No Parking

The picnic basket was ready, brimming full of my wife's special meatloaf, deviled eggs, and macaroni salad. We were off and running on Labor Day for  Cedar Famly Holiday. To me, there was only one place to go for today's festivities, yes, Pottsville, also known as Shoshone Park. I could still picture the majestic setting of the park above the city of Mullan, Idaho. I could still see the wading pool, the swings, the tetter-totter, the bubbling creek, and a park full of happy families and groups celebrating Idaho's glorious nature.

Merrily we drove up to the park, enjoying each mile of the scenic freeway. We don't get out much anymore because of my illness, but when we do, we make the most of each minute. We arrive at the park, and-lo and behold, there were no cars, no people, no wading pool, no playground, no ball field, no anything. The grass was a mess, and bees buzzed around the splinter filled rickety tables. Another great Valley tradition is gone. Sigh!

Here is the hardware picnic in Pottsville in 1934, courtesy of Barnard-Stockbridge collection.