A seven-man committee selected an area off Brookside Drive and Lindale Avenue for the site, and with $6,000. The men began to convert an old stone quarry surrounded by six acres of land into a pond and park area.

The idea of a park had often been suggested. Cathleen Donges said that her father, H. B., and his brother H. N., once bought a merry-go-round with the idea that when a park became a reality they would place the carousel there. For a while it operated on a lot on Luther Street until the property was sold. The merry-go-round then was disassembled and stored in a log cabin on Moss Hill. One evening the cabin and all its contents went up in smoke. Arson was suspected.

Royal Sigler, 234 E. Eighth St., remembers the park dedication. He played in a band, which sat on a temporary platform which had been built to extend over the pond. Apparently the builders did not consider the weight of the band members, and although the platform did not collapse, it did sway, and the musicians an unscheduled dip in the pond.

Sigler also remembers a dance hall which stood on the west side of Brookside Drive south of the swimming pool parking lot. Patrons purchased a string of tickets for 5 cents a dance. One evening shortly after the last dance, fire broke out and the building went up in flames.

In 1927, a private swimming pool corporation was formed. More that 40 stockholders invested a total of $22,000 to build a pool and filtration system where anyone could "swim in drinking water." Incidentally, at the time, the Faultless Rubber Co. was making bathing caps.

Thirty-five years after the first pool was completed the Ashland City Council approved a proposal to replace the deteriorating pool with a $130,000 modern facility on a pay-as-you-go basis. Unvoted-general -obligation bonds were issued, and the pool opened July 3, 1962, with 850 people taking advantage of the free swim on opening day. In two years the pool was paid off.

Gifts of land from Mrs. Guy C. Myers and her daughter, Mrs. Carlton Mitchell, led to further expansion. The Guy C. Myers Memorial Band Shell was built, and during Ashland's Cen-Quar celebration in 1940, 125 maple trees were planted in the vicinity of the band shell.

Over the years, lawn bowling, shuffleboard, horseshoes, basketball courts, as well as softball, swimming, band concerts, and picnic facilities have provided enjoyment for people of Ashland County and visitors to the city.

When Downs died in 1944, the original six acres of land had grown to more than 30 acres. Today, with the golf course and the recent addition of the Kestner property, Brookside covers 205 acres. The city also owns 16 acres at Cahn Grove and 15 more in satellite parks.