It is June 1910, and excitement fills the air as the people of Williamsport yearn to make that trip to Montoursville via the Montoursville Passenger Railroad. With five cents in hand, they board the trolley to begin their journey. The electric car passes through Loyalsock Township and rumbles around Sand Hill; the bridge is now visible, the trolley turns onto the structure and the excited passenge
rs peer down at the water. Up Broad Street to Montour; whereupon reaching the north end it circles to proceed on Loyalsock to the vicinity of the Grafius home. The electric car crosses the millrace and then Mill Creek on a much larger bridge. Another one hundred yards and the car stops at a cement platform and the passengers rush across another bridge into the newly remodeled facility. The more adventuresome have but one aim, the largest roller coaster in the East. Many of those courting decide on a boat ride; some twenty acres are covered by water. Still others head for the theater; it seats a thousand people and possibly lines at the rides may thin a bit later. Some of the elderly rock on the porch which surrounds the giant merry-go-round. This day there are family reunions and the men and boys play baseball while the women prepare a picnic lunch. By nightfall the Park is lit up like a Christmas tree and music fills the air as couples expend their last energy dancing before beginning that return journey. The sounds of insects and the smell of wildflowers soothe the tired but happy riders as they leave this place of enchantment. But alas, this age too would pass and it would be years before this great resource would once again reach its potential. With the memory of the past and a vision of the future, the citizens of Montoursville, aided by many, have sought to make the dream a reality. The hiking trails, gazebo, ball fields, boating, picnic areas and, of course, the band shell, will provide many memories for others. There is a hope that what we have done here will evoke the same longing years from now as “Indian Park” did for other generations.
