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Homer
Warren Fish - Cornelius Amory Pugsley Local Medal Award, 1959
Homer
Warren FishHomer Warren Fish (1902-1961) received the local level Pugsley Medal in 1959 “for exceptional vision in the planning and development of Oglebay Park, one of the finest municipal parks in existence, and for substantial and nationally recognized effort in advancing the cause of municipal parks.” He came to Wheeling, WV in 1935 – in the aftermath of the Great Depression - to work for the Wheeling Planning Commission and the State Road Commission. Soon after, he became an advisor to the Wheeling Park Commission (WPC), and then superintendent of the fledgling Oglebay Park in early 1936 when park commissioners created the new position as they realized the amount of work and expertise needed to develop the former estate-farm into a public recreation facility. The undeveloped 1,200 acre Oglebay Park given to the city of Wheeling for park and recreation purposes was a challenge to Homer Fish and he dedicated his life to its development. His success is reflected in the observation in 1959 of the American Institute of Park Executives that “Oglebay is considered by many to be the finest municipal park development in existence.”
During his twenty-five years of service to the WPC, Homer Fish created an enviable program of park development admired throughout the nation. Under his administration, Oglebay Park, flagship of the WPC properties, became an exemplary recreation area, studied by park and city officials from all over as an example of achievement in facility development and recreation programming. Fish was the right man at the right time, remembered by staff members as “…a builder and financial genius.”
Homer Fish is associated so closely with the WPC that few people recall that his genius for doing a lot with a little – either paid staff or operating funds – was honed in a stint as director of parks and recreation in nearby Steubenville, Ohio (1929-1935). Municipal budgets were cut unmercifully in the early 1930s, but when Fish left Steubenville for Wheeling, he left behind a record of accomplishments: the Belleview golf course, three swimming pools, an expanded playground system, and a master plan. This experience shaped his financial philosophy and management style for the rest of his life.
During Fish’s tenure, Oglebay Park was transformed from an estate-farm of 750 acres to a model municipal park of 1,200 acres. In the beginning, with federal funds and workers, and a handful of loyal men left over from farm days, he set about to develop the property into a unique family center for recreation. Early improvements included picnic sites, nature trails, a riding academy and bridle paths, a large swimming pool/recreation complex, golf course and caddy camp, tennis courts and clubhouse, outdoor theater, a youth camp, and family vacation cottages. At nearby Wheeling Park, which was a former amusement park, a large swimming pool and bathhouse was built.
As facilities were considered and constructed, first with federal monies, and later through assistance from the private sector, Fish scrutinized each one for its ability to produce income for maintenance and renovations. “He believed the parks should be self-supporting as much as possible, so Wheeling residents did not bear the burden for everyone who used them,” recalled Earl Gaylor, Fish’s assistant superintendent. Wheeling’s tax levy for parks – one of the lowest in the nation – remained low even as the park commission budget increased.
World War II ended all hopes of continued capital growth in Wheeling’s parks. At his request, Homer Fish was commissioned a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve and left for the war. In 1945, Fish and his commissioners searched for ways to meet the expenses of operating the parks and providing for their growth. After much study, they created the Parks System Trust Fund of Wheeling to raise funds from the public for capital projects. The trust fund was innovative in public park operations, and it thrust Wheeling’s parks into the forefront of municipal recreation areas throughout the country. By the early 1950s, Oglebay Park was an important economic and cultural factor in the community. Visitors came from everywhere, often learning about the facility from travel writers like Gilbert Love of the Pittsburgh Press. Love touted Oglebay Park as “…the most elaborate recreation set-up within easy driving distance of Pittsburgh.”
Fish realized early that Wheeling could not sustain intensive development in a park as large as Oglebay without providing accommodations for out-of-town guests, who would share the financial burden. He promoted the building of a lodge for many years before its actual construction was undertaken (the first section of the magnificent Wilson Lodge opened in 1957). It is largely due to Fish’s “vision, planning, and perseverance” that the facility was built. Wilson Lodge has turned out to be the single most important factor in the continued solvency of the WPC.
The development of Oglebay Park was not easy, but became a reality through Fish’s “pay-as-you-go” financing. Under his management and budgeting, revenue producing facilities contributed a large share to the over-all maintenance and construction budget, without the park appearing to be commercialized. Oglebay became the model for others who came to study how to increase self-generated revenues and thus rely less on taxation to finance their park system.
The building of Wilson Lodge was important in helping attract the prestigious American Institute of Park Executives (AIPE) to move their headquarters to Oglebay Park from the Chicago area in 1957. “The foresight and vision of Homer Fish was largely responsible for bringing the professional organization to Wheeling,” said Margaret Dankworth, who served as AIPE’s assistant executive director. The AIPE prospered at Oglebay until it merged with five other organizations to become the National Recreation and Park Association in 1966.
Fish was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. When he was two years old, his parents moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was a star athlete at Central High School in Grand Rapids, and a physical education/business administration major at Michigan State Normal (now Eastern Michigan University), graduating in 1927. He went on to do graduate work at the National Recreation School in 1927 and 1928 and New York University, working at various community recreation programs in the Grand Rapids Recreation Department in the summer months. His stops included Grand Haven, MI in 1927, Salisbury, NC in 1928, and the Bowling Green Settlement House in New York City in 1928-29. In 1959, Fish was also honored by the combined Recreation Workers of Michigan for “outstanding contributions to the parks and recreation field” and “for bringing national recognition to his home state by his outstanding leadership.”
When he was in declining health, Homer Fish was honored by his peers and colleagues with a testimonial dinner in 1959 in honor of his twenty-fifth anniversary as superintendent of Wheeling Parks, hosted by the Wheeling Area Conference on community development. More than four hundred of his friends and associates attended. At the dinner, Dr. Perry E. Gresham, president of Bethany College, complimented Fish as “the man whose administration matches the remarkable gift of Oglebay Park.” His Pugsley Medal citation stated “Few, if any men have made a greater contribution to their communities than Homer Fish, who has developed Oglebay Park into one of the finest municipal parks in existence. His ability to get things done, in spite of all opposition, and his ever-abiding curiosity and search for knowledge have marked his career since its beginning.
When Homer Fish died in early 1961, his high standards for planning and development continued to be the underlying principles followed by the Wheeling Park Commission.
Prepared by: Barbara B. Palmer, Historian, The Oglebay Foundation