A Walk in the Park: The History of Waterloo Park
a virtual exhibit
In the 19th Century, Ontario adopted the public parks movement that saw parks as a retreat from city life. Soon enough, Waterloo sought its own park escape. In December of 1890, the Village of Waterloo acquired the 65-acre Jacob Eby farm to create its first park named West Side Park. The site would undergo many changes to become the park we know today as Waterloo Park.
Waterloo Park is located on the Haldimand Tract, land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. This is the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. The purchase of the land that would become Waterloo Park was conducted without consultation with these peoples or acknowledging this treaty.
Today, Waterloo Park is subject to the enduring presence and deep traditional knowledge, laws, and philosophies of the Indigenous Peoples with whom we all share this land today.
The Creation of Waterloo Park
Waterloo Council established a special Park Committee on July 9, 1890. The council put forth three proposals to build parks on the Mount Hope Cemetery site, the Fair Grounds, and the Jacob Eby Farm.
On August 4, the Eby farm site was chosen. On September 1 the town council officially approved bylaw #110, allowing for the sale of the land. In December of that year, the farm was purchased from Jacob Eby’s widow, Elizabeth, at 75 dollars per acre.
Park Plan
In 1891, the Waterloo Park Board of Management hired Leader Lain Chamber, a Toronto engineer, to assist with the design of the park. Work began in July, and by October a crew had moved approximately 8,600 loads of earth from the area now called the Oval.
Chamber’s original concepts included an athletic field, tennis courts, pavilion, lily pond, and private garden. Unfortunately, his plans for a half-mile race track, horse show arena, pergola, and out-of-the-way paths were never completed.
Waterloo Park, 1895. Source: Special Collections, University of Waterloo Library
Men mowing Waterloo Park grounds, 1900. Source: University of Waterloo Library, Kitchener Waterloo Record Photographic Negative Collection, July 23, 1966
The Landscaping of Waterloo Park
The site chosen for Waterloo Park was an underdeveloped rough looking farm. Creating parkland out of farmland required extensive landscaping, so 2,000 maple, elm, and basswood trees were planted in 1891. These trees would create shaded picnic areas, walkways, and drives.
Here, Andrew McIntyre (right), the park’s superintendent from 1891-1906, is hand-mowing park grounds with his son.
Pipes were laid for lawn watering in 1893 and six years later a greenhouse was added. The greenhouse provided flowers and plants for park gardens. A lily pond was created in 1917 and a rock garden was put in place in 1932.
Here, Ruth and Clarence Bohlender stand near a flowerbed in Waterloo Park. The concession stand can be seen in the background.
Rustic Gate Entrance, 1909. Source: City of Waterloo Museum
Waterloo Park Postcard of Iron Gate, 1905. Source: Dave and Sandy Moore
Entrance Gates
In 1909, this rustic gateway was added to the west side entrance to the park. This location is approximately where the Seagram Drive entrance is today.
To mark the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, a memorial gateway was erected at the Young Street entrance to the park. Featuring limestone and brick pillars, iron gates and a wrought iron arch topped with electric globe lights, the $1,200 cost was raised by voluntary public subscriptions. The width of the gates eventually proved limiting and in 1936, the main gateway was used as an entrance only. In 1957, the gateway was removed to provide better vehicle access to the park. The gateway found a new home at a private residence at Paradise Lake until 1994, when the City of Waterloo purchased the iconic gateway once more. The metal archway was refurbished and reinstalled as the pedestrian entrance on Father David Bauer Drive.
Opening the Park
Waterloo Park officially opened on August 7, 1893. The celebration was a roaring success with bicycle races and baseball matches between Galt and Guelph. Both Berlin (now Kitchener) and Waterloo celebrated the opening with the support of their musical societies. A live concert by the combined bands and a display of fireworks capped off the night.
Features of Waterloo Park
This promotional booklet praised the amenities offered by Waterloo Park. Among others, the park’s beautiful gardens, picnic grounds, bandstand and playgrounds were listed to lure visitors to Waterloo Park.
Silver Lake
Silver Lake began as a water source to power Mennonite settler Abraham Erb’s grist mill. When Waterloo Park was created, the owner of the millpond, William Snider, permitted public use of his property. The lake continued to be a popular location for year-round recreational and business activities after it was sold to the Town of Waterloo in 1917.
Here, Lorraine Ritzer poses for a photograph near Silver Lake. When it was thought to obstruct the view, the boathouse in the background was moved across the ice to this partially-hidden location.
Boating in Silver Lake postcard, 1906. Source: rych mills
Fishing on Silver Lake, around 1913. Source: City of Waterloo Museum
Here, a leisurely boat ride takes place in Waterloo Park. In the background are Adolph and Hillyard Knauff and Olive and Clayton Ritzer.
Fishing in Silver Lake was excellent in 1891, with carp, catfish, and the occasional speckled trout attracting anglers to the park. In 1926, one hundred black bass fish were introduced and the lake was closed to fishing for three years.
The Grandstand
Shortly after opening, a grandstand was added to the park for organized activities at the Oval. In 1895, the track hosted over 10,000 visitors at the Canadian Wheelman’s Association Championship cycling races. It was built by a private group of citizens and provided seating for spectators of cycling, horse racing, and other competitions. The grandstand was demolished in 1953, but evidence of the Oval and its former terraced hillside remain today.
Bandshell
A small round bandstand was among the first structures built in the park in the early 1890s. In 1920, the Seagram family, in memory of local distiller Joseph E. Seagram, donated an elaborate, open-style bandshell. Located on the hillside overlooking Silver Lake, it was painted black and yellow, the racing colours of Joseph E. Seagram’s stables. It continued to serve as a focal point in the Park until it was torn down in 1951.
1820 Log Cabin
Waterloo’s first schoolhouse was built in 1820 and served as a school for 23 years. Originally on Church Street (now Central Street), it was replaced by Central School. In 1842, it was moved to an area between Waterloo and Berlin (Kitchener) called Greenbush, next to the current Kitchener Collegiate Institute.
The importance of the schoolhouse goes beyond education. Levi Carroll, a freedom seeker, bought the land on King Street in 1860 which included the schoolhouse where he had been living for 17 years. Born into enslavement in Maryland (USA), Levi came to Canada via the Underground Railroad where his wife Lucretia and young son Charles, joined him. It was home for his second wife Margaret, and her children, and served as a place for friends seeking temporary shelter. In 1891, Levi sold his land to the school board but continued to live in the log house for another two years.
Situated in Waterloo Park since 1894, it is the oldest remaining log schoolhouse in the Province of Ontario and stands as a tribute to the legacy of education and local Black history.
Cannons
Cannons have been a feature of Waterloo Park since 1895 when A.R. Dickey, Deputy Minister of Militia and Defense, presented the park with a large 1846 military gun. A German gun was donated to the town in 1920 and placed near the bandstand. Six years later it was given back to Town Council to be used in the development of a Memorial Park.
The “baby” cannon is legendary. This cannon was cast at Jacob Bricker’s local foundry to celebrate Waterloo’s incorporation as a town in 1876. This ceremonial cannon was used to fire a 21-gun salute on May 24, Her Majesty Queen Victoria’s birthday. The salute was halted after the cannon fired early and killed a man watching the proceedings. In another incident, the cannon’s battering ram struck the Seagram Distillery on Erb Street. The cannon was removed to Waterloo Park around 1900.
The Pavilion
The former barn of the Jacob Eby farm was dismantled in 1897 and a pavilion, designed by Charles Moogk, the Town’s first engineer, was erected at a cost of $1,721. Overlooking Silver Lake, it provided shelter for picnickers and was a popular location for social gatherings, music competitions and evening dances. The pavilion was demolished in 1972 and replaced by a circular flower garden.
In 1899, a greenhouse was added to the side of the Pavilion to grow the numerous flowers and plants needed, all from seedlings. Surplus plants were sold to the public to help with park expenses. From 1923-1951, Park Superintendent George Coltart skilfully created beautiful vibrant flower gardens throughout the park. The greenhouse was demolished in 1972.
Man with Dear, 1965. Source: Special Collections, University of Waterloo Library
Waterloo Park Zoo, 1975. Source: City of Waterloo Museum
The Zoo
In 1964, a wildlife display was constructed in a former picnic area of the park by the Waterloo Lions club. Five deer were the first residents, followed by this fawn and a pair of elk the next year. The display was later known as “Waterloo Park Zoo” as it took in more exotic animals like black bears, cougars, flamingoes, and timbre wolves.
Following criticisms of the zoo’s care for these animals, they shifted to housing more domesticated critters in 1990. The name was then changed to the Eby Farmstead. Today, the Eby Farmstead features miniature horses, donkeys, alpacas, llamas, peacocks, guinea fowl, chickens, and turkeys.
Memories from Waterloo Park
“Each year my family goes to the ‘Wonders of Winter’ light festival held in Waterloo Park. The many light displays make the park look magical at night. This is a picture I drew of Cinderella’s pumpkin in lights this winter.”
- Harrison Blain (6 yrs. old)
City Celebrations
In 1948, Waterloo Park was the site for Cityhood festivities celebrating Waterloo’s achieving city status. On June 11, 1948, 2,000 school children participated in field day competitions. Evening entertainment included a band concert, baby contest, and an exhibition baseball game between the Buffalo Harlem Giants and Waterloo Senior Tigers.
Music in the Park
Since the creation of the park, music has been an integral form of entertainment. Concerts held in the early 1890s featured the Waterloo Musical Society and the 29th Battalion Bands. These events attracted thousands of spectators who would pay a dime to hear “the finest music in the country.”
The Waterloo Band Festival was an annual event held in Waterloo Park on the last Saturday in June from 1932-1940 and 1946-1958. The festival attracted crowds of up to 25,000 to view the competitions, parades, and evening performances that often featured internationally acclaimed bands and soloists.
Picnic in Waterloo Park, 1932. Source: Fetterly Family
Baseball in Waterloo Park, 1948. Source: City of Waterloo Museum
Picnics
Picnickers flocked to the newly opened park to take advantage of its many amenities – including seasonal picnics and family reunions. Here, the Fetterly family enjoys a picnic in the park on May 24, 1932.
Sports
Many sporting events took place in Waterloo Park throughout its history. Sunday afternoons were a popular time for hockey on Silver Lake. Tennis courts were in the park by 1900 and it became associated with the Waterloo Tennis Club by 1967. Baseball was also a popular sport played in Waterloo Park.
: Swimmers in Silver Lake, 1929. Source: City of Waterloo Museum
Toboggan Slide, January 2, 1962. Source: University of Waterloo Library, Kitchener Waterloo Record Photographic Negative Collection
Swimming
Although swimming and bathing in Silver Lake was discouraged, people still went. In the 1930s, improvements were made to the beach area including rafts, diving boards, and platforms. Here, diving platforms can be seen on Silver Lake in 1929. The opening of the Waterloo Lions Club Pool in 1953 put an end to swimming in the lake.
Tobogganing
A toboggan slide opened in Waterloo Park the evening of January 9, 1926. Located in front of the greenhouses, the sixth of a mile run sped tobogganers out onto Silver Lake. By the 1950s, the toboggan slide exited onto the park Oval. A toboggan slide continued to be a popular winter attraction in the park until the early 1980s.
