Halloween event put on by Historical Society and City
By Loreen Berlin
Buena Park is celebrating the fall season.
The city’s Olde Tyme Fall Festival, held last Saturday afternoon, was the official opening of fall in the city as children participated in free games, crafts and historic house tours with parents, along with being able to purchase fall food and enjoy entertainment.
Boy Scout Troop No. 440 offered hamburgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, chips and drinks. The Youth Theatre had an assortment of brownies, popcorn and chips and Poquito Mas restaurant had a wine garden on their patio.
There were Halloween vendors too, and the Orange County Fire Authority was on hand to help children and their families understand how to make their communities safer. Children were invited to try on firefighter gear.
Teacher Leslee Milch was on hand to read stories to youngsters in the historic Bacon House.
Children were able to make ghost lollipops to take home, participate in playing drums of all sizes and play in beads that represented sand at the beach as they filled bowls and pails with it.
Drumming their way to the stage were the Korean “Boteam Drummers.” They perform at various community events and hold a class at the Walter D. Ehlers Senior Center on Mondays and Tuesdays for those interested in trying their hand at drums.
Historical Society President Chris Brown, who also serves on the Savanna School District Board, said the City and Historical Society work together to tie their portion of the Beach Boulevard Entertainment Corridor into other Halloween festivities along the corridor, such as Knott’s Scary Farm.
Along with the event being attended by hundreds of local folks, people read about Boo-uena Park on Instagram and Facebook and traveled from as far as the San Fernando Valley, Cerritos, Fullerton and Stanton to name a few.
And once again, it was deemed a big success by its planners.
“The Historical Society’s free festival gave everyone a chance to be involved in free tours of the 1887 museum homes of the Whitaker Jaynes Estate and the Bacon House, free fall-themed crafts and olde-time games for children, along with entertainment onstage for three hours,” said Mayor Art Brown.
Additionally, to raise money for the upkeep of the historical buildings, the Historical Society is continuing to sell red bricks for individuals and corporations to purchase from $50 up to $1,000, which have already started to pave the walking area of Plaza Buena.
“This is a way to become part of the past, present and future of Buena Park by purchasing a commemorative brick and to contribute to the continuous historical projects and preservation of the museum houses, historical photographs and preservation of local historical signage,” said Rinda Berry with the Historical Society.
“Our event is also an opportunity to increase membership in the Historical Society at only $15 per family, for a year,” said Brown. “And this is a fun Halloween event rather than a scary one,” Chris Brown explained.
A bit of history: Both historic museums were once home to the Whitaker and Bacon families of early Buena Park, and can be toured throughout the year by reservation, by calling 714-562-3570. It is a favorite school tour for teachers and students to learn of the history connected to the buildings and early town. The Whitaker home was originally built for Andrew Whitaker.
The Historical Society also offers an Olde Tyme Spring Picnic in Plaza Buena, which includes the Rose Garden in the center of Buena Park’s Historic District adjacent to the two museums, directly across from City Hall and adjacent to the Historical First Congregational Church.
Historians say the original Summer Picnic was a time for pioneer families of early Buena Park Township to gather and socialize during the summer, while currently the Olde Tyme Picnic is held as a springtime celebration for the community and the public is always invited.
“The Whitaker-Jaynes Estate and the Bacon House feature donated antiques and other period furnishings of an earlier farmhouse era of the 1900s and are always open for self-guided tours throughout the Springtime Picnic,” according to Buena Park Historical Curator and Mayor Art Brown.
Buena Park history notes that the Whitaker-Jaynes House was the home of Andrew W. Whitaker, brother of Buena Park’s founder, James A. Whitaker.
In 2009, the historic Dreger Clock, which originally stood at Knott’s Berry Farm, then disappeared and was later found online for sale, has been totally refurbished by the Historical Society and permanently placed in front of the Whitaker-Jaynes House.
Another interesting historical note is that of an earlier Buena Park women’s softball team known as the Buena Park Lynx, which lasted for 20 years.
Curator Brown said personal oral and written histories are always welcome at the Buena Park Historical Society.
For more information, call 714-521-1887 or visit HistoricalSociety.org.
