Description
This playground on the edge of Forest Park in Queens is named after Glendale’s original name: Dry Harbor. The NYC Parks site explains that it was “constructed in 1934 with swings, see-saws, a wavy slide, a flagpole, and a schoolyard gymnasium.” A June 1936 press release also announced the completion of the reconstruction of an area in this playground to contain “a wading pool, complete equipment for small children and a play area with a soft ball diamond and horseshoe pitching court for boys,” and in December 1936 Parks announced the completion of the second half of the remodeled playground designed for girls, including “horizontal bars and ladders, shuffle board and basket ball courts and a large play area for group games.”
Although the 1936 press release does not mention the WPA or other New Deal agencies, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that almost all New York City Parks Department projects between 1934 and 1943 were carried out with New Deal funds and/or labor, and that after April 1935, the WPA quickly became the main source of this support.
The playground was further renovated in 1983.
Source notes
Department of Parks, Press Release, June 12, 1936 Department of Parks, Press Release, December 30, 1936 NYC Parks - Forest Park New York City Parks Department New Deal Projects 1934-43
Project originally submitted by Frank da Cruz on October 4, 2016.
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