Happy  Hollow History

100 Years of Happy Hollow Playground

Mr. E.W. Clark, a prominent Philadelphian, purchased five acres of former quarry land with the intention of making it a playground after a young child drowned in the quarry. He hired George T. Pearson a well-known architect to design the main building known originally as the Quarry

Playground House, completed in 1910 still in use today. Mrs. Clark named the playground Happy Hollow.

The Clarks donated the state-of-the-art facility, to the Playground Association of Philadelphia.

The opening of the Happy Hollow Playground was announced April 29, 1911.

It is the city's oldest playground.

A view of Happy Hollow shortly after its opening in 1911

The original playground had a wading pool and a "pagoda."

Sources: Top two photos - Philadelphia's Municipal Playgrounds and First Report of the Board of Recreation of the City of Philadelphia, January 1, 1913.

Bottom photo and groundplan - Architectual Record, Volume 29, page 226

available online at

http://books.google.com/books?id=2X5TAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA226&lpg=PA226&dq=architectural+record+george+t+pearson+quarry+playground+house&source=bl&ots=Zgpnuc4uS0&sig=bobRLzcp9KdN_oWmmSBKVJrB3Bo&hl=en&ei=18GbS8STM8P68Aaqko3-DQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=&f=false