south park urban garden

South Park is a neighborhood in Dayton that has historic significance because of its association with John Patterson, founder of National Cash Register (NCR).

When Patterson founded the NCR in 1884, South Park, the neighborhood around the factory complex had a poor reputation. To encourage workers to live in a beautiful environment, Patterson employed corporate welfare and began to clean up the area. He hired the Olmsted Brothers to design the landscape around the factory and recreate the neighborhood's cottage gardens as models for residents. Residents also learned the principals of good planting so they had the skills to plant and maintain their own yards, and prizes were awarded for the best gardens. In 1897, the National Cash Register Company's Boys' Garden was founded to create a connection for boys in the neighborhood to learn responsibility that would ultimately make them successful citizens and workers and dissuade them from becoming a nuisance.

Fast forwarding to today, in its Burns-Nathan park the residents have small garden plots available to them for vegetable and flower gardening, lovingly known as the SPUG (South Park Urban Garden). During the growing season, the gardens are full of veggies and many of the owners put fun pieces of garden art in their plots to designate their spaces. It was a vibrant little spot in the neighborhood until "progress" made its way to the park and covered the gardens with an apartment building.

The other day, I was in South Park at the frame shop and after my errand there, decided to drive around the neighborhood. Much to my delight, I drove past the Burns-Jackson Park and saw a grouping of square structures - raised garden plots - that were waiting for garden produce to be planted. The good old SPUG had been revived.