How it started

Party In The Park. Aka:Music in The Park

About 10 years ago, our Mayor John Donnellon and some friends came up with the idea of let’s try and have music in our own park like other neighboring communities were doing on their city streets and Parks. With some of us having experience with previous background of being involved with bars and booking bands, n we figured we can get some bands to come play and see what happens. So in May of 2016 we had our first band, String theory that played under our upper shelter house and it took off. A great great experience we started selling hotdogs, hamburgers, brats, metts, and some concessions, hoping to make a couple dollars for the park and that has happened for over the past almost 10 years. We’ve been able to have music in their park for free to residents and visitors from around. Going forward each year. We were shooting to at least break even and there was a few times that we did not make enough to break even but we kept at it. No matter what we thought this is a great service for our community. Eventually, we were able to start getting better bands and being able to buy more food and drinks and beverages and pay for that stuff out of the event we made so we were happy as a group of volunteers.

We’ve tried to do about 8 a year and the idea has took off and we are having so much fun that thousands of people have come to enjoy music in our park. Even during Covid, we were able to offer people a night out place to sit socially distance and enjoy free music. We only had one event canceled during Covid. It would’ve been the weekend. We would have held our annual festival that we had to cancel. We were gonna try and do back to back Friday and Saturday bands with Remains and Cassette junkies and that just didn’t happen.

However, moving forward, we have been able to offer a wide diverse of bands from country rock, jazz, and all the wild having a space for people to chill get together meet their neighbors get to meet strangers. People have traveled for hours to get here from Springboro, Ohio. Dry Ridge down in Kentucky even from Columbus, Indiana, just to enjoy our free concerts in the park.

We’ve kept us a family friendly atmosphere where we bring your own chairs and allowed you to grab a picnic table and even bring the dogs and blankets and we are continuing that tradition. About four years ago we looked into idea of what can we do to make it better, we were outgrowing the shelter and started thinking Could we build a music pavilion stage. We also had contributed the fact we spend a lot on a stage each year for our annual festival. Well we are thankfully lucky to have a wonderful city administrator Dr. William Jetter who had a study conducted to what could improve Chamberlain Park and he found us a couple grants and we are proud that in 2025 to have a beautiful facility in the middle of our park to host our musics and other events going forward making Deer Park a really great place to live play and work.

Park History

The city's founders gathered in the back room of what is now the Deer Park Inn on Blue Ash Road. Built in 1886 as Helds Tavern, it was just the second building in what would eventually become Deer Park, said owner Hermann Tegenkamp.

''They used to say if you could hit a ball from the field across the street into the front door, you'd get a free drink,'' he said. A grocery now stands on the site of that baseball diamond.

Deer Park was laid out in 1886 as a suburb of residences. The first church, St. John's Catholic, was dedicated in 1892. Still mostly rural, Deer Park was incorporated as a village in 1912. There were 327 residents.

Most of the meetings of the leaders pushing to incorporate the area as a village were held in the back room of Helds Tavern. So when Deer Park was formed, council meetings were held in that same room, At the end of meetings, official minutes say, ''council adjourned to the bar.''

Historical Timeline

1788 John Cleves Symmes purchases all land between two Miami Rivers for subsequent resale and development.
1795 Treaty of Greenville signed, giving Ohio settlers assurances of safety over Indian "intrusions", Samuel and Rachel Demet Pierson establish log home in vicinity of Deer Park
1863 Morgan's raiders visit the area as they pass through Ohio. Story's have it they stopped at what is now Wards Florist.
1881 Passenger train runs from Deer Park to Lebanon along "Highland Route."
1886 Mutual Homestead Building Co. purchases large section of Pierson estate for suburban development.
1890 At some point Mr. Chamberlain and Mr. Parrott purchased land in the area.
1903 Rapid Railway interurban transit (for the "black cars") brings trolley service to Deer Park; car barns built at Hegner and Blue Ash.
1906 Amity school constructed.
1912 Deer Park incorporated as village, with backing of Deer Park Welfare Corporation.
1930-1951 Several annexations increase overall size of village.
1952 Deer Park becomes a city.
1953 Deer Park Township is formed.
1962 Celebration of Deer Park’s 50th anniversary.
197? The City builds a new Community Center.
1987 Celebration of Deer Park’s 75th anniversary.
2001 Deer Park newly reworked war memorial in Chamberlain Park is dedicated.
2020 Community Center Remodeled Updated

Party In The Park Dates COMING SOON

Pavilion Dedication May 10 2025

Ribbon Cutting Dedication at 3:00 PM followed by 2 bands

Jump n Jive Big band 4p-6p

The Remains 7p-10p

Events at Chamberlin Park Park

We host a variety of events throughout the year, including outdoor concerts, festivals, and educational programs. Check out our calendar to see what's happening at Chamberlin Park Park this season.

Activities for Kids

Bring the whole family and enjoy a day of fun-filled activities for all ages. From playgrounds to splash pads, there's always something exciting happening at Chamberlin Park Park.

Park Rules and Regulations

For the safety and enjoyment of everyone, we ask that all visitors abide by our park rules and regulations. These include guidelines for pets, trash disposal, and more. Please help us keep Chamberlin Park Park clean and beautiful for generations to come.

Volunteer Opportunities

Want to get involved in helping to maintain and improve Chamberlin Park Park? We offer a variety of volunteer opportunities, from trail maintenance to event planning. Contact us to learn more and get involved today.

Park Hours and Location

We are open every day from dawn to dusk. Our park is located at 123 Main Street, and is easily accessible by public transportation or car. Parking is available on-site, and admission is free.