Evening star., 1938-10-23

VI easy CHalIS Wnere women may knit
and men smoke their pipes.
1t was January 2, 1887, that laborers
began the task Of razing the Sixteenth
Street or Middle" Reservoir. From
1900 to 1927 that reservoir had served
residents OF the vicinity with IL, ,OOO, 900
gallons OF water each day-a lot of
water for a lot Of people. Then it
went dry. For 10 years it sat idle in
the sun OF summer and the snow and
sleet Of winter-and became merely
an eyesore.
Ghosts Of the past must have risen
up and looked over that area from
time to time and wondered why some
thing was not done about it. The very
ground there was eloquent with stories
OF the past. Through it once coursed
that old Milk House Ford road. Over
this muddy turnpike marched the
rugged and ragged United States
troops in 1914 to battle the British
at Bladensburg.
In Civil War days the property now
known as Rock Creek Park, including
the reservoir site, was owned by Pierce
Shoemaker. Over his land each day
10 and II teams, and a number of
boys on horseback, brought grist from
the surrounding countryside to Pierce
Mill, west Of the creek.
About TOO feet northeast of the
former reservoir was the ancient
Brightwood or Crystal Springs Trot-
ting Course. The track was laid out
IN 1859. 1t was to Washington in
those days what Pimlico and Laurel
and Bowie are today-gathering places
OF those who liked to watch the bang
tails. Though they didn't call 'em
that in those times. Out to Brightwood
went the lovely ladies and gentlemen
VINO made up Washingtons official
families-and every now and then one
OF the gentry went down to the pad
dock and whispered to horse, coming
back with some inside dope.
That the reservoir was part and
parcel of the race track is shown by
old prints. They disgorge the knowl-
edge that the area just developed by
the Works Progress Administration
and which now goes into the keep
ing of the National Capital Parks sys-
tenn housed some of the stables the
outbuildings, and a few small drink
ing concessions that belonged to the
original race track property. Men
are still alive who went out there, as
small boys, to watch the ponies run
though few there are who made bets
as long ago as SO years.
The race track went out of business
long ago. 1t was in 1899 that this site
was turned over to the Water De-
partment for the construction of
reservoir with capacity of 30,000,00
gallons of pure Potomac River wa
ter-after filtration. When the con-
struction began, in 1900, the old out
buildings and stables that once flew
the flags Of the Brightwood racing
fraternity were razed-but even with
that demolition the trotting track con-
tinued as such until 1904. Not SO
far back that many will forget
Final dissolution of the reservoir as
a reservoir came in December, 1927,
after 81 years Of trustworthy service,
when the Dalecarlia Reservoir and
filtration system was completed on
Conduit road. The Middle" Reser-
voir then was drained Unused for
decade. the reservoirs concrete bat
Elements were just so much wasted
space until the District Works Prog
ress Administration undertook to tul
the empty moat into a l4-acre trac
of beautiful landscape. 1t can be sec
now in full bloom of its autumnal glo,
IRON any approach, either out Siy
teenth street, through the park l..
Military road from Chevy Chase,
from the north over that remodeleo
Milk House Ford road, a name thai
conJures up many memories for the
boys and girls of another day who
once trod its dusty surface to the
Brightwood School.
AS the fellows down at w. P. A. like
to, tell about it, with the Honorable
William Peake in the chair, they set
200 men to do the work, which was
to transform yawning cavern of
concrete into a green-bedecked sur
face as pretty as the smooth top of a
billiard table.
So the record runs: From green
wilderness in 1914 to q stable site in
1865-1899, then to a modern reservoir
IN 1sO0-l927. and now back to a
green surface for recreational DUR
poses. BY roundabout fashion it comes
again to the green of the forest from
which 1t sprang. Nor is that all. II
Will emerge some day, and soon, as
this grand recreational center to at
tract not only Wasingtenians. but
even visitors who want to see lust
how the National Capital does things
in the artistic manner.
Graded and all ready for the final
touches, the site will certainly not
be what many of the old residents
In that vicinity feared-a magnet to
draw undesirables. Instead, if all the
plans are worked out, as they now
tend to show, it will be a place where
rogue courts will prevail-and in case
you do not know what a rogue court
is. well, one of those glorified croouet
courts. Yes, sir, they are going to
play rogue out there on the old site
OF the reservoir. And volley ball, and
tennis. Those courts are already
erected. There will be baseball dia-
mond or two, and perhaps a football
field-for the younger boys-and that
field house.
Now, to keep drivers down Sixteenth
street from being distracted by all
this activity. as they pass on their
way to and from work, the National
Park people are going to build a fine
embankment, such as they have in
London-with trees and beautiful
shrubbery to hide the sight Of men
and boys and girls and women in
sports clothes.
Just by freak, this site missed
becoming race track again when,
in 1916, there was a move to build
a municipal racecourse next to the
plant. District Commissioner Melv1.
C. Hazen, then District surveyor, was
the designer. In 1927 a park in the
area was proposed in a letter to Col.