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ASHLAND HISTORY History book marks centenary of Lithia Park dedication Comment By John Darling For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 5:13 PM Updated Apr 26, 2016 at 3:29 PM By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 5:13 PM Updated Apr 26, 2016 at 3:29 PM » Social News A hundred years ago, Lithia Park was created out of the imagination and political will of 60 members of the Ashland Women’s Civic Improvement Club — overcoming powerful town forces who wanted to make it a private commercial resort. The women organized the town behind a public vote in 1908, but weren’t allowed to vote in the election, as women didn’t get the vote in Oregon till 1912. The proposal took over the land around the old Chautauqua dome, created a tax levy to expand and maintain the park and founded the city’s Parks Commission to run that and other parks. These and other little-known currents of history will be spelled out for the park centennial in a new book, “Lithia Park: The Heart and Soul of Ashland,” being written by John Enders, former editor of the Daily Tidings and former executive director of the Southern Oregon Historical Society. Enders’ great-grandfather, Henry G. Enders was on the first Parks Commission, which marched in tune with Europe’s “City Beautiful” movement, seeking to make parks “not just pretty spaces to look at but alive, interactive refuges to enhance life for everyone.” The new commission in 1914 spent serious money to hire John McLaren, the architect of famed Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, to lay the foundation for Lithia Park — (the women at first wanted it called “Mother’s Park”) — making it “one of the most beautiful parks in the West.” The park begun where the giant Ashland Mills once stood, was inaugurated in a massive, three-day celebration, attended by 50,000 people, notes Enders. It included the installation of the then-stunning fountain bought from the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. Now grown to 93-acres as it spread up Ashland Creek Canyon, the park will be honored in the city’s Fourth of July parade, 100 years to the day after its dedication. Enders’ lavishly illustrated, coffee-table type book, a product of the Ashland Parks Foundation, will be published Oct. 1. The foundation is half-way to its funding goal to produce the book and invites contributions by mail (Ashland Parks Foundation, 340 S. Pioneer Street, Ashland OR 97520), in person at 340 S. Pioneer St., or online at www.ashlandparksfoundation.com/Page.asp?NavID=21 . The park was overseen for decades by city Parks & Recreation director Chet Corry, who helped bring in native as well as countless exotic species of trees, and was a disciple of both McLaren and Frederick Law Olmsted, the designer of New York’s Central Park, says Enders. The book will track his feats, as well as devastating floods of 1964, 1974 and 1997, each of which led to new creative visions, as well as attempts to contain and channel the gushings of the normally tame creek. It features many historic photos from the Terry Skibby collection, along with modern shots. “There is not a person in this area who knows Lithia Park and has not had a special connection with it,” mused Enders in a relaxing moment at the fountain. “It’s a little place of peace and respite in an otherwise crazy world. Those who are fortunate enough to use it regularly know that people come here from all over to hike, relax and tour it. It’s one of the most used parks in the state. The high school graduation is always a stunning event to watch here.” The park is unique, he adds, in that it starts in a downtown center, takes you through recreation spots, such as duck ponds, playgrounds, the band shell and Enders Memorial Shelter (built by his ancestor), then leads you further up the canyon into wilderness. The attempt to shift the park into private ownership as a resort was the vision of Bert Greer, then editor of the Daily Tidings, but Enders’ great-grandfather Henry G. Enders, a rancher and town merchant, was involved in the fight to keep it on track as a park, he says. (This paragraph has been changed to correct Enders' first name and the characterization of his participation in the fight to save the park.) The once-signature swans in the lower duck pond, he notes, were the gift of Jesse Winburn, namesake of the street going through the park and millionaire inventor of advertising on New York subway and bus cars. The birds became the symbol of Oregon Shakespeare Festival, but after one was killed by a dog, the surviving bird was given to a new home. (This paragraph has been updated to accurately reflect the fate of the birds.) “This canyon is sacred and special, not just in white history but going back into Shasta Indian occupation for thousands of years," says Enders. "History didn’t start here in 1852. Many people were removed (to a coastal reservation). They cooked with this water and hunted these hills. Chapter One is about them.” John Darling is an Ashland freelance writer. Reach him at [email protected]. By John Darling For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 5:13 PM Updated Apr 26, 2016 at 3:29 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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