Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-08-29
8 Fairgrounds
/, IN COMPETITION
5000 Children Vie for Hon
ors in Branch Brook
Park Games.
DANCES, RUNNING AND
DRILLS ARE FEATURES
Rain obIigingIy Stays Away at
Commissions Great Annual
Field Event.

Three thousand boys and girls, rep
%resenting eight different county parks.
are competing this afternoon at
Branch Park in the annual field day
of the Essex county park system OF
Fairgrounds. The contestants come
from East Side, West Side. River
Bank, Branch Brook. Watsessing,
Orange, Glenfeld and Irvington parks
The program consists principally of
drills for the boys and dances by
the girls, with several running
matches for both. Owing to the
length of the program the games
started promptly ats2 o'clock.
The folk dances, which are one of
the principal features of the play
ground work. have steadily increased
In popularity. this being particularly
true of the Scotch dances. A special
feature has been made in encourage
ing children of foreign parents to
lance the national dances familiar to
their parents, and this has not only
cultivated a taste for some pretty
dances, but has also aroused the in
terest of the fathers and mothers in
a way that the execution of American
udtCrS tOulA BCFti nave uolt- AL
exceedingly helpful and valuable
service has in this way been done in
leading the parents of foreign birth to
feel more at home in their adopted
land.
TaranteIla Is Popular.
The children in the vicinity of
Branch Brook. Park, principally of
Italian parentage, like to dance the
tarantella, which is one of the dances
that always draw out a large attend
ance of parents. Among the folk
dances taught to the children are
Swedish. Scotch. Dutch, Russian,
Hungarian and Spanish.
This season a great deal Of mex
pensive material for costumes has
been given to the children, and the
mothers have come forward and as
sisted in the making of the head
dress and other attire worn in the
dances of the motherland, while both
father and mother always turn out
to see the children take part in the
old familiar dances.
The park Fairgrounds have a field
Of usefulness Of their own which sup
PIGMENTS that of the school play
grounds. They have more ample open
air facilities than the school grounds
and can provide for larger gather
ings. All of the parks, especially the
smaller ones also serve as a neigh
borhood centre to a wider extent than
the average public school can do.
The playground system is carried
out for six months each year, from
May ] to November 1. and the
grounds are open daily when school
is in session from~3 to s p. m. and
on Saturdays from 10 to 6. During
the school vacations they are open
each weekday from 10 to 6.
Each Park Has Two Teachers.
David I. Kelley has supervision OF
the Fairgrounds and playfelds for
all of the coHnty parks and has under
him two division leaders, Leroy C.
wilsey, assistant director, and Miss
Gladys Pomeror, who is in general
charge of the dances. There are
seventeen other teachers, nine men
and eight wbmen. and ten assistants.
who arc divided among the system,
two to each park.
All who participate in the games
will receive gold souvenir medals.
Silver and bronze medals will be
awarded in all athletic events to those
who finish first and second in the
finals.
The playground scoring the highest
number of points will receive a huge
pennant.