Laurel Hollow Park & Newell Information Center

Laurel Hollow Park and Newell Information Center. . , In 1907, Laurel Hollow Park was created for the benefit of the residents of the then newly formed town, Newell, West Virginia. Unfortunately, it only lasted about six years and would eventually be taken over by wild growth., George Washington Clarke was the Homer Laughlin China Company's leading salesman in the early 1900s. He spent much of his own money on developing the park. Clarke died on March 3, 1913 in Los Angeles, California and was buried in Denver, Colorado. Afterwards, nobody stepped up to maintain the park and it fell in to ruins., In vintage postcards and literature, the park was called Newell Park, Laurel Park, Laurel Hollow Park, and Newell Zoo. Today it is called Laurel Hollow Park. It once contained a lake, outdoor theater, walking paths, gardens and a large fountain. The zoo portion housed polar bears, monkeys, seals, trained raccoons, deer, and more., Since 2008, the Newell Community Improvement Coalition has been working on restoring and maintaining the park., Bear enclosure becomes amphitheater , July 12, 2010 , By Nancy Tullis, For The Weirton Daily Times, NEWELL- The Newell Community Improvement Coalition was able to complete the transformation of the former Laurel Hollow Park bear enclosure into the Bears Den Amphitheater thanks to a donation from the American Legion Post 114 of Newell., Bev Enochs of the NCIC said the Legion members donated the full amount needed to complete the amphitheater and Wayne Six of Six Enterprises then completed the project., "We are grateful to the Legionnaires for their generosity and continued support of the community," Enochs said. She said Six Enterprises workers completed the concrete floor of the amphitheater and unearthed the original stones that were the foundation of the original bear's den., She said they used the original stones for a retaining wall and seating at the side of the amphitheater. In some of the stones the square indentations where the steel bars of the bear cage set in are still visible., The bears den was full of beer cans and other trash and the stones were marred by graffiti, but Enochs said it was cleaned up by volunteers. The bears den serves as a backdrop for the amphitheater., Enochs said the next step for the amphitheater will be the purchase of bench seating that will be installed later this summer. She said the benches will be available for purchase and the donor names will be engraved on the benches., Some future plans are to add lighting and some information kiosks to show the history of the park, Enochs said. In the early days the park had a zoo, including two polar bears., She said according to the park history, apparently there were two polar bears which the zoo keepers kept apart. Then, without training or scientific knowledge as to the gender of the bears, they assumed they were male and female and put them together to see if they would mate., The bears were both males, however, and it didn't take long for the large one to kill the other. Enochs said that put an end to the bear exhibit., CIC members are also trying to trace the history of a flower design that is prominent on much of the stone work in the park. A member also said the same design is featured on a metal post at the beginning of the Newell Bridge pedestrian walkway on the Ohio side of the bridge., Park completes information center , December 16, 2011 , By Nancy Tullis - Hancock County Reporter ([email protected]), The Review, NEWELL- An information center at the entrance to Laurel Hollow Park was recently completed with numerous donations of money and volunteer labor., Bev Enochs, president of the Newell Community Improvement Coalition, ic., said the group sold engraved pavers to help defray the project costs. Other funding came from the Robert and Carolyn Wells trust through the East Liverpool Fawcett Foundation, from the Hancock County commissioners, Jeff Davis, Dan Greathouse and Mike Swartzmiller, and from funds secured by Delegate Randy Swartzmiller and Senator Jack Yost., The Center features an information kiosk designed by Mark Gonzalez, a former Newell resident. Enochs said Gonzalez is a local historian with a vast knowledge of the pottery industry, and a collector information on his hometown and the surrounding area., Gozalez now lives in Alabama but has a local history website: laurelhollowpark.net., The kiosk depicts the history of the park as well as copies of original photos and postcards., Wayne Six, a coalition member, was the contractor for the information center. He also donated the stone blocks for the surrounding wall and an original bench which was in the park nearly a century ago, Enochs said., She said Six also did the stone work, including setting the bench into the wall, keeping with the designs of the original park., Enochs noted Dave and Dan Bennet did all the electrical work for the project., The sale of engraved pavers was so popular, Coalition members are going to continue to sell them and find other places to use them throughout the park, Enochs said. School classes, businesses and individuals purchased pavers, some in tribute or in memory of loved ones., Laurel Hollow Park is on property owned by the Homer Laughlin China Co. and the Wells family. It is leased by the Hancock County Commission and has been developed by the Newell Community Improvement Coalition, Inc. and its many volunteers., The Coalition meets the second Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. in the Wells Building adjacent to the park., Plans for park information center have begun at Laurel Hollow Park. , Newell - The next phase of the renovation of Laurel Hollow Park in Newell is now in progress. Plans for a historical information center have begun., An area of the park will be trans- formed into the information center complete with inlaid pavers for the base surrounded by a stone wall, all in keeping with the natural environment of the park., A large informational kiosk will be featured in the center., The kiosk will be under the direction of Mark Gonzalez, a Newell native who currently resides in Birmingham, Ala. Gonzalez is an avid historian of the community and the surrounding areas, He has penned several books about the pottery industry and has researched the park and its history. His information can be found at the www.laurelhollowpark.net Web site., The kiosk will hold pictures, postcards and newspaper articles of the original park and its history. It will also feature the development of the park of today as well as features about the history of Newell and the surrounding area. This project has been financed, in part, by the Robert and Carolyn Wells endowment fund and through the of Delegate Randy Swartzmiller and former Senator Ed Bowman, who secured funding through legislative efforts., The Newell Community Improvement Coalition is excited to be able to offer to the public the chance to purchase a paver, to be engraved with the donor's name or as a memorial to a loved one. The pavers purchased through this proj- ect create a lasting memory to rec- ognize individuals, groups, busi- nesses, families, loved ones or spe- cial events., A brief Newell, West Virginia timeline: , June 1904: First excavations for the Newell Bridge. , July 1905: Newell Bridge complete. , June 1906: Homer Laughlin China Company built. First homes in Newell constructed, Excavation begins on the lake and zoo portion of the park. , Early 1907: First volunteer fire department. Presbyterian Church organized. , Dec. 1907: 130 homes built. Population 700. , 1912: Fourth Street School constructed. Methodist Church built. , 1913: Edwin M. Knowles China Company opened. Closed in 1963. , 1919: Metsch Refractories opened. Closed in 1957. , 1920: Nazarene Church built on Washington Street. This was later replaced by a new church in 1958 on Grant Street. , 1927: W. E. Wells High School built. , Oct 1946: American Legion organized. , 1950: Wells High played their first football game at Memorial Field. , 1951: Jefferson Elementary opened. Fourth Street School closed. , 1952: American Legion building opens on Washington Street. , 1963: Shadow Lawn Memory Gardens established. Last graduating class from Wells High. Wells re-opened as Wells Jr. High School. , 1967: Church of Christ built on Washington Street. , 1992: Wells Jr. High closed. , 2008: Laurel Hollow Park re-opened. , 2011: Oak Glen played last game at Memorial Field., In 1871 Homer Laughlin and his brother, Shakespeare Laughlin, built a two-kiln pottery at East Liverpool, Ohio. This was one of the -first plants erected in this country for the making of white-ware. For a number of years, the growth of the Laughlin pottery was slow. However, as early as 1876 the merit of the wares produced was recognized at the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia, where they received the highest award., In 1897 Homer Laughlin withdrew from the business, and the present corporation was formed. Since then the growth has been remarkable. A greatly enlarged plant was built in 1899, but in two years this proved inadequate for the growing business, and a third large plant was built in the group at East Liverpool. These three potteries, known as Plants 1, 2, 3, represent a total of thirty-two kilns., By 1905 it was again necessary to expand. The great site at Newell, W. Va. was purchased, and the then largest single pottery unit in the world was erected, consisting of thirty kilns under one roof. to reach this plant, it was necessary to construct a suspension bridge across the Ohio river, and to build a streetcar line from East Liverpool to Newell. This work was done largely by the men interested in The Homer Laughlin China Company. These men at the same time developed the town site of Newell and constructed all public utilities., For 150 years, the Homer Laughlin China Company, now known as The Fiesta Tableware Company, has produced millions of pieces of ware ranging from dinnerware, restaurant ware, toiletries and sundry ware, kitchen ware, and art china. They are best known for their famous Fiesta line of dinnerware., The following comes from a 1912 Homer Laughlin China Company catalog and describes the beginnings of Newell., On the banks of the Ohio in West Virginia, a little below East Liverpool, Ohio, is a high, level plain, bordered on one side by the river, and on the other by the foot-hills of West Virginia. It is very beautiful, but was at that time almost inaccessible from the Ohio side. Here, on the brow of the bluff, looking across the great river to the picturesque hills of Ohio and Pennsylvania, the Homer Laughlin China co. decided to build the greatest china factory in the world, and incidentally the town of Newell. A suspension bridge was thrown across the Ohio River from East Liverpool. A road was blasted out of the face of the cliff. An electric railway was built. Streets were paved. A magnificent public park, one of the finest in the state, was laid out. Within one year, a huge turreted factory was erected, many attractive homes built and a delightful playground for the people created.