00
1 N TIY
Feu; Americana remember Joseph Lee,
but largely through hi efforts
our children enjoy
a Place
to Play
by Kevin V. Brown
i ' La-''
Play is serious work," Joseph Lee once remarked
Lee spent most of his life. Including 27 y-ar as president
of the National Recreation Association, proving it
You could hardly find a more unlikely candidate. Tall
and frail and singularly unsuccessful in athletics, he nev
ertheless participated in all of them. Thojjgh he came from
a wealthy Massachusetts family, his lifelong Interest was
giving underprivileged children a chance to participate, too.
Next Friday, in playgrounds across the nation, de
scendants of those children will salute "the godfather of
playgrounds" on the 20th anniversary of his death. As the
eulogies are read, they will stand amid the splendor of
modern recreational facilities and landscaped parks.
But there was little splendor when Lee began his task
of finding children a place to play more than SO years sgo.
Lee was one of the founders of the Recreation Associa
tion in 1906, and in 1910 he became its president, a post he
held until his death. In those early years the association
was lucky to beg or borrow 30 square feet of vacant lot for
a playground. The children played in dust, gravel, and
cinders; abrasions and skinned knees were the fees they
paid. Their recreation consisted of drills, songs, and
marches around the play area. There was little else to do
on a bare lot And there were few recreational leaders, no
schools or colleges to train them.
There was some progress, however. In 1907 it was noted
that "another gain has been made . . . the crowds of rough
boys who used to gather at the outskirts of the play yard
have greatly diminished and fewer appeals have to be made
to the police department"
The idea, through Lee's efforts, caught on. In 1906 there
were 41 cities with playgrounds Today there are 20.000.
And in most of them, instead of 30 square feet for playing
areas, the recommendation is for five acres for each school
district and up to 20 acres for each community.
There are large outdoor fields, and large indoor gyms;
there are expansive swimming pools, and lights for games
after dark. There are 65 schools in 27 states that train
recreational leaders, and instead of the handful of leaders
of 50 years ago, there are now 76,000.
The ideals of Joseph Lee were not summed up in sta
tistics, however, and they are still being carried on in
playgrounds across the nation.
As Lee himself once put it, "There is less need on the
playground for teaching baseball than there is for teaching
high moral character."
WW
Joteph Lm'i achievement wat tupplantinq back-alley play
raat of World War I era (inset) with modern play
grounds Me the ipeciout Detroit beach center (below).
,
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1
Farti !. Sola II. Isr
THIS
TO AVO
MfGUUUtfTY ON
fOUR VACATION TRIP
Take alone a bos of Kal-
loci's All-Braa. Eat a
ring (H cup) with milk
vary morning. This fives
you all the natural laxa
tive bulk you nsed daily
to keep oa schedule. Deli
cious, inexpensive, rendy-to-eat
Keilocf's All Bra a.
Also available ia the alu
minum foil "Individual"
packagea at restaurants
along the way.
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