilion, which he christened “Virginia Gardens” in honor of his eighteen-year old daughter. For two seasons the park saw record attendance and profits leading former owner C.A. Smith to comment that the crowds were the largest he had ever seen within the gates of the park.”

The quote above is taken from the text of Images of America: Rock Springs Park. It was ironic to me that although C.C. Macdonald’s Rock Springs Park is the one older folks remembered in my youth and the one during which crowds were the largest, it was also the era with the fewest photographs. Perhaps, this is due to the fact that his years were cut short by the Great Depression. It is only now that pictures are resurfacing which show the 1920s’ park packed with patrons. Above shows the Cylone waiting platform and below the crowded Aeroplane queue (Courtesy of Debra Urie Lugano).

A Peek at the Lincoln Highway?

On the back cover of Images of America: Rock Springs Park I wrote, “Once described as “a place where god and man went fifty-fifty to produce perfection,” Rock Springs Park was an amusement park located along the Lincoln Highway in Chester, West Virginia.” The Lincoln Highway or Route 30 also ran past Idlewild Park, in Ligonier. Both Idlewild and Rock Springs were once owned by C.C. Macdonald.

The photograph above shows the Ligonier home of C.C. Macdonald. The home still stands today across Route 30 from Idlewild's present exit gate. I was wondering if the white posts, left of the house in this photograph, might be an early guardrail system for the Lincoln Highway prior to its widening along this stretch. The jury is still out, but when one looks at the evidence it seems fairly certain. (Courtesy of Tish Hand)

Takes a look at a close-up view of the posts in question and one can see lines of wire or cable strung between them.

These two postcard views of the LH in Pennsylvania, in the area of Idlewild Park, show the same type of guardrail.

So, what do you guys think? Is it or isn’t it?

Fourth of July a Big Day at the Park

The Fourth of July was the biggest day of the year at Rock Springs Park for many decades. Some of the more notable July 4 events are featured in today’s patriotic installment of “This Day in Rock Springs Park History.”


Monday, July 4, 1927

Former owner C.A. Smith commented that the crowd attending the Fourth at Rock Springs Park in the new Macdonald Era was “the largest he had ever seen within the gates of the park at the noon hour.” But was Macdonald the new owner or just the lessee? Read more at http://rockspringspark.blogspot.com/2011/03/70000-buys-park-in-1950.html.

Friday, July 4, 1930

"Rock Springs Fete"

"Doc" Perkins and his Iowans will play for dancing at Rock Springs Park tomorrow, and the Conley Trio will put on its high pole act, with fireworks display to close the Independence Day celebration. Bob Fisher and his Five Fearless Flyers will open an engagement at the park next week. (The Pittsburgh Press, July 3, 1930.)

Saturday, July 4, 1936

Excursion to Rock Springs Park on Steamer Washington. Leave Pittsburgh 9:00 a.m. Return 11:00 p.m. Arrive at Park 2:00 p.m. and Leave 5:00 p.m. Daylight Savings Time. Adult $1.00 Round Trip Fare, Children 50 cents. Celebrate the 4th on the Ohio. Dancing, entertainment, cafeterias serving lunch and refreshments. (The Pittsburgh Press, June 26, 1936.)


Sunday, July 4, 1954

Safe crackers make off with $8000 in Fourth of July receipts after breaking into the Rock Springs Park office and old fashioned double-door safe. Read the article at http://rockspringspark.blogspot.com/2010/08/safe-crackers-enjoy-picnic-in-rock.html.

Virginia Gardens Baby Grand Was a Family Heirloom

Charles Clinton (C.C.) Macdonald and wife, Grace, owners of Summit Park in Akron, Ohio, purchased Rock Springs Park in 1926. Macdonald upgraded the aging Victorian park adding the Cyclone, a small zoo, and the Virginia Gardens Ballroom. For two seasons the park saw record attendance and profits, but with the onset of the depression, Macdonald needed to diversify in order to keep Rock Springs Park going. To that end, he moved his family to Ligonier, Pennsylvania in 1931 to become partner to Richard B. Mellon and part owner of Idlewild Park.

Grace Macdonald went back and forth between Rock Springs and Idlewild for four years until turning the entire operation of Rock Springs Park over to her newly-wedded daughter, Virginia, and son-in-law, Robert L. Hand, in 1935. The Hands would spend the next thirty-five years in Rock Springs Park, raising two sons and sustaining a modest but profitable existence until the park was purchased, rides and all, by the state of West Virginia in 1974.

During their years of operation and ownership of Idlewild Park, the Macdonalds lived in this home directly across Route 30 from the park. The home still stands today.

According to Tish Hand, “The fancy living room with the baby grand piano was in Grace and CC’s mansion in Idlewild. The piano came to Virginia Gardens after Grace's death (October 24, 1964) and was there for many years before the park closed. I don't remember what became of it, but it was offered to us and we had no place for it.”

As the baby grand is not listed among items to be auctioned off in this advertisement from the Beaver County Times, June 19, 1974, perhaps it was donated to a local church or sold to a local buyer prior to the auction. Does anyone know what happened to it?

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Impromptu Parking

Rock Springs Park was designed as a trolley park and to that end never truly established parking areas for customers arriving by automobile.   

As early as 1908 automobiles carried patrons to the park but parking was limited to found space. At first, as seen in this postcard image, that meant parking along the trolley loop near the lower entrance.

When the park was re-imagined by C.C. Macdonald in the mid to late 1920s an upper entrance was added under the third hill of his new Cyclone Roller Coaster. The aerial photograph below clearly illustrates that the trolley loop all the way back to the lake and bath house was used for parking, as was the area near the Chester High School to access the upper entrance gate.

Black Model Ts line the trolley loop and lower picnic park to the lake, as well as, near the high school to the west.



The series of photographs which follow shows that this trend continued into the late 1960s until the park closed in 1970. Most travelers from Pennsylvania parked near the lower entrance as it was the first one they encountered along Route 30. While those traveling from southern West Virginia along Route 2 or across the Chester Bridge from Ohio may have used the upper entrance more often.

The Grand Opening of the Macdonald Era at Rock Springs Park Is Heralded

Saturday, May 19, 1928

On this date in Rock Springs Park history, the "Grand Opening" of the Macdonald Era at Rock Springs Park was heralded in the Daily Times of Beaver, Pennsylvania. The advertisement describes the beautiful Virginia Gardens Ballroom featuring Billy Coppels Entertainers, many rides and amusements, a remodeled Crystal Pool and Boating, and many other new features and attractions. New that year was the zoo with "Monkey Island" and "Goat Mountain." The ad concluded see the "Ohio Valley's Most Picturesque Playground where the Famous Rock Spring Flows." See the ad and the “New Dangler” at http://rockspringspark.blogspot.com/2011/04/strolling-through-park-in-1928.html.

Monday, May 19, 2010

Also on this date two years ago, the book, Images of America: Rock Springs Park hits bookshelves 40 years after the park’s last season – 1970.

Auto Racer in Rock Springs Park

One of my favorite rides in Kennywood Park, Pittsburgh, PA is the Auto Race. It is a fun and rather tame flat ride which allows your child to be the driver of an electric vehicle and puts you, the parent, in the backseat. Unlike Kiddie Turnpike Cars, Auto Race Cars are not limited by a groove or under auto rail. There is some steering control limited only by a trough-like wooden track. Kennywood’s Auto Race also known as the Auto Ride was built in 1930 by the Harry Traver Engineering Company and is the last of its kind. According to Wikipedia, “When it opened in 1930, it had several small hills placed in the track, but these were soon removed due to rear-end collisions caused when cars couldn't get up and over them on rainy days.”

Three years prior to Kennywood’s Auto Race, Rock Springs Park owner C.C. Macdonald drained the splash lagoon of the dismantled Victorian Shoot-the-Chutes Ride (above) and built a raised and twisting Auto Race wooden track within its walls.The photograph above shows the Auto Race track under construction in the splash lagoon pool.This image appeared on a brochure signed by then president of Rock Springs Park, C.C. Macdonald. The image has been enlarged to show riders in cars on the track. Notice the crowd viewing a high wire “free act” next to the Carousel.

A story was told to me at a book talk event which suggested previous owner C.A. Smith, when taking a test run on the Auto Racer in Rock Springs Park, crashed through the guardrail and was seriously injured. I have not been able to verify that story, but do know, if true, he must have fully recovered as he went on to raise prized cattle for several decades after.

See another image of the Auto Ride in Rock Springs Park in my Image book on page 59.

Three Bears Born at Rock Springs Park

In his third year as manager of Rock Springs Park C. C. Macdonald kicked off the 1928 season with lots of advertising and articles which appeared in local papers. The ads led with the headline “Grand Opening – 1928” and included the motto “Ohio Valley’s Most Picturesque Playground – where the – Famous Rock Spring Flows.” The ad (left) also lists the many features and attractions at Rock Springs. “Many Rides and Amusements, Remodeled Crystal Pool and Boating, and Monkey Island and Goat Mountain.” That last bit refers to two features of a zoo which was located on the hillside above the upper park. (See Images of America: Rock Springs Park, p. 59) Roy Cashdollar spoke fondly of the “little zoo at the end of Lover’s Lane” and Richard (R.Z.) Macdonald told of the many animals he remembered in the zoo from his time growing up in the park. But it was not until I received the article below, from alert reader Jeff Schneidmiller of East Liverpool, OH, that I learned of black bears born in Rock Springs Park.

Source and Date Unknown

BLACK BEARS BORN AT ROCK SPRINGS PARK DURING WINTER

There being at this time only five breeding pairs of black bears in the United States, it is very doubtful if the public realizes the value of such a pair. However, their value seems to be a minor part in comparison with the life of their cubs.

The writer will attempt to give you a short history of Amos, Andy and Ruby, the three cubs, born at Rock Springs Park on the night of January 14th. In the past few years Queen, the mother bear, has been unsuccessful in raising her offsprings [sic]. So this past January, we took it upon ourselves to be mother and father to the little ones, taking them away from their mother when they were about a day old. After a few days, we found ourselves no easy task. We had to feed them with a bottle, and their diet was one of the most studious ones. It consisted of the following: --Skim Milk, Dextras Maltose No. 1, Lime Water, Castor Oil and Honey. At first, they refused the nipple, but as time wore on they took it readily every two hours, night and day. This necessitates two shifts on our part until now we have meal time down pat.

It was surprising how fast they grew. Weighing at the time of birth six ounces, they gained in weight and statue [sic] until now, fifty-eight days after birth, they are eight pounds in weight and as large as a good size poodle dog. At forty days, their eyes began to open, yet they were unable to see. Nature perhaps provides for this, as they are still rather weak in the knees to be walking around. When they will be able to walk and care of [sic] themselves remains to be seen. The night feeder hopes it won't be too long until that night comes when he doesn't have to get up in the cold and administer the bottle.

During the raising of the cubs, Lula, the other female, surprised us with one more cub, however, we decided to let her have the job of raising her own, she seems to be having as much success if not more than we are.

The writer just received word from the nursery, which will sadden the hearts of all concerned. Ruby, the largest, and seemingly the healthiest of all the litter has past into the great beyond, having contracted pneumonia. She died at 11:30 a.m. today. A fitting burial will take place tomorrow and little ruby will be laid to rest with all the pomp and ceremony due her kind.

Loowing [sic] in upon her two brothers, one seems to catch a quiet whine, which may be their crying for their dead sister, or they might be saying: "Come up and see me sometime next summer at Rock Springs Park.”

Jeff sent the above article along with the message, “Here is a another mystery to unravel.”

The mysteries seem to be "Who is the writer?" and "When did this event take place?".

A small zoo was added by C.C. Macdonald when he upgraded the park in 1926. In addition, his other park, Idlewild Park in Ligonier, PA, had a bear den that is still there today next to the roller coaster (see photographs below). Prior to that, C.A. Smith had a Hippodrome or circus-style theater somewhere in the park where elephants and other beasts performed, so the bears could have been born during his tenure as owner . On June 2, 1910, The Daily Times of Beaver, PA reported, “There is a fine bill at the Hippodrome, Rock Springs Park, this week, any of the acts being well worth the price of admission, including Carl Daman Family, Sensational Acrobats; the Orloff Troupe of Famous Russian Gymnasts and Roberti’s Bears, Dogs and Monkeys.”



The key to our latest Rock Springs Park mystery seems to be the names given our three bears: Amos, Andy and Ruby. The names are based on characters from the “Amos ‘n’ Andy Show," a situation comedy set in the African-American community which began on radio in 1925 and continued on television into the 1950s. Although the lead characters were black they were originally created and performed by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, white actors in black face familiar with minstrels, a theatrical tradition that would be considered beyond politically incorrect today. Naming black bears after stereotypical African American characters would be completely unacceptable and racist, but for our mystery, they do provide a time line for Jeff’s article.

Charles Correll ('Andy'-left) and Freeman Gosden ('Amos'-right) at a Chicago book signing, 1929.

Even though C.A. Smith had animal acts, including bears, at Rock Springs, his ownership does not fall within our timeline. It is only C.C. Macdonald and later his daughter Virginia and her Husband Bob Hand who could have been managers when the cubs were born. I’ve seen no evidence of animals in the park during the hand years, but do know, as I stated in my introduction, that Macdonald added a zoo when he upgraded the park in 1926. Further, I know him, or someone writing for him in this period, to be a writer who used details about the park to paint pictures in the reader's mind and always ended with an invitation; something that the writer of Jeff’s article clearly does.

Ruby Dandridge (March 3, 1899 – October 17, 1987) was an American actress from the early 1900s to the 1950s. She is best known for her radio work in her early days of acting, including her namesake character “Ruby” on the “Amos ‘n’ Andy” show. She is the mother of Dorothy Dandridge. (Ruby Dandridge Pictured at Right)

One other potential clue is the writer’s invitation to “Come up and see me sometime,” which may allude to Mae West’s famous line from She Done Him Wrong (1933). But when put in context and read completely, "Come up and see me sometime next summer at Rock Springs Park,” the invitation clearly does not fit with the suggestive nature intended by West’s character - Lady Lou.

So, does anyone know anything about these bears? From what I can gather, it may be from The Macdonald Years (1926 - 1934). If you have further details or thoughts, please leave a comment below.

Author (left) hanging with The Three Bears in Storyland, Stahlstown, PA, on Route 30 the Lincoln Highway in 1967.

The Mystery of the Red Sticks

(Courtesy of Jeff Schneidmiller)

Weird coincidences and mysteries are part of what makes continued study of Rock Springs Park so fascinating to me, even after all these years. This week, one question I posted to a Facebook fan led to both.

I was thinking about doing a blog post about owner C.C. Macdonald’s upgrades to Rock Springs Park prior to the 1927 season, an effort which left him penniless after the Stock Market Crash of 1929. I particularly wanted to talk about the Cyclone Roller Coaster and focus on how Macdonald, even though he was in severe financial straits himself, promised all those who helped him that “he would repay them everything he owed or they could have the park.”

It was at about this time that I remembered seeing a message from a Jeff Schneidmiller of East Liverpool on Kassy Hand’s Rock Springs Park Facebook page.

Jeff wrote, “Rock Springs Park ran out of money to pay for the (Cyclone) Coaster. My Great-Grandfather had the Finley Lumber Company, so Rock Springs gave him stock in the coaster.”

This photograph of a blank Rock Springs Coaster Company stock certificate may be similar to the one Jeff’s Great-Grandfather would have received. (Photo by Joseph Comm; Certificate from the Collection of Bill Gray)

After relocating and rereading Jeff’s message I left a message of my own stating that his story matched the one I had heard from C.C. Macdonald’s son, R. Z. Macdonald, in the course of writing my book. R.Z. explained that his father did everything he could to earn money to pay off the workers and suppliers, including working at Motor Square Garden (a convention center in Pittsburgh) in the off-season, and diversifying his business interests by working in partnership with Richard Mellon on Idlewild Park in Ligonier, PA, while still managing Rock Springs in WV. Macdonald continued paying contractors, like the Finley Brothers, until the debt was paid in full by 1950.

In his original post Jeff went on to say that “The Finley Lumber Company also got 1/3 cent for every rider, till the Park Closed.”

Historical Notes: (Jeff's Story Follows)

The Finley Brothers played a huge part in Chester’s early history. One need only review the histories of many of the former and present structures in Chester, and you will see their names attached to them.

One of the earliest institutions built by the Finleys was a wood frame church, erected on the site where the present First United Presbyterian Church sits on Carolina Avenue. Joseph N. Finley was a ruling Elder in the church and built the original wood frame church for a nominal fee in 1898. A good portion of the fee was paid at the “bequest of the estate of A. B. Marks,” according to the Riverstyle Sunday Review, November 5, 2000. It was the Marks’ estate that had been purchased by J.E. McDonald and converted into Rock Springs Park; a park that the Finley Brothers had no small hand in constructing.

The Chester High School was erected by The Finley Brothers Contractors on January 4, 1906.

The Chester city building was built in 1927 by the Finley Brothers Lumber and Construction Co. They completed construction in 1928 and a plaque, which now hangs in the current city building, was created to commemorate the occasion.

Roy C. Cashdollar, in his History of Chester: The Gateway to the West (Part 2), gives the following account of The Finley Brothers Lumber Company :

Owned and operated by the four brothers: Joseph, Frank, Robert, and James along with their brother-in-law Joseph McCoy. Mr. McCoy was the husband of Pearl Finley a sister to the four brothers. Upon the death of Mr. McCoy, George Hasson of Virginia Avenue joined the firm. Joseph served in the state legislature in 1909 and was one of the original incorporators of the First National Bank. Mr. J. P. Finley, a son of Joseph, shortly after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh became the secretary-treasurer of the Newell Lumber Company, a branch of the Chester company. Virginia and Robert Finley, were also active in the company for many years prior to its closing.

The Finley’s were kept very busy in Chester’s early history and their beautiful workmanship gave the new town many of its landmark buildings, including Rock Springs Park's unique octagonal Carousel Pavilion and the ornate Casino Dance Hall (pictured below) in 1906.

The first floor of the Casino contained a Japanese Tea House, six bowling alleys, a billiard hall, shooting gallery, barber shop, toilets and park office. The 18,000 square foot hard white maple dance floor occupied the second floor.

Twenty years later The Finley Brothers’ Company built the Cyclone Roller Coaster for C.C. Macdonld starting in 1926.

Having thought about Jeff Schneidmiller’s comment on Facebook, and wanting to find out more, I messaged him to get further details about his family history.

“Jeff you shared that your Great-Grandfather had the Finley Lumber Company and stock in Rock Springs Park. Could you tell me his name?"

This is where the coincidence comes in: Just as my message popped up on Jeff’s screen, he was at that very moment taking photographs of a few of his family’s Rock Springs Park memorabilia and uploading them to share with Facebook fans of the park.

Jeff wrote back about what a coincidence it was and said that he needed to gather some more information from his mother and her sisters. He said his great-grandfather’s name was “James,” and ended with a question for me.

“I have found some old things from Rock springs Park. I would like you to tell me about the red sticks with the yellow ball on top .They say ‘Rock Spring Park’ on them. Thank you. Jeff.”

Jeff also shared a couple of vintage photographs of his ancestors at the park, including one which illustrates that not only were formal portraits taken at the park but also some very humorous caricatures.

A folding brochure-style map from the 20’s, like this one, is also part of Jeff's collection. It includes a mileage chart showing, Cambridge, Ohio, at a distance of 97 miles, as the furthest town from which travelers came to picnic at Rock Springs.

Jeff left his number and we picked up our conversation over the phone. I could tell he was very proud of his family’s legacy in Chester and the surrounding area and interested in sharing their story. That’s when I asked him about using our conversation and some of his images in this blog post.

Having seen souvenir bamboo canes in park photos I asked Jeff if possibly his two and a half foot sticks might be souvenir canes. “The average length of a cane is 3 feet. That's pretty close,” I reasoned.

But Jeff noted looking at them, “They are very thin .You can't put any pressure on them .I was thinking maybe a flag was on them or banner.”

That started the gears turning in my head, “Yeah, maybe a pennant!”

I went to bed and all the photographs I had scanned while working on the book started racing across my brain. By morning, I had a pretty god idea of the picture I needed to solve the mystery of the red sticks. I fired up the laptop and took only five minutes to find the picture I wanted.

I messaged Jeff. “BINGO! Here's your red stick with the yellow ball on top. This is Bev Springer with her Rock Springs Park pennant tied to one.”

Bev, herself, had been a Rock Springs Park mystery, until I discovered her name and wrote about it, in blog post “Mystery Woman Identified,” on August 20, 2010.

Rock Spring's Own Green Lantern

As the latest summer superhero movie hits theaters, I am reminded that Rock Springs Park had its own “Green Lantern” starting in 1927.

I first read about the Green Lantern Restaurant in Rock Springs Park in Roy C. Cashdollar's History of Chester: The Gateway to the West, Part 2. Roy wrote, "The street cars ran around the loop and discharged passengers in front of the main gate and the Green Lantern Restaurant." Then, while researching the book, I was reminded of its existence by R.Z. Macdonald. His father, C.C. Macdonald, owned and operated the park starting in 1926, following the successful C.A. Smith years. According to Cashdollar, “In 1926, C.C. McDonald [sic], owner of the Summit Park in Akron, bought the grounds and proceeded to eliminate some of the antique equipment and introduced other rides.”

Although, I have examined and scanned hundreds of photographs and postcards of Rock Springs Park, I have never seen a picture of the Green Lantern. When I mention the restaurant to those who knew the park today, they don’t seem to recall that it was ever there.

A close-up view of the aerial photograph (above) which was taken during the Macdonald Years, shows what I believe to be the Green Lantern (green arrow points to the building). Notice all the Model Ts lining the trolley loop and a trolley making a turn into the park off of Carolina Avenue.
In his first History of Chester book, Cashdollar notes on page 113, "A fine restaurant called the 'Lantern Inn' was operated in the loop at the park entrance for many years. This was in the building originally constructed as a refreshment stand and waiting room for the street cars." That waiting station is shown on the postcard images above and below.

I enjoyed comic books as a kid but was never a collector. I know little of the superhero called "The Green Lantern" as he was featured in D.C. Comics and I read mostly Marvel, but I do know he had some sort of ring of power that gave him super abilities. I wonder if it could render him invisible or hard to see like the Green Lantern in Rock Springs Park.

If anyone reading this blog has a photograph of the restaurant, I would love to see it.

Which Came First? Rock Springs Park’s Green Lantern was constructed inside the old trolley loop waiting station in 1927, while the Green Lantern (Alan Scott) made his first appearance in All-American Comics #16 thirteen years later in July 1940.

Motor Square Garden

My foggy morning photographs do not do justice to this late Victorian office building in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Known as "Motor Square Garden," it is a historic landmark which played an important role in the fate of not only Rock Springs Park but also Idlewild Park in Ligonier, PA.

After spending thousands of dollars upgrading Rock Springs Park in the late 1920s, owner C.C. Macdonald found himself in severe financial straits following the Stock Market Crash of 1929. He was desperate to find someone to lease the park as he was left penniless when the banks closed. When he could not find a lessee, he earned extra money working in the off-season at the Motor Square convention center in Pittsburgh. (See page 53 of Images of America: Rock Springs Park for a quote about this period from son R.Z. Macdonald.)

The construction of Motor Square Garden was financed by the Mellon family of Pittsburgh, it was built from 1898 to 1900 as a city market—after one of their real estate subdivisions failed to sell enough houses. Richard B. Mellon learned of C.C. Macdonald’s impressive amusement park experience and asked him to help improve Idlewild Park in Ligonier, PA, which he owned at the time. In order to diversify, Macdonald accepted Mellon’s offer and spent four years dividing his time between the sister parks. Eventually he would take on Idlewild fulltime and leave Rock Springs Park in the hands of his daughter Virginia and her husband, Bob.

In the 1920s, Motor Square Garden was used as a sports venue, especially for boxing, and was used intermittently as the home court of the University of Pittsburgh's basketball team.

In 1988, AAA bought the property. Landmarks Design Associates of Pittsburgh redesigned it as an upscale shopping mall. The retail mall failed, but AAA expanded to occupy the building, along with a tenant, the UPMC Shadyside School of Nursing.

Interior dome (from Landmarks Design Associates)

Interior commercial space (from Landmarks Design Associates)

FACT: The first ever broadcast of a sporting event occurred on April 11, 1921 at Pittsburgh’s Motor Square Garden when a 10-round, no decision fight between Johnny Ray and Johnny Dundee aired on KDKA.