Not much is left of Victoria Park, that last vestige of the primeval forest that once covered the old bed of Forty Mile Creek. The Sewage Disposal Plant and the Queen Elizabeth Way between them have almost squeezed it out of existence.
Of the 8 or 10 acres of black walnut, pine, white and red oak, elm, chestnut, shellbark hickory, buttonwood (its other names are sycamore and plane), basswood or linden, willow, choke cherry and white thorn, perhaps 20 trees are left standing.
The little patch of woods was given by one of the village fathers, the late W.F. Clark - uncle of "Andy" of the Neighbourly News Broadcast - for a park and picnic ground.
Victoria Park began in earnest to exercise its function as a picnic ground with the coming of the H.G.& B. Electric Railway to the foot of Livingston Avenue. The "trolley" brought lodge and Sunday School picnic parties to the end of the line, and they found their way to the Park. Village officials went into action and caused stout rope swings to be hung from the trees; a dancing pavilion was built, refreshment booths erected and picnic tables set up. They even went the length of putting up turnstile gates, one to the top of Clark Street hill, back of the barrel factory, where a steep flight of wooden steps led down the hill, the other on Elizabeth Street.
The green-coated Dufferin Rifles from Brantford once camped there for a weekend, to the great edification of the small boys of the village. And the biggest Grange Parade ever held in Grimsby assembled there.
After the H.G.& B. extended its line to Grimsby Beach, carrying all the picnic parties along with it, the brief popularity of Victoria Park vanished.
