Hershey Park's first swimming pool; ca.1912-1915

Hershey Park’s first concrete swimming pool was added in 1911. Completed in the fall, the pool served as an ice skating rink that winter and opened for its first swimming season in 1912. The pool was a popular destination and attracted 1000s of visitors both as users and spectators. A few years later the pool was enlarged and a water toboggan feature was added. To ride the toboggan swimmers carried wooden “sleds” to the top of a long wooden slide and rode the sled down to splash in the pool below. The ride was so fast that riders hydro-planed for several yards before sinking into the water.

Aerial, Hershey Park Swimming Pool; ca.1938-1950

A new expansive pool complex was added in 1929. The new Hershey Park Pool was actually 4 pools: a circular baby pool, a diving pool, a swimming pool and a wading pool. A concrete island separated the swimming pool from the wading pool. Altogether the pools covered 35,000 square feet and contained 1,240,000 gallons of filtered spring water. Admission fee for adults was 25 cents (10 cents for children). If you didn’t have one you could rent a bathing suit at the pool bathhouse.

By the 1940s over 100,000 people visited the pool each summer. Many long time residents have very fond memories of the Park Pool. Young men remember the pool as a wonderful place to bring a date if you didn’t have much money. The pool was located right next to the Ballroom. From the pool, you could hear all the great bands that played at the Ballroom, such as Jimmy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, and Harry James. The Pool was closed following the 1971 summer season. Today all that remains of the famous Park Pool is the lighthouse along Park Boulevard.

Hershey Park Swimming Pool; sand beach, kiddie pool and iconic lighthouse; 1930

Well, I remember I took a job during World War II. There was such a shortage of workers during World War II in Hershey, that at the age of 13 and a half or 14, I went to the Hotel Hershey to be a busboy and a bellhop. Even though you had to be 16 and have a working permit, Hotel Hershey hired me because they were so desperate for help. As tall as I am now, that’s how tall I was when I was 14 and 15. I didn’t grow from that age on, you know, but I was very tall. So anyway, they saw how tall I was and big I was. They assumed I would pass for 16. They falsified my age, or I falsified it, or however. We didn’t even put down the age.

 

Hotel Hershey's first bellman, Al McKinney, stands ready to greet guests. 1933

Sometimes Hershey employers ignored age restrictions when they knew that the family need was great.  Hershey was a small town and the public school and Hershey Chocolate Corporation often cooperated with each other helping students find work.  Sam Tancredi, whose father was an invalid, began working part-time to help support his family when he was only 8 years old.  With the help of the School District  he left school at age 15 to take a full time job at the chocolate factory.

It was mostly through the efforts of Mrs. Murrie, the wife of the then President of the Chocolate Company, that I obtained a job. Apparently, she had become aware of the family need and stepped in to help. . . .On April 16, 1929, my 15th birthday, [Mr. A. M. Hinkle], the Principal of our school, called me into his office and told me that he was happy that I was 16 years of age and could get a working permit so I could go to work to help the family. I said several times that I was 15 years old, not 16, but he paid no attention to me.

Derry Township School District, Granada Avenue school complex. Hershey Junior-Senior High School in foreground. 1925

John Zoll was well known by all those seeking employment in Hershey.  Mary Bonawitz, who was employed by the Hershey Chocolate Factory in 1934, remembered how she first got work in Hershey:

I was eighteen years of age and wanted to get out in the world, earn some money for myself, so I chose Hershey Chocolate Factory, and I never was sorry. Those times you didn’t go into the office. You stood outside the employment office and Mr. [John] Zoll would come out and he would pick you and would say, “You come in here.” And look over the crowd and, “You come in here.” That’s the way you got the job. Sometimes people stood outside for a week or more until they were picked. So I happened to be picked August 13th, and I worked there for thirty-two years.

Hershey Chocolate Factory, packing kisses by hand. 3/1937

Sometimes people didn’t really know or care where they worked, they simply wanted a job.  George Booth attended Hershey Industrial School 1925-1937.  After graduation he initially got a job in Lititz, PA, a town about 25 miles east of Hershey but the business soon went bankrupt.  Unable to find work, he returned  to Hershey in 1938 with hopes of finding something.

So I came down to Hershey and thought, “Well, the park’s open. Maybe I can get a summer job.” I came down, went down to the–as a matter of fact, I still have my application on the wall in the den, June 13, 1938. I applied for a job, not knowing where I was going to go. John Zoll was the employment manager at that time. He sent me up to Hershey Lumber Products to a B.S. Cornell. He hired me, as a clerk in the office–time cards, posting machine. They were doing a lot of construction at that time, Hershey was. Anyway, we finished. The summer came to an end, construction slowed down. October, November. Then I was sent down to the bank building.

 

Question: Who sent you there?

 

I think Cornell told me they want me down there, and I was to report to Harry Spangler. I remember reporting to Harry Spangler. Harry Spangler was the comptroller at the time. He interviewed me and put me to work the same day. Our offices for Hershey Estates were on the second floor of the bank. So I became a clerk, bookkeeper, that sort of thing.

Hershey Trust Company and Hershey National Bank. ca.1935

Hershey Community Archives oral history collection is a rich resource for understanding the historyof the community, its industries and activities.  Excerpts of oral history interviews with factory workers, Hershey Estates employees, bookkeepers and bank tellers reveal what it is like to work in the “sweetest place on earth.”

The stories of how people first got a job in Hershey are varied.  Many of Hershey’s most committed employees initially had no interest in working here.  Frank Mather, whose Hershey Bears’ ice hockey career spanned several decades, needed some special convincing to  come to Hershey.  In his oral history interview Mathers relates this story:

I was brought in as a player-coach. I had gone home [to Winnipeg]. I was thirty-one at the time and I figured it’s time to, you know, get a real job. So I went home. I really had no intention of being a coach. That, too, was not one of the things that I had planned, but anyway, Mr. Sollenberger phoned, and he was a very insistent gentleman. I told him no, I wasn’t interested really, but then finally he said, “Come on down. Just stay at the hotel. Bring your wife down.” We did and [he] treated me very well, gave me a car and carte blanche around Hershey, and, “Just tell them you know me and sign the check,” and that type of thing. And I did. I’m glad that I did, of course. That was the smartest move I ever made, because I signed with Hershey.

This is a funny story and it’s a true story. But I really never enjoyed Hershey when I played in Pittsburgh, the reason being we came to Hershey when the Ice Show was in Pittsburgh, and we’d be here for–what I’d say, stuck for two weeks in Hershey in the middle of the winter. At that time there was one show that changed maybe twice a week and there was very little action at all. We used to say that the highlight of the day was walking over to the arena from the Cocoa Inn.

Anyway, so I really didn’t think that I would enjoy it, but I came here. I think we arrived Tuesday and we went through the whole area. So after we saw all of Hershey at our own pace, doing what we wanted to see, then we met–this must have been a little bit later in the spring, because the park was open. As I recall Mr. Sollenberger didn’t go to the hockey games because he had a bad heart–too exciting. The only game that I can recall him ever going to was an All-Star game where the outcome was not important. Yeah. So he didn’t go to the games, but yet we went to the park. And we went on the roller coaster–now, he sits in the front seat with his wife and Pat and I are right behind them. [Laughter] And we were on there, I swear, for twelve rides. I think, “If this guy wants me to sign for hockey, I’d better sign and tell him I’m going to sign now. I’ll be his coach. Then we’ll get off this thing.”

Hershey Bears ice hockey team, 1956-1957 season. Frank Mathers is 8th from the left.

Hershey Convention Hall, exterior. 1915

When the Church of the Brethren chose Hershey as the location for its next annual meeting, the church requested permission to erect a tent on park grounds. Milton Hershey responded with an offer to build a 6,000 seat convention hall for their use. The Convention Hall was completed in less than a year, just in time for the Brethren’s June 1915 meeting. Over 60,000 people from all over the United States attended the convention that year.

Hershey Convention Hall, Church of the Brethren Triennial Convention, 6/1915

The Hershey Convention Hall was originally conceived as a Chautauqua Hall, which would offer a wide array of educational and cultural opportunities.  The size and location of the Convention Hall led to its use not only as a meeting place but also as a performance hall.  Between 1915 and 1930 it hosted nationally recognized performers, including Paul Whiteman and his orchestra, the Sistine Chapel Choir, soprano Marion Talley and Will Rogers. In 1925 the Convention Hall was remodeled, and its acoustics were improved. That year John Philip Sousa and his band performed at the Convention Hall over the Fourth of July weekend celebration. Tickets for his afternoon and evening concerts were 75 cents. There was standing room only for the concerts, and many more people crowded around the building listening to the music.

In 1931 the Convention Hall was remodeled as an Ice Palace for ice skating and hockey. ca. 1931-1936

In 1931 the Convention Hall was again remodeled and a ice rink added to the facility. Each winter the rink was used for public skating, an annual ice carnival and ice hockey games. Hershey’s instant love affair with ice skating and hockey would lead to the construction of the Hershey Sports Arena in 1936.

Hershey Volunteer Fire Company, first fire hall. ca. 1906-1910

The first fire house was located on Chocolate Avenue, just west of the Chocolate factory. At first the organization was as much a social club as a service organization. As the town grew and new organizations started, the Fire Company focused more of its energy on providing the best possible service to the community. As the town grew and technology improved, the Fire Company needed to upgrade its fire fighting equipment. A new Packard pumper was purchased in 1921 and in 1926 a Selden Buffalo pumper was acquired. With the addition of this new equipment, the fire hall was too small for the Fire Company needs .

New Fire Hall on West Caracas Avenue, men posing with Selden and Packard pumpers. 1928

In 1927 Milton Hershey responded to the need for the new fire house by donating a piece of land on W. Caracas Avenue, just off Cocoa Avenue as well as $5000 towards construction costs. Work on the $15,000 building began on January 10, 1928. It was completed in June that same year. Formal dedication ceremonies for the station were held on June 23, 1928. The festivities began with a parade followed by the dedication ceremony. A evening dance and carnival concluded the day long celebration. Today this building is the center part of the current fire station.

Comet Roller Coaster ride entrance, ca.1946-1960

The end of World War II was celebrated at Hershey Park with the addition of a new roller coaster, the Comet.  Opening for the 1946 season, the Comet replaced the 1923 Wild Cat Roller coaster.  Like the park’s first coaster, this one was designed and constructed by Herbert Schmeck and the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.  One unique feature of this coaster is that it crosses Spring Creek twice during its 3,360 foot journey. 

Hersheypark's Comet Roller Coaster crosses Spring Creek twice during its journey. ca.1960-1070

A total of 248,919 feet of lumber was used to build the double out-and-back coaster.  The coaster is built so close to town that riders’ screams can be heard on Chocolate Avenue.  The coaster features a series of drops that curve as they descend on the third and forth runs to create a more exciting ride.  The ride’s finish is a series of hills or bunny hops with a turnaround to the brake curve and loading station.

Aerial view, Hersheypark Comet Roller Coaster, ca.1946-1956

Riders wait to board the Hershey Monorail, ca.1969

By the late 1960s, traffic on Chocolate Avenue during the summer months was overwhelming. Tourists wanting to tour the Chocolate Factory and visit the park often created traffic jams. Downtown parking was limited. To ease congestion Hershey Estates and Hershey Chocolate Corporation agreed share the costs of constructing a Monorail that would link Hershey Park and downtown Hershey. There were two stations, one by the Sports Arena and one at the north end of the building at One Chocolate Building. People could board the train at either station. Dedicated on June 20, 1969, the monorail was both a means of transportation and a new Park attraction. The track loop was laid out to provide riders with a scenic view of Hershey Park and the Zoo. The monorail remained a separate attraction until 1973 when the factory tours ended and it was incorporated into the new Hersheypark.

Monorail passes over the Hershey Park Turnpike ride. ca.1969

Billboard advertises new ride coming to Hersheypark for the 1977 summer season.

The early years of the newly redesigned Hersheypark were filled with highs and lows. In 1972 Hurricane Agnes had closed the Park for nine days and caused it to suffer significant budget shortfalls. 1973 marked the new Park’s first truly successful season and erased all doubts about the wisdom of redeveloping Hersheypark as a themed amusement park. The energy crisis of 1974 again caused financial challenges and forced the Park to scale back its redevelopment plans. Hersheypark’s success was firmly established a few years later, with the addition of the sooperdooperLooper which marked Hersheypark’s entry into the category of nationally recognized theme parks.

This coaster was the first looping coaster on the East Coast and only the second of its kind in the United States. The new coaster was the park’s most expensive ride at that point, costing more than $3 million. Building a proto-type roller coaster created a major challenge for the Park and presented unbelievable problems. Being a new style ride, the Park would practically re-engineer the ride from the original plans before being satisfied with the ride’s operation. All the bugs had not been worked out by opening day. That day the Park’s General Manager, Bruce McKinney, and his wife Sally boarded the ride car to officially launch the ride. The ride successfully made it through the loop only to only to get stuck on the next rise. Park engineers were unable to get the ride to move and the passengers had to exit the ride by walking down the catwalk, witnessed and documented by news photographers and television cameras.

In spite of such an eventful launch the ride made the Park’s 1977’s season a huge success. Hundreds of thousands of people came to the park that year to ride or simply to watch the new looping roller coaster. The most popular Park souvenir that summer was a T-Shirt with the words “I Survived the sooperdooperLooper.” That year the Park set daily attendance records that still stand as record breaking days to this day. The summer of 1977 would stand as the park’s most successful season for years to come.

Riding the loop of the sooperdooperLooper, ca. 1990-2000

Originally named The Joy Ride, Hershey Park’s first roller coaster was soon renamed The Wild Cat. ca. 1930-1940

Hershey celebrated its 20th anniversary in 1923, and Milton Hershey’s present to the town was a roller coaster. Initially, Hershey Park’s first roller coaster was called “The Joy Ride.” Within a short time its name was changed to “The Wild Cat.” The Wild Cat was nearly a mile in length and it had “more dips and deeper dips than any of like construction in America.”

It was put into operation on June 16, 1923. On opening day, word quickly spread through the town that the coaster was operating and that rides were free. The town’s youth came running to be among the first to ride the coaster. On its first day of operation no ladies were allowed to ride until the afternoon. Marion Murrie, daughter of Hershey Chocolate Company president, William F. R. Murrie, was the first female to ride the coaster.

The Wild Cat was the first coaster designed by the great coaster designer Herbert P. Schmeck. Before this project he ahd built several coasters for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company serving as construciton manager.  Philadelphia Toboggan Company ran the Wild Cat as a concession for a number of years.  The coaster was 76 feet high and crossed Spring Creek on a specially designed wooden bridge. Schmeck was never really satisfied with the design and it was modified in the 1920s. In 1935 it was redesigned to make its dips higher and the curves more steeply banked.Hershey Press wrote that the roller coaster had cost $50,000. Up to this time, Park rides had not operated on Sundays. However, the Park saw its largest crowds on that day. With the addition of this costly ride, the Park began operating its rides on Sundays.

The Wild Cat operated from 1923 to the end of the 1945 when it was torn down and replaced with The Comet.

Wild Cat roller coaster was modified after it was built to make its dips higher and the curves more steeply banked. ca. 1925