York Town Square

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Just try to resist this memory-tugging photo of North York’s White Oak Park

This is a rare photograph of White Oak Park courtesy of J. David Allen & Son Photography. This photo shows vehicles navigating the road to Emigsville near the Oaks’ buildings. The traffic islands are there today, placing the Oaks at about the location of the present-day rental units lot where vehicles are stored. Background posts: ‘Dell rat’ blogs about southside hangout , The Oaks: ‘I often look up there … and think about how nice it was’, and Memories about ‘The Oaks’ pile up.

John Allen is part of the generation that lived during the heyday of White Oak Park, a northside hangout where many local rock groups cut their teeth.

He graduated in York Catholic, class of 1966.

That’s the year highlighted in an upcoming reunion at Sovereign Bank Stadium based on a White Oak Park theme.
For whatever reason, photographs of The Oaks are rare… .


David Allen supplied an an excellent aerial view of the park’s location. His father, J. David Allen, had taken the photo. (See another Allen aerial photo at Just try to resist this memory-tugging photo and a picturesque landscape shot at Two tales of four schools teach about change in York County education).
The park was located in an area now covered by a storage units and a lot built in the past few years, south of the Masonic Lodge, north of York.
Perhaps this view will bring back even more memories of the hangout enjoyed by many coming of age in the 1960s.
Additional posts on the Shady Dell or White Oak Park:
Just try to resist this memory-tugging photo of White Oak Park.
Stadium will be site of The Oaks music reunion
Wanted: Old photos of teen hangout.
Memorabilia from ‘the Oaks’ hard to come by.
Memories of The Oaks pile up.
Memories of The Oaks pile up – Part II
The Dell: ‘It was like family’.
White Oak Park welcomed Blaw-Knox workers .