Source:Riverview-park-in-great-demand
"Riverview park in great demand: McIlvain making preparations for season in Allegheny City's pleasure ground: Many picnics scheduled." Pittsburgh Gazette, Apr. 4, 1904, [p. 3]. Newspapers.com 86226362.
Director Edward J. McIlvain of the Allegheny department of public works announced last night that, although the picnic season is still a month or more away, practically every date for Riverview park during the coming summer is already taken. The director will also endeavor to have Riverview park decided upon for the holding of the annual school jubilee.
Immediately after taking office, the director conceived the idea of exploiting the beauties of the big playground and its adaptability for picnics and large public gatherings during the summer. With this end in view he arranged special outing days for the different schools, advertised the weekly band concerts extensively and made improvements in the park.
During the entire season he kept the necessity of erecting shelter houses before the North Side people constantly. The results were even better than he had anticipated. Sufficient money was raised by public subscription to pay for two shelter houses, and the erection of these will be started within the next few weeks.
The director has delayed the construction for a short time to allow the making of new roads through Kilbuck and Wissahickon hollows and the completion of other improvements now under way. H. J. Heinz has also agreed to erect a new steel revolving band stand.
The director's methods of booming the park were so successful that applications for picnic dates began to come in before the first of the year. Many of the Allegheny churches and schools will hold their annual outings in the park and requests for dates have also been received from religious and social organizations outside of the city.
At present Director McIlvain is after the school jubilee. For years it has been the custom to hold this festival in West park, but there is complaint annually about the lack of room for the 15,000 children and their parents and friends who gather for the occasion. It is is [sic] expected that the board of school controllers will take action favoring Riverview park at its next meeting, which will be held the 18th of this month.
Director McIlvain is also urging upon Mayor Wyman the advantages of holding the Fourth of July fireworks display in Riverview, where the people can watch the pyrotechnics without crowding and where there would be no danger from passing trains, as is the case when the celebration is held on Monument hill.
