Summertime is picnic time. There's no better place to take in some nature while grilling up good eats than Monocacy Park.

With its stone pavilions, rushing waterfall, and countless shade trees, the park is one of the most beautiful spots in the entire Lehigh Valley.

But it wasn't always so picture perfect. Before its development, this scenic location along the Monocacy Creek was a heavily thicketed swamp land. Yet there was always something attractive about the area. Long before a single improvement was made, it had been a favored recreation spot for North Bethlehem families.

This is why it's no surprise that not even a sweltering August heat could deter crowds of residents from coming out to take part in the first public function held in the new park.

On Wednesday, Aug. 25, 1937, the Municipal Band entertained an estimated audience of 2,000 in an entirely impromptu concert. Compare this turnout to the 300 or so spectators who saw the band perform the week before.

Special lighting was arranged by city councilman and head of the Parks and Public Property Department, Ario Wear, so that the natural beauty of the place could be appreciated during the evening hours.

The concert itself was quite the novelty inasmuch as the bandstand was erected in the middle of the Monocacy Creek. Under Joseph Ricapito's direction, the band played selections by Suppé, Rubinstein, Sousa and more, all while residents examined and enjoyed the new amenities.

For a good many years before this, Bethlehem was without an adequate park system. Citizens were concerned that the lack of recreational space would be felt more and more as the city continued to grow.

Suddenly the city as a whole became park conscious, and a flurry of activity led to the creation of the parks and playgrounds we enjoy today. On the Southside, Saucon Park sprang into existence, while the greatly admired Rose Garden was developed on the West Side. Even old Sand Island was transformed into Franklin Park.

But for residents of the North Side, there was no large park in which to enjoy the outdoor season. Yes, the old borough of Bethlehem had bought the Illick's Mill property way back in 1907, but no steps had been taken in its beautification.

This all changed in 1935 when Ario Wear and his department submitted plans of developing the property to the Works Progress Administration.

Being the largest and most ambitious of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal projects, the WPA's goal was to provide work for the nation's unemployed until the economy recovered. During its peak years, in 1936 and 1938, it put some 290,000 people to work in Pennsylvania.

As of August 1937's opening concert, two projects had been completed at Monocacy Park providing 163,984 man-hours of work. A third project submitted by Wear aimed to provide an additional 88,000 hours of work if approved by the WPA.

What the WPA workers left behind through their backbreaking labor is just as magnificent today as it was during the Great Depression.

Stone walks, benches, tables … the WPA provided all that's needed for families to have a delightful picnic. When the park opened, city officials claimed that the fireplace was the most modern of its kind in the entire state.

The Monocacy Creek was thoroughly cleaned and widened. Seventy trees were planted. Even the existing dam was strengthened and modernized. Flanked by two pavilions, the dam is truly the focal point of the entire park. What a beautiful site it is to see and feel the creek water tumble over steps of Coopersburg granite.

Perhaps the best view of the dam can be seen from the small suspension bridge anchored by two 30-foot towers of hand-cut stone.

Upstream of the dam there once was a 300x140 foot swimming pool complete with diving boards. Due to sedimentation, the pool lasted less than nine years and today is a shallow mud flat.

"Though much has been added to the park, we have not in the least attempted to take away the natural beauty that abounds there," said Councilman Wear the week of the parks opening.

At the time, Wear was sure that Monocacy Park would become one of the most popular spots in the city. Well over 70 years later, the countless families and fisherman who enjoy the park on a regular basis are evidence that he was right.

Please share your memories of Monocacy Park by writing or emailing me at bethlehemhistory@gmail.com.