Tuesday, October 13, 2015

McKelvey Park Rededicated in BW Alumna/HIstorian's Honor

Plaque commemorating the park's rededication to McKelvey
Photo courtesy cleveland.com
The City of Berea has renovated and officially rededicated a park honoring Dorothy Marks McKelvey, the longtime historian for the city and Baldwin Wallace University. The rededication of McKelvey Park, took place on the 30th anniversary of the original dedication ceremony of the park.

Not only was McKelvey a Baldwin Wallace alumna, but from 1950 to 1993, she served as BW's full-time historian and college archivist. She became the official Historian of Berea in 1980 and was the founder, president and trustee of the Berea Area Historical Society (BAHS).

According to The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, McKelvey "became the person newspapers called to verify facts about Berea's past."

The new lighted fountain at McKelvey Park
-Photo courtesy cleveland.com
In a Cleveland.com story on the recent park rededication, Berea Mayor Cyril Kleem commented that, "Her legacy lives on with this project."

According to the article, "McKelvey Park now sports a lighted fountain, which can double as a splash pad for children, a pergola, and more green space with seven imperial honey locust trees. A bell that originally hung in the former City Hall at the corner of East Bridge and Seminary has been reinstalled at the park."