Changes at Bacon Woods Reservation – July 1962

The Vermilion River Reservation – consisting of Mill Hollow and Bacon Woods – was the very first Lorain County Metro Park, having opened in 1960. 

Many of us remember how the park was in its early days. The article below, which appeared in the Journal on July 26, 1962, notes some of the changes taking place at that time that helped to make the park a favorite of many Lorain County residents.

As the article notes, "Quite a few changes have taken place at the Bacon Woods Reservation of the Lorain County Metropolitan Park District in the former Mill Hollow area during the last three months.

"The major change has been the addition of 12 camp sites at the southwest end of the park and a camp fire circle which makes an excellent family camping area. A camp site may be reserved for overnight, a week, several days or a weekend by making an application to the Elyria park's office.

"Two concrete block toilet buildings have been constructed; one next to the main picnic area and the other near the camping area.

"Other new additions to the park include a flag pole and large outdoor pen housing a peacock, a pea hen, a white pheasant, a duck, a sheep, and a female white-tailed deer.

"The barn and the old historic house have been cleaned out, with the barn to serve as a temporary shelter and the house to used in establishing a historical museum. 

"Plans to be completed in the near future include the erection of one or more large picnic shelters in the present park; building a new road into the undeveloped area north of the bridge (this has already been staked out); the maintenance buildings are being moved to the top of the hill off Vermilion Rd. and the building of a parking lot next to Vermilion Rd., which will serve a new picnic area and a museum building.

"The Nature Center at Bacon Woods has been in existence for some time and is still growing. It houses a collection of bird and animal mounts, mostly gifts from Jack Sparks and Bud Schue, and other natural history items.

"The most popular attraction in the park is the live animal collection."

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The Vermilion River Reservation is my favorite park – it's a real gem. And it's the first place that the Bradys ever camped in the early 1960s.

I've done several posts about Mill Hollow and Bacon Woods, including this one about a 1931 motorcycle hill climb at the park; this one about some of the Hialeah Tourist Cabins ending up at the park in 1960; this one about a badger being added to the park's live animal collection in 1963; this one about a new bridge into the park in 1964;  and this post with a photo of campers set up near the duck pond in 1969;