- The club house is one of the finest in Western Ontario. A big membership drive is now being held and many new supporters are being secured. A year ago all of the stock of the Church Street Quoit Club was taken up and the two clubs were amalgamated.
If you’re like me you’re probably wondering what a “Quoit” is. The answer is here.
Here is a view of the park form above. I don’t think I’ve ever been to this park…
From the City Parks History:
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Bruce Avenue Parkette
Commonly known as: Bruce Park, Bruce Street Park
Former/other names: none
Location: between Bruce Avenue and Church Street at Wyandotte Street West
Property acquired: 1983-1991
Acreage: 3.04
Official designation: Neighbourhood park
Officially opened in 1985, Bruce Avenue Park was the eighth City park to receive Ontario
Neighbourhood Improvement Program (O.N.I.P.) funding from the Province of Ontario. In the
early 1980s, the Bruce Avenue Citizens’ Committee began meeting with Parks and Recreation
Department officials to discuss the possibility of establishing a new park in the area.
Appropriately, various funding avenues were explored, and in 1983 City officials announced that the province had agreed to fund fifty percent of the $800,000 project.
In 1983, the City began actively purchasing property in the area. The former site of the Windsor Lawn Bowling Club was acquired for $90,000, and various residential properties on the 700 block of Bruce Avenue were purchased. Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, the city acquired and incorporated properties into Bruce Avenue Park. The City continues to acquire properties and incorporate them as funds become available.
Bruce Avenue Parkette also takes part in the Parks Watch program, which helps to protect parks against crime and vandalism.
Currently, this multi-faceted park is equipped with a wide variety of traditional playground
equipment, a creative play unit, both basketball and tennis courts, benches, and a shelter.
Properties are being acquired on an ongoing basis to complete the park.
Back in the Fifties, when most of us grew up in families that couldn’t afford to go on vacations or go to summer camps, the local parks became our summer camps. Mine was Jackson Park. A male and female “supie” (supervisor) was hired to take of the kids. We would play games (esp. baseball), do crafts, etc. Quoits was simply a safe, inexpensive version of horseshoes. The quoit was made of discarded rubber hose, made into a circle about 8″ wide and held with a piece of wire threaded inside. The counting rules were the same as horseshoes. The big question was whether a person threw “end-over-end” or “flat” (frisbee-style). Ringers were frequent, depending on the distant between the two metal spikes which were driven into the ground until the spike stood about one foot in the air. The distance was agreed to by the teams. Anyone know if lawnbowling moved from the above site to Jackson Park, or was the Jackson Park site a satellite of the above club?
It is the same club that is at Jackson Park today. Not sure when they moved.
Lanny i remember doing the same thing when i was a kid i went to most precious blood school on somme and one summer i guess the school board decided to turn the school yard into a park i remember they moved about half a dozen large picnic tables into the park hired this nice looking blonde to be supervisor i remember she had a big green box made from plywood and it was like her magic box she was pulling all kinds of stuff out of it Quoitis all sorts of craft stuff paint water balloons and like you say safe and we loved it close to home
I remember the parks programme too. I attended the day camp at the little park between St. Louis and Villaire, with my friends. I think we had to pay thirty cents per day. That little park had around 20 kids and two supies. We played games, made gimp bracelets, and had a great time being with our friends. Best things about it? You just had to show up with your money—no spaces reserved—and you could play for the day. Everyone was welcome. We loved the supies so much we would bring our lunches to eat with them, instead of going home.
I’ve been trying to field a team for years. Hopefully next season I’ll make it happen.
The parks program lasted until at least the mid 90s. I went to the one in Lanspeary. It was run by Parks and Rec.
i lived on st Louis until 2000 and remember seeing the kids in that little park
I mentioned that my sister taught at Harry Guppy school but in the years she was training she
also was a supervisor for two or three summers in Alice park. This was a new park which was
created in the middle 1950s and was located on Alice Street Between Norman Rd and Olive Rd.
She enjoyed it very much as did all the kids. They used to play games all day and would bring
packed lunches to have their little picnics. Oh those wonderful days of innocence.
I had friends of mine who lived in that house back in late 70s and 80’s was nice party place with no violence cops or anything just bunch of guys sitting back having few beers and few doobie snacks.