Residents, Ancestors Honor Burnham Park on Beautiful Day

After a week of rain and dense cloud cover, Saturday, May 21, dawned crisp and clear with a brilliant blue sky chock full of bounteous white clouds.

Members and trustees of the Burnham Park Association were joined Saturday by dozens of residents and four of the ancestors of Frederick Gordon Burnham to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the 30-acre Burnham Park and the man who donated it to town of Morristown in 1911.

In addition to a formal dedication, attendees enjoyed a picture-postcard day, refreshments, and a visit by Calvin, the Belgium workhorse from Fosterfields Living Farm in Morris Township.

Some of the children constructed paper sail boats to launch in Burnham Pond and others immersed their hands in the soil as they planted their first seedlings in the new children’s garden.

With its lush plantings, and towering trees surrounding a beautiful pond, Burnham Park, located on the west side of Morristown off Route 24, has become a special place for many residents who take sanctuary in its peaceful elegance in all seasons.

“I come to the park several times a week to contemplate, read, and pray and enjoy the dogs and talking to strangers,” said Jill Barry, a resident of Morristown.

Sonya Williams, a three-year member of the Burnham Park Association said she is excited about planting the new children’s garden and hopes that residents and others consider donating plants and funds to add to the garden that will create a great experience for children.

“I have admired the beauty of this park in every season,” said Michelle Esposito, a member of the Association, who said she has enjoyed bird watching and is grateful that the park has been preserved in its natural state.

Kay Kribs has lived across from the park for decades and said she has also admired its beauty everyday.

“It’s just enchanting in every season. One of the best memories I have is of the skaters in winter. At times the scene looks like a Dutch painting,” she said.

No doubt Burnham would have been pleased to hear the comments from these present day residents, because their praise fits perfectly into his vision for the park.

In a statement issued to the mayor of Morristown, published in the Daily Record in 1911, Mr. and Mrs. Burnham expressed their vision for the land they were donating.

They said: “In our judgment this [Burnham Park] should be situated so near the green as to be within easy walking distance of the residences of our town, especially of those which have not much land surrounding them.

"Our idea has been that this ground should be used not as a playground for the benefit of noisy ball games or such other games as are attended by noise and uproar, but rather as a place where tired families can, during the spring, summer and autumn days, obtain that refreshment which is only obtainable apart from the noise and confusion of a crowd.

"We have thought that such a piece of ground should contain twenty-five or thirty acres available for walks, resting places, with cool spring water, ponds and streams, where the pleasures of fishing, and boating could be had under trees whose wide spreading branches mothers could take their children and find the rest and enjoyment which such a park would afford.”

Alison Mitchell, Burnham’s great granddaughter, joined in the festivities on Saturday accompanied by her daughter Pamela Mitchell, and Anne Carter Lyons and Stephen Carter, the daughter and son of Burnham’s great grandson and Alison Mitchell’s brother.

During the official ceremony, Carter-Lyons dedicated a tree to the park in honor of her father Leland Carter, who passed away a year ago.

“I am very proud to be a descendant of Frederick and Katherine Burnham. They were really philanthropists. They could have spent their money on mansions, but they didn’t want that. They wanted to create a passive recreational facility and they wanted it to serve the town,” Mitchell said.

She said the Burnham's also built a Presbyterian Church and the Berkshire Industrial Farm, a residential treatment center for children.

Mitchell said that in the 1970s, there was talk about filling in the pond and building high rise apartments.

“Fortunately, that never came about,” said Mitchell.

She said she is very happy that the new generation of Burnham descendants is very committed to retaining the beauty of the park and preserving Burnham’s vision and intent.

Carter-Lyons said, “We may be the descendants, but the members and trustees of the Burnham Park Association have worked tirelessly to preserve the vision of Frederick Burnham.”

Members and trustees include: Imre Bajosz, Debbie Bruen, Jennifer Carich, Sonya Williams and Joe Attamante, vice president.  

Lynn Siebert, president of the Association which was established in 1948 said the volunteers have planted over 3,000 plantings which include shrubs, trees and flowers with the goal of beautifying and restoring the park.

“People of all ages enjoy Burnham Park and this is just what Frederick Burnham wanted," she said. "He was absolutely poetic in the way he conveyed his wishes for this land. He was clearly a visionary."

For more information about the Burnham Park Association, visit the website.