The last two installments in this blog series spoke of Joseph R. Mayer's business and professional life in land development for housing and retail. Today, the story shifts to recreation and Mr. Mayer's pursuit of establishing a playground for the neighborhood youngsters.
On July 6, 1954, Alderman Joseph Mayer introduced an order to establish a playground on a portion of Memorial Village land in Ward 3 for the benefit of the growing number of children in the area's new housing developments. The undeveloped land near the new homes had been used for ice skating since 1952. The Board of Aldermen approved the order, which needed further approval from both the mayor and the State Housing Board. Mayor Siebel approved the order.
In August 1954, the State Housing Board approved the transfer of a portion of Memorial Village land to the Parks and Recreation Department for the construction of a playground.
Joseph Mayer continued his work in developing this playground. In February 1955, he introduced an order requesting the Parks and Recreation Department provide playground equipment for the new park. In June of that year, he sought improvements to the baseball field, including grading and installation of a temporary backstop. The Moss Tract Tigers Mighty-Mites baseball team had just formed, and 23 families had children ready to play.
Mr. Mayer forged ahead, requesting the appointment of a recreation director to oversee children's activities. He requested that the sidewalk be extended from Memorial Village to the playground so children wouldn't have to walk in the road, and that speed-limit signs be installed on Westfield Rd. to slow traffic.
In 1956, he sought the installation of a sidewalk from the playground down Westfield Road to Hitchcock Street. A jungle gym was installed, and in the winter months, the park was flooded for ice skating.
In September 1956, Mr. Mayer introduced a bill to have the field named after Joseph Muller, one of the city's 3 Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.
In 1958, he donated the fill to improve the park, on the condition that the city provide the trucks to transport the material.
A 6-foot fence was added in 1959 with the job awarded to Harry Ernst Fence Company in Holyoke.
In recognition of his continued efforts, the playground on Westfield Road was named after him and is called Joe Mayer Field or Mayer Field. Research failed to provide information on when, if ever, this park was formally dedicated. However, starting in 1960, newspaper reports involving Little League games referred to Mayer Field, and Memorial Village Park was seldom referenced thereafter.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee, Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
Google Maps, 2026
