THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



1S5 



have traversed aroumls ^nncd tip cvrrv Anu'iiran hc;irl ; wo 

 have visited a park that was a|i|iai('ntl\ di-^ij;m'd liy Xatinc'^ 

 God as a fitting ornament to the rrown of (lie queenly city in 

 which you live. We have lieeii entertained, dined, anuised and 

 made to feel that we were in reality lirotliers and sisters of the 

 'Xewburgli bunch,' and best of all we have had the largest 

 meeting in the history of our association. Much is due to the 

 enlhiisiasm aroused by your local park board and our associate, 

 the superintendent of Downing I'aik. There has not been a 

 minute of the time that we have not ha<l some one of the mem- 

 bers at our beck and call, each desirous <>( olVering some kindness, 

 or doing something that would lighten oiu' lal)ors or make our 

 visit nior(' pleasant. To your mayor. .Mr. Corwin, to your Park 

 Hoard. .Messrs. Belknap. Smith. I.eonaril and Coldwell, to Mr. 

 TlaibU and to the local press the thanks of the association are 

 justly due. [ appreciate all that has been done, and I voice at 

 tin' same tiirie the ap]ueciation of the American .\ssociation of 

 I'ark 'siiperintcnili'iits." 



V-'^ednesday, Trip to Bear Mountain Park. 



(In Wednesday morning the association became the guest of 

 the Hon. George W. I'erkins, president of the Inter-State Park 

 Commissioners. The steamer "'.Mbioir" was boarded at Xewl)ingh 

 at 10 o"clocle and proceeded down the ITndson liivei'. 



Imiviodiately after leaving .Vewbuigh the business session was 

 called to order and the election of ollccrs took place. T'he nomi- 

 nating committee reported its ticket as follows: Tor ])resident, 

 (Uis(a\e H. Amilivn. New Haven, (oim.: (i. A\'. Btnke. Pitts- 

 bingh. Pa.: for si'cretary and treasurer, .1. J. Levison. lirooklyn, 

 X. v.; K. W. fotterill, Seattle. Wash.: for vice-piesi(huits. .John 

 W. McLaren, San Francisco, f'al.: lleiinan Merkel. X<'\v York, 

 N. Y.: Carl M. Fohn. Colorado Springs, Colo.; Charles Haible, 

 Xowbnrgh, N. Y. : Charles V-. CarinMiter, Milwaukee, Wis.; F. L. 

 :\Inlford. Washington. D. C; ,T. II. Prosi, Chicago, 111.; M, A. 

 .Moore. Toledo, Ohio: E. P. Griflith. St. Louis. Mo.; .bdui Hender- 

 son. Montreal, Canada; E. R. Mack, Wilmington. Pil. 



The following ofllcers were elected: Giist:ivc II. .\niihyn, 

 president; H. W. Cotterill. secretary and treasurer: Herman 

 ^lerkel. John W. McLaren, -lohn Henderson, Carl JI. Folin. and 

 ,T. 11. Prost, vice-presidents. 



Invitations for the next meeting plaii were called for, and 

 Secretary hevison reported that he liad several invitations from 

 Chambers of Commerce and Boards of Trade from various cities. 

 Daniel MacKoric. of San Francisco, Cal., presented an invitation 

 from the President of the Panama -Pacific Exposition Company 

 and from John McLaren, Superintendent of Parks, San Francisco, 

 inviting the association to convene in San Francisco next year. 

 After several members spoke in favor of going to the Pacific 

 Coast next year, it was nnanimonsly voted to hold the ne.xt 

 convention of the American Association of Park Superintendents 

 in San Francisco in 101.5. 



A hearty vote of thanks was tendered J. J. Levison for his 

 untiring services rendered to the association while serving as its 

 secretary during the past two years. foUouing wliicli the meet- 

 ing was adjourned. 



The first stop was at West Point, where the Jiarty had an 

 hour to visit the various points of inttirest at the famous tT. S. 

 Milit;iry .Ac.idemy. From there the steamer prorecdcd dirctly 



to Bear .Mountain I'nk. « Inti' the party was rei'civcil by .Mr. 

 I'erkins ;ind eiileitained :it Innili by him. Following the luiicli 

 Mr. Perkins brielly outlini'd tin' W(Mk of the commission of which 

 In; is chairman. The Inter-State Park comprises land in the 

 State of X'ew York and Xew .Jersey, ten thousand acres of 

 which biing the gift of .Mrs. !•:. II. Harriman, who has also gen- 

 erously contributed .$l,<iOtl.n(Hl for development work. Some 

 18.100 acres have been given by the States of New York and Xew 

 Jersey. A grand lionlevard to be known as the Hendrick Hud- 

 son Koulevaid is now under coiuse of construction from ii point 

 on the X'ew .lersey shore opposite Xew York City to Xewburgh, 

 X. Y.. a ilistance of ;ibout sixty miles. Bear Mountain Park is 

 maintained for the peo]ile of New York City, a regular line of 

 steamers l)eing oiicrated between the clt,y ami the park, which 

 is about forty miles up the river. Mr. Perkins explained that it 

 is the purpose of the commission to provide an outing place for 

 New York City people wiiere they may speml a day at a nominal 

 cost. The restaurant is maintained by the commission, where 

 food is provided at nominal prices, as is also the fare on the 

 steamers Sites are laid ont for camping purposes, for whiidi 

 there is no cliargf. thougli ;i u'lniit is required from the secre- 

 tary of the ccmimission. 



From Bear ilonntain Park the steamer proceeded down the 

 Hudson River to New York City, where the members disembarked 

 to meet again the following morning. 



Thursday, Meeting in New York. 

 The members assembled at the Hotel Astor, the he:idquarters 

 of the convention in X^ew York City, at 10 o'clock on Thursday 

 morning. In the absence of .Mayor Mitchel of New York, Hon. 

 Henry Brisere, City Chambeilain, welcomed the gathering to N'ew 

 York City. He was tollowed by the Hon. Cabot Ward, iiresident 

 of the Ncv; York Park Board. Mr. Ward in his remarks tnged 

 closer co-oj]eration between the practical men of the parks, the 

 park superintendents and the executive statT, the commission- 

 ers. President Richards responded fittingly to the addresses of 

 Messrs. Bruere and Ward, after which the members adjourned 

 to tlie hotel entrance where automobiles were in waiting to con- 

 vey the party cm a sight-seeing triji through the park system 

 of New York City. Proceeding up Broadway to Centr:il Park, 

 tlirough it to Ri\-erside Drive, Van Cortlandt Park, Mosholu 

 Parkway to X'ew Y<nk Botanical Gardens, the Zoologic:il Gar- 

 dens were reached .it noon. After viewing the Zoologic;il Gar- 

 dens the party became the guests of th" New York Zoological 

 Society at luncheon. 



The newly elected officers, constituting tlie executive boaid of 

 the association, met during the stay at the Zoological Ganlens 

 for the purjiose of organizing. It voted to adopt the (jAiiOENKHS" 

 CiiroNKLE OF Amkistca as the oHicia! organ ol the association in 

 place of the iniblication hereloforc represtnting it. 



Following the binchi'on the party re-entered the antomoliilcs 

 and, pa.ssing man.v of the smaller parks and )ilaygrouiuls of New 

 York City, proceeded to Brooklyn and Prospect Park, .\fter 

 stopping at several points of interest in Brooklyn's famous park, 

 they continued by way of the Eastern I'arkway to Coney Island. 

 where the evening was spent visiting the various plaivs of amuse- 

 ment. This concluded the 1!)14 conventoin. one of the most suc- 

 cessful in tlie hislorv of I hi' assiici;ition. 



CONVENTION OF .VMERKW.N ASSi H lATK IX OF 



PARK SrPKRI.NTK.VIlF.NT.S. .\T ZOOI.dGIC.XL CVRDKNS. NEW -SOKK CITY. N. Y. 



