A not-so-casual day at the lake
Remembering the Lakeview Park baby show of 1910
For many years, Lakeview Park was the summer destination for area residents and even for people who came from afar. It was one of the region’s premier resort destinations.
Lakeview Park was established in 1889. There was already the Willow Dale Park on Lake Mascuppic, but the Lowell and Suburban Trolley Company wanted to attract more riders, and building a second resort on the lake would help achieve this goal.
Lakeview Park had an ideal location with trolley connections that extended as far south as Boston and as far north as Nashua. The park proved to be a very popular destination and in 1893 a theater was built at Lakeview and over the years other attractions and activities were added and were available to visitors — swimming, boating, bowling alleys, restaurants and a dance hall.
The Lakeview Ballroom was also built and it drew large crowds from opening weekend on Memorial Day until the end of the summer season in September.
Now, besides the regular attractions, the Lowell and Suburban Trolley Company was known to host events at the park to increase attendance (and of course ridership on their streetcars!). One such event was dubbed the “Great
Baby Show.”
In July 1910, the Lowell and Suburban Trolley Company organized a baby show to be held at Lakeview Park. It was held on a hot Sunday afternoon and people had the opportunity to enter their babies into the show.
But, make no mistake, this was not just a simple event held on a lazy summer’s afternoon. Close to 700 babies were entered into the baby show. There were several thousand