Breakheart Reservation to turn 75

SAUGUS – Park officials are working to get the party started as preparations for Breakheart Reservation’s 75th birthday officially get underway.May 16 is the day the 640-acre state park hits retirement age and Ed Murray, chairman of the Friends of Breakheart, said he would like the celebration to be huge.In 1933, under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Civilian Conservation Corp. was established to essentially give men jobs during the Great Depression, but also to preserve the country’s open space and recreational resources. The Massachusetts park system was in its infancy then and Breakheart Reservation was on the verge of existence.Murray said the celebration of the park will actually include a week of events that will include a talk on the CCC and how the park got started.”Monday will be a speaker who will talk about the CCC,” he said. “Wednesday we’ll do a night hike and have a huge campfire on the beach and toast marshmallows. Friday we’ll have a movie.”The big day, however, will be Saturday.Murray said he expects dignitaries from the Department of Conservation and Recreation and possibly from the governor’s office to attend and the DCR’s mounted units will be on hand.There will also be demonstrations.The goal, Murray said, is to, in one day, give visitors a little taste of everything that goes on throughout the year. With that in mind, the Sugar Shack will be open to show off the maple sugar process, the woodpile will be alive with workers manning chain saws, axes and a two-man saw for a demonstrations and there will be a morning nature hike.Murray said things are still coming together, but he expects the day to be an exciting one with a good turnout.”We want to give a sample of all the different things we do all through the year,” he said. “There will be a road race with raffles and prizes, MIX 98.5 will be here and as they say, much, much more.”