The Impact of Prairie and Maritime Reformers and Boosters on the Development of Parks and Playgrounds, 1880 to 1930

Abstract

Abstract Two recent research projects have investigated the development of parks and playgrounds in selected Canadian Prairie and Maritime cities between 1880 and 1930. The central objective in each study was to determine if there were any common threads and links in the patterns of development of municipal parks and playgrounds in the cities, and, if so, what these were. In both studies the urban reform movement and civic boosterism were examined to determine their impacts on parks and playgrounds. The proposition that urban reform and civic boosterism were factors which significantly affected the development of parks and playgrounds was not supported by the research findings. The two sets of cities had some common threads in the development of their parks and playgrounds. The impact of the urban reform movement was evident in creating an awareness of park and playground issues in the cities of both studies. Civic boosterism not only had little impact in both studies, but had extremely limited impact in ...