Home Care In Glen Echo, MD

Article from the proceedings from Are We There Yet? Preserving Roadside Architecture and Attractions, April 10-12, 2018, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Watch a non-audio described version of the presentation on YouTube.

Echoes of American Culture: Glen Echo Park

by: MJ Wojewodzki and Anath Ranon of Cho Benn Holback + Associates

Abstract

This paper focuses on the stories and restoration of the Chautauqua Tower, Yellow Barn and Dentzel Carousel at Glen Echo Park in Maryland. During the restoration and renovation planning, the needs of the artist tenants and park activity coordinators were paramount. Each structure was carefully surveyed and assessed for reuse. Some required surface restoration while others required total reconstruction. The challenge was bringing these interests into a space steeped in history, making it fun to visit, and ready for new adventures.

Glen Echo Park

In 2003, the Glen Echo Park Partnership hired Cho Benn Holback + Associates restore the remains of an amusement park in Bethesda, Maryland. Though the amusement park closed in 1968, and some of the structures were vacant and threatening collapse, it was still a popular destination. Some buildings were taken over by local artists who were in need of studio space. Regular social dances were still held in the amusement park’s Spanish Ballroom. A pottery collective set up yurts where the infamous Coaster Dip used to stand. A children’s theater group was sandwiched in between the remains of a carnival shooting gallery and boarded-up carny game counters. In the midst of this, the National Park Service was hard at work salvaging cultural artifacts from the site. The amusement park buildings were constructed in the late 1800s and into the mid-20th century. Built similar to stage sets, they provided a temporary escape from routine city life. Durability and building codes were not considered. Underlying these shallow structures were rustic stone walls, ruins from an older past, most visible as a cylindrical stone tower marking the entry to the park. These walls are ghosts from the Chautauqua retreat that was originally developed in 1891. At first glance, it was an odd contrast of aesthetics. On further study, one sees a reflection of American culture from the Gilded Age to the present.

In 1888, twin brothers who invented the egg beater used the earnings from their invention to develop the site as a retreat from urban life based on the ideas of the popular Chautauqua Society in New York. The park offered visitors a vacation in nature paired with cultural events such as lectures, art classes, and concerts. It was summer camp for the whole family. To encourage patrons, the brothers worked a deal to bring a railway line to the park from downtown Washington, D.C. The first year was a grand success. As the economy changed, so did expectations of leisure activities. Attractions such as a bowling alley, shooting gallery, and pony track were added. While its importance as a Chautauqua Society site waned, Glen Echo Park established a reputation as an amusement part.

Easy access to the electricity and public transportation helped Glen Echo’s transformation into a highly popular amusement park. By 1904, electric rides like a carousel, the Gyroplane, and a roller coaster were added. The park installed its centerpiece Denztel Carousel in 1921. This ride and the Coaster Dip roller coaster cemented the popularity of the park well into the mid-20th century. The park grew increasingly popular during the Great Depression and multiple rides were added. New attractions were built on the foundations of the Chautauqua buildings. The 6,000 seat Chautauqua amphitheater was transformed into the Crystal Pool with a sand beach and diving platform. What was originally a fountain was used as the base for the Airplane Swing.

By the 1960s larger regional amusement parks and social change took a toll on the amusement park. Nationally advertising parks like Disneyland put many small parks out of business. Glen Echo held out longer than most. The Carousel was the site of a “Ride-In” protest against segregation. The demonstration was successful and the park was integrated in 1961. However, that same season trolley service from Washington DC was shut down. Crowd control and maintenance problems lead the Park to limiting ticket sales by the mid-1960s. 1968 was the last season as an Amusement Park. In 1970, the National Park Service acquired the site and reopened it as an arts park in 1971.

The goal of our project with the Glen Echo Park Partnership (GEPP) was to restore structures in the park to the 1950s amusement park era. The Carousel was first on the list. The carousel is a “menagerie” style because it has a wide variety of animals on the platform. In the 1980s, the National Park Service (NPS) began restoring the animals’ original patterns and colors, which is a story in and of itself. Fortunately, the animal restoration work was completed in time for the rehabilitation of its pavilion. Our work focused on the shell that houses the carousel, which is equally fantastical. The 12 sided pavilion has a segmented domed roof with clerestory windows, bi-folding doors on 11 sides, and a band organ room on the 12th. The band organ is one of only 12 Wurlitzer organs in the world. Fortunately, one of the only 2-3 people in the world skilled in repairing Wurlitzer organs lives nearby in Baltimore. The scope of repairs included reconstruction of the band organ room, structural repairs and repainting. For budget reasons, reconstruction of the band organ room was put off in favor of the structural repairs and painting of the pavilion roof. The roof is covered in asphalt and painted in elaborate patterns and colors, making it truly iconic. Paint sampling was used to identify the original colors and photographs gave clues to how the colors were used.

We are currently working with the (GEPP) on a new round of renovations to the Carousel which will include rebuilding the band organ room, more structural repair, re-roofing, and repainting the roof and exterior walls.

Next on the agenda was the Chautauqua Tower/Yellow Barn/Candy Corner complex. This collection of structures offers a glimpse of all the historic eras at the park. The Chautauqua Tower is the only intact original structure. The circular structure is built with stone from a quarry just up the Potomac River. Most of the wood casement windows are original. There is speculation the upper floor was originally open air because roofing material was found on the third floor. When we first surveyed the tower, the upper floors were carved up into office spaces and the attic served as storage for some amusement part artifacts. Restoration work included replacing the roof with new cedar shingles, new windows replicating the original wood casements as needed, repairing and refinishing the floors, and opening up the spaces for galleries.

One of the more challenging components was bringing heating and cooling into the building. Originally the building was heated with fireplaces. Baseboard heaters were later installed. We were able to take advantage of the adjacent renovation to the Yellow Barn as a place to house some of the HVAC equipment. Heating and cooling in the tower is now supplied by air handler units in the basement of the Yellow Barn.

The Yellow Barn was originally a different building attached to the Chautauqua Tower. This building burned along with the roof of the tower in a 1914 fire. The existing maintenance building was rebuilt as the Yellow Barn over remnants of the original Chautauqua-era structure. By 2003 the remaining stone wall was leaning toward imminent collapse on its rubble foundations. The wood framing was inadequately designed and weather further weakened the structure. The restoration and some design alterations transformed the maintenance shed to artist’s studios connected to the renovated Chautauqua Tower galleries on the first two levels.

The stones in the walls were numbered and documented for reconstruction. Then excavation began for the new foundations and basement. This is when we found original footings from the Chautauqua gate house complex. Construction halted while NPS reviewed its priorities. Ultimately, we preserved a portion of the wall below the first floor with an access hatch for viewing it. The rest of the wall was removed for construction of the new basement. The path of the wall is represented as an inlay in the new wood floor. The rebuilt Yellow Barn closely resembles the 1950s amusement park era maintenance building with an interior more suited to the current use of the park.

On the south side of the complex, the Candy Corner was rebuilt. The original neon sign was renovated by a local sign company. While the outside looks like a concession stand, the interior space serves as a small classroom for summer programs at the park.

After these buildings were redone we moved on to the Arcade, the Crystal Pool, the Caretaker’s Cottage, and other small structures that tell stories of the park’s history and provide a backdrop for arts and culture today. The park is home to several social dance clubs and theater groups. People travel from all around the region to take art classes and purchase works from the artists. The park hosts several annual festivals. Lectures and music performances are scheduled throughout the year. Every day the park is teeming with children using the playgrounds, participating in nature programs, and riding the Carousel. The vision of the Baltzley twins to bring arts, culture, and learning to families in an idyllic setting lives on at Glen Echo Park.

Bibliography

Richard Cook and Deborah Lange. Glen Echo Park: A Story of Survival. Bethesda Communications Group, 2000. Susan Shufelt – team captain, Harlan D Unrau. “Glen Echo Historical Structure Report.” US Department of the Interior, National Park Services, 1985.

Symposium

You can read other articles from the proceedings of Are We There Yet? Preserving Roadside Architecture and Attractions, April 10-12, 2018, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Or explore other content from the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT).

This week Mayor Jeffrey Slavin of Somerset, MD became the tenth mayor to sign on to Maryland Sierra Club’s “Maryland Mayors for 100% Clean Energy.” Last month Mayor Dia Costello of Glen Echo, MD was the ninth. They join the ranks of mayors of municipalities from the Eastern Shore, Southern Maryland, and Central Maryland.

The “Maryland Mayors for 100% Clean Energy” are a group of mayors who have acknowledged that a just transition to 100% clean and renewable energy will help make communities stronger, healthier, and more resilient; create jobs and new business opportunities; and allow communities around the state and around the world to become a more equitable and give all parts of society the opportunity to benefit from a thriving local economy. They state their intention to continue to work with all stakeholders to transition away from dirty energy and invest in local, affordable solutions like energy efficiency, solar, wind, and pollution-free electric transportation.

Regarding this important step towards energy sustainability, Mayor Costello stated, “Clearly from scientific research and our own observations over the recent years, global warming is a huge concern for us individually, in our town, and community. Renewable energy use by town buildings is one essential component to assist in reducing carbon emissions.”

“As a Montgomery County resident, I’m really proud and inspired to see our municipalities speaking out on the need to transition quickly to renewable energy,” said Sierra Club volunteer leader Laura Espinoza. “I hope they can continue the momentum to move all our municipal and county governments to one hundred percent renewables by 2030.”

In Maryland, action by local governments is already a significant driver of renewable energy growth as towns and cities across the state take critical steps to reduce carbon emissions, clean the air, strengthen the economy, and improve the lives of their residents. Positive, bipartisan, community-driven solutions continue to be key in the drive to build communities that can be sustainable and prosperous while being a positive contribution to the health of their citizens and the world around them.

Kevin Cheung, Chair of the Maryland Sierra Club’s Clean and Renewable Energy Committee, stated, “It’s impossible for us to overstate the necessity of a rapid and just transition to renewable energy and away from fossil fuels. Every mayor that joins in the call to build our renewable future, every town that makes a commitment to buy from renewable energy sources, is a step towards a cleaner, more sustainable future. It is a step towards cleaner air to breathe, a cleaner Chesapeake Bay watershed, better health for all Marylanders, and a more sustainable future for our children.”

I grew up in D.C. and have been curious about Washington’s streetcars all my life — in particular, the line that ran from Georgetown to Cabin John. This line ran directly behind my childhood house: on Sherrier Place NW, near the bridge over Arizona Avenue. When I was old enough, I’d hike the remnants of this line. I’d always regretted being born too late to enjoy this streetcar ride!

I have long been puzzled by how the streetcar line was routed past Dalecarlia Reservoir. Did the streetcar run through the reservoir’s property or around it?

— Leslie Carter, Shepherdstown, W.Va.

“If I could go back in time and ride the streetcar, that would be the one I’d like to ride,” said John DeFerrari, author of 2015’s “Capital Streetcars: Early Mass Transit in Washington, D.C.”

The reason? The experience on the No. 20 route was unlike that of any other streetcar line in Washington. And that’s because of where it went: into the wild.

The Georgetown end of the line was at 36th and Prospect NW. Once out of town, the streetcar entered a tunnel of green. Trees crowded the track bed. The trolley ran along the bluff overlooking the palisades of the Potomac. Several tall trestles carried the rails over stream valleys.

“I rode the line many times, from the time I was 12 years old until they quit running,” said 93-year-old streetcar buff Garth Burleyson of Colesville, Md. “It was strictly rural. When they got out in the country, there was no speed limit. They could sort of let it rip.”

Garth grew up at Sixth and F streets NE, within two blocks of three different streetcar lines. That proximity fostered a love for the trolleys.

The Georgetown-Cabin John route allowed people who lived in that part of Montgomery County to commute into the District for work. But its main claim to fame was its access to the Glen Echo amusement park, built in 1911.

The earliest line to Glen Echo was built in 1891 by Glen Echo Railroad to get to the Chautauqua operated by eggbeater magnates Edward and Edwin Baltzley. It ran from Friendship Heights. After the Chautauqua failed, the Washington & Great Falls Electric Railway incorporated some of the right of way into its new line from Georgetown to Cabin John. (It never made it all the way to Great Falls.)

Getting past the Dalecarlia Reservoir — constructed in the 1850s to hold drinking water from the Potomac before its trip into D.C. — wasn’t a problem. The reservoir grounds were smaller then, pretty much confined to the area east of today’s MacArthur Boulevard. The sedimentation basins west of MacArthur weren’t built until much later.

“It didn’t do any wiggling or running around the Dalecarlia Reservoir,” Garth said.

There was even a stop at the reservoir, said John Shriver, a member of the National Capital Trolley Museum.

The Cabin John line was abandoned in 1960, two years before the District’s entire streetcar system ceased operating — and a year before the segregated amusement park was finally integrated. The tracks were pulled up. Parts of the right of way were sold to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers when the reservoir grounds were enlarged.

There was apparently a certain laxity on this particular line. Garth said that teenage friends of his would sometimes cajole motormen into letting them drive the streetcars into town from Glen Echo late at night.

“It never happened to me,” he said. “I wasn’t that smart or adventurous, I guess.”

A sesame seed is a very small thing, and yet it looms large in Don Rockwell’s memory. Don is desperate to recall the details of a TV commercial he swears he saw around 1970, when he was an 8- or 9-year-old growing up in Silver Spring. Can you help?

“It was a cartoon of these four sesame seeds, dressed up like hippies and playing a rock-and-roll song,” Don wrote.

The song started with “Hey, hey, heeeyyyyy! We’re the sesame seeds!” and the lyrics extolled the seed’s charms.

Don can’t remember all the words, but one line went: “A plain old burger is a lot more fun when it’s [something-something-something] on a sesame bun.”

Don saw the ad on a Washington television station. He doesn’t think the commercial actually advertised a specific product. He suspects it was created by a sesame seed trade organization. It may even have been broadcast only in the Washington area, possibly to influence some sesame seed-centric legislation.

If you remember this ad — or even better, know something about it — drop Answer Man a line. The email address is [email protected].

Contact: Aaron LaRocca, (NPS) 703-289-2508

Contact: Pat Lacefield, (County)

Contact: Bridgett Frey, (Van Hollen) 202-228-0668

Glen Echo, Md. – Glen Echo Park, famous for its carousel, Spanish ballroom, arts programs and Civil Rights history, will be managed cooperatively by the National Park Service (NPS) and Montgomery County for the next 10 years. This successful local-federal partnership benefits the community and protects nationally significant history.

Senator Chris Van Hollen, Glen Echo Mayor Willem Polak, and representatives from the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture gathered in the park today when the NPS and the county signed a cooperative agreement that meets all contemporary laws and policies and ensures that visitors will continue to enjoy the Glen Echo Park they have known and loved for generations.

“This partnership demonstrates how federal and local government can work together to care for places that are important to our communities,” acting National Capital Regional Director Lisa Mendelson-Ielmini said. “We move forward together confident that Glen Echo Park is prepared to host more special memories.”

Since 2002, the county, with the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture, has demonstrated its commitment to high-quality visitor experiences and preserving the park’s historic character.

“Glen Echo is one of Montgomery County’s crown jewels,” said Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett. “With this new agreement, the County looks forward to working with the National Park Service and the Glen Echo Partnership to even further enhance everything that Glen Echo has to offer.”

Under the new agreement, Montgomery County will be responsible for operation, maintenance and day-to-day management of the park. The County will continue to work with the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture to provide public art programs, studio exhibits, performances and social dances, which have been a tradition in Glen Echo Park for more than 120 years.

“Glen Echo Park is a thriving community center with a wide range of classes and events for people of all ages to enjoy, but the future viability of the park was at risk if Montgomery County and the National Park Service were unable to renew their successful partnership,” said Senator Van Hollen. “While we disagree on many issues, I want to thank Department of Interior Secretary Zinke for personally committing to me that we could renew and strengthen the partnership and am very pleased to report that we are officially moving forward to ensure that Glen Echo Park will thrive for years to come.”

Glen Echo Park has delighted its neighbors and visitors over the years. From its origin as a summer resort and education facility, to its time as DC’s premier amusement park, and from its turbulent Civil Rights history to the unique arts and cultural center it is today.

“I am excited for the local community because Glen Echo Park is a unique jewel that will continue to be a cherished educational and cultural asset in Montgomery County thanks to this continuing partnership with the National Park Service,” said Senator Cardin, a senior member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

The park provides fun and educational opportunities for all ages throughout the year.

“I’m very excited about this local-federal partnership to manage this local and national treasure,” said Congressman Jamie Raskin. “Our whole community looks forward to hosting new generations of local, national and international visitors at this gem of a spot.”

For more information and a schedule of events in the park visit www.glenechopark.org.

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About Glen Echo Park: Glen Echo Park is a renowned arts and cultural destination that also preserves the viewshed of the Potomac Gorge and provides a one-of-a-kind experience for visitors. For over a century, the 9.3-acre park has served the region as a center for education, entertainment, and cultural development. The National Park Service has managed Glen Echo Park since 1971 and it officially became part of the National Park System in 1976. Since 2002, the National Park Service has partnered with Montgomery County and Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture to provide public programing and day-to-day management.

Montgomery County residents are holding a neighborhood competition to raise money for Glen Echo Park as part of a year-end campaign.

Mark Hand, Patch Staff

|Updated Wed, Nov 30, 2022 at 3:47 pm ET

GLEN ECHO, MD — Montgomery County residents are helping Glen Echo Park with its year-end fundraising campaign by holding a competition to see which neighborhood can raise the most money for the park.

So far, nearly a dozen neighborhoods are involved in the competition to raise funds for the park. The neighborhoods include the Town of Glen Echo, Bannockburn, Cabin John, Fairway Hills, Glen Echo Heights, Woodacres, Kenwood, Glen Mar Park, Fort Sumner/Sumner, Bannockburn Estates and Tulip Hill.

Barbara Martin, who serves on the board of Glen Echo Park, said a group of volunteers banded together this fall to offer their help to the park's fundraising efforts by launching the neighborhood competition. Members of the group agreed to serve as neighborhood captains for the fundraising competition.

The year-end campaign is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the park and is especially important as the park seeks to regain its footing after dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic for almost three years, Martin said in an email to Patch.

If additional neighborhoods in Montgomery County want to get involved in the Glen Echo Park fundraising campaign, they can contact the park at [email protected]. To donate money to their neighborhood team, residents can select their neighborhood on the main page of the fundraising site, where the different teams are listed.

Find out what's happening in Bethesda-Chevy Chasewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The goal of the fundraising campaign is to raise $105,000 for Glen Echo Park. All donors who give a gift of $100 or more will receive a Glen Echo Park mug. Donors who give a gift of $250 or more will receive a Glen Echo Park picnic blanket and will be recognized in Glen Echo Park’s Classes and Events digital catalog, annual report and website.

The online fundraising campaign site went live Tuesday and had already raised more than $17,000 as of Wednesday afternoon.

The winning neighborhood will receive a day at the park, with carousel rides on the historic Dentzel Carousel, a dedicated area to celebrate the victory, and snacks for the neighborhood.

Glen Echo Park, at 7300 MacArthur Blvd., is owned by the National Park Service, but is funded through grants and donations. The park is managed by the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture in partnership with the National Park Service and Montgomery County.

The park averages more than 350,000 visitors a year. The Dentzel Carousel is the only park ride that remains from when the park operated as the privately owned Glen Echo Amusement Park, which closed in 1968. The National Park Service assumed ownership of the park in 1971.

Glen Echo Park will be kicking off the 2022 holiday season on Saturday, Dec. 3 at its Light Up The Holidays celebration, with a pottery sale, glass-blown ornament making, hot chocolate, Puppet Co. Playhouse performances and the Jazzy Wings & Things food truck.