Look Back: Easter egg hunts attracted thousands of children

A novel tradition that continues is the annual Easter Egg hunt for children.

While today’s egg hunts are organized by churches, schools and many business or community organizations, egg hunts were HUGE back in the day.

“About 10,000 march to Riverside Park and participate in quest for eggs,” was the headline in the Wilkes-Barre Record on April 5, 1926.

“After parading through the central city, about 10,000 children marched to Riverside Park to participate in Wyoming Valley’s 11th annual Easter egg hunt on Saturday morning,” as the story begins.

A corps of Boy Scouts and policemen on horseback kept the throng of children in line during the parade that began on Public Square down South Main Street, turning onto Academy Street leading to Riverside Park at the edge of the Susquehanna River, which formerly was the Fraley Farm.

What was notable for the 1926 egg hunt involved crippled and disabled children taking part for the first time being escorted around a specially roped section of Riverside Park that was off limits to other children.

As the thousands of anxious children stood waiting to duck under the starting line rope, they dashed onto the field by the sound of a revolver in search of Easter eggs.

The Wilkes-Barre Record on March 29, 1917, published a story that appears to be the first Easter Egg hunt at Riverside Park.

“Mr. J.S. Engle and Guy B. Flyte have received permission to use Riverside Park on Saturday, April 7, (1917) for an Easter egg hunt. Numerous prizes have already been given for this event, several hundred eggs donated. Mr. Engle says that at the rate of donations are coming in, he expects to have at least 8,000 to distribute among the grass, trees and bushes of Riverside Park,” the March 29, 1917, story reported in the Wilkes-Barre Record.

The April 7, 1917, Easter egg hunt involved “several thousand children” and a number of adults keeping watch, the Record reported Monday, April 9, 1917.

“The eggs and prizes had been distributed early in the morning by the Egg Hunt committee assisted by a squad of Boy Scouts. There were 1,800 hard boiled eggs, 4,200 chocolate eggs, 180 prize baskets, five crates of oranges and 25 pounds of smaller candies,” the Record reported of the first egg hunt at Riverside Park.

Prizes included such things as a ton of coal, a suit of clothing, stockings, dresses, roller skates and theatre tickets.

The Record reported Mr. J.S. Engle and Guy B. Flyte came up with the idea of an egg hunt for the poor children who lacked most of the joys that come with Easter.

Sometimes egg hunts got out of hand.

Nearly 5,000 children gathered at Kirby Park in Wilkes-Barre for the egg hunt on March 26, 1951, but it got rowdy.

“Children who arrived at 11 o’clock, the official starting time, found the hunt already underway because earlier arrivals got out of hand and started to scramble over the grounds 15 minutes before the official starting time,” the Times Leader reported that day.

Many parents started a “near riot” when their toddlers and youngsters began to cry.

An orderly egg hunt the same day took place in Lee Park, Hanover Township, sponsored by Hanover Township VFW, Post 5267, which had its headquarters at Lee Park Avenue and St. Mary’s Road.

An estimated 1,200 children dashed off onto the hilly field across the street in search of eggs, candies, baskets and prizes.

The Times Leader on March 26, 1951, estimated nearly 50,000 children were involved in egg hunts throughout the Wyoming Valley.