Glen Echo Par

They set out to help common people become more educated. They also wanted to give them a chance to enjoy nature the way that wealthier Americans could. Their work was part of a larger movement at that time toward religious faith among Americans.

Anne Finnegan McGrath of Pennsylvania grew up in Washington. As a child, she rode the carousel and swam in the Crystal Pool. As a young mother, she took her kids to the Adventure Theatre. Now, as a senior citizen, she has performed Irish dancing at folk festivals at Glen Echo. She says the park fills her with happy memories.

In nineteen-seventy the federal government bought the Glen Echo land. The government wanted to limit development near the Potomac River. People who lived nearby wanted to keep the carousel on the property. In just four weeks they raised enough money to buy it back from its new owner. They also raised money for the Wurlitzer organ that gave the carousel its music.

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Then they gave the carousel and the organ to the National Park Service, under an agreement to keep them in the park for public use. In the nineteen-eighties, an artist began work to return the merry-go-round to its former condition. Carousel riders and other people gave money for the repairs. Full restoration of the Dentzel Carousel was completed about a year ago.

People also came to paint and make crafts, to sing and dance, and to hear music. Some came just to sit and think in the beauty of the land by the Potomac River.

One of the most historic places to visit is the home of Clara Barton. She established the American Red Cross in eighteen-eighty-one. Clara Barton lived the last fifteen years of her life in a big house at Glen Echo.

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Lawan Davis. I'm Steve Ember.

Now, suppose we take a ride. As we go around, we hear the music of the Wurlitzer. Only ten carousel organs like this one are known to exist in the world. Some of the instruments we hear are unusual, like the glockenspiel and flageolet.

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In nineteen-fifty-five, the park was sold to a new owner. People kept coming.

Children sit on the floor and watch. Parents can sit on benches. Some people who came as children now bring their own children.

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Bigger changes were also taking place, though. Theme parks were opening around the United States. Families could now go to places like Disneyland in California. The little park near the Potomac River in Maryland no longer seemed so exciting.

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Glen Echo Park has less than four hectares of land but much history. In fact, more than one-hundred years ago, some people came here to learn about history. Others came to learn about the stars in the sky.

But then a teacher at the park developed a lung infection. He died of pneumonia. Somehow a story spread around Washington that he died of malaria. Malaria is spread by mosquito bites. People became afraid to go to the park.

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Another popular part of Glen Echo is the Adventure Theatre. In July and August, the theater will perform "The Adventures of Paddington Bear." There are also acting classes. The teachers say that here, "stories become plays and people become actors."

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Before long, Glen Echo Park added other activities. There was a roller coaster ride. And the Crystal Pool could hold up to three-thousand swimmers.

For the next five years, traveling shows entertained at the park. Then the Baltzley brothers let a small amusement park operate on part of the land.

The official Chautauqua closed in the summer of eighteen-ninety-two, a year after it opened.

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And I'm Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

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