Summit County’s park district is celebrating its 90th birthday with a new book that focuses on key figures from its past, including longtime director Harold Wagner and naturalist Bert Szabo. The people-oriented, 146-page book was written for Metro Parks, Serving Summit County, by Sarah Vradenburg, 62, of Akron, a former Beacon Journal reporter and editorial writer. It is titled Steps in Time: Ninety Years of Metro Parks, Serving Summit County (Ringtaw Books/University of Akron Press, $19.95). The book is available at the Seiberling Nature Realm, 1828 Smith Road, Akron.Vradenburg will be at the center for a book signing from 1 to 4 p.m. today. Wagner, who died in 1983, was a colorful character who played a major role in the development of the park district in its early days, and that appealed to Vradenburg, who spent more than four years researching and writing the book that is filled with historic photographs.“The stories just sort of emerged … and I decided to focus on the personalities,” she said.Wagner was hired as the secretary-manager of Akron Metropolitan Park District in 1924 — three years after it was formed. It was the second metro park district in Ohio. At first, it owned one-thirtieth of an acre in the Merriman Valley.The Boston-born Wagner, known to be blunt and caustic with a wry sense of humor, was instrumental in acquiring land for parks, although there was no money for land acquisition in the early days.The landscape architect and civil engineer had come to Akron in 1917 to help rubber baron F.A. Seiberling develop Fairlawn Heights.He later approached Goodyear founder Seiberling about his vision for a chain of parks that could be used by rubber workers and others. Parks were becoming a necessity with the automobile and more leisure time.Seiberling first donated 470 acres in West Akron and Fairlawn that became Sand Run Metro Park, the first major land acquisition for the park district.Wagner and Seiberling then convinced the family of Cleveland inventor-industrialist Charles F. Brush to donate 275 acres in Richfield in 1929. The land became Furnace Run Metro Park.Gifts of land over the years led to the creation of the Gorge, Goodyear Heights, Firestone, Deep Lock Quarry, O’Neil Woods and Hampton Hills parks — with the emphasis of green, natural largely undeveloped parks.Wagner helped expand the Virginia Kendall park in the Cuyahoga Valley. The park district had taken over management of 450 acres. In 1940, he single-handedly convinced the Ohio legislature to appropriate $75,000, and he used the money to add more than 800 acres to the park.In 1928, Wagner broke the law and submitted a levy to support the park district — without the approval of his three park commissioners. They later backed him up, and the levy was approved.Wagner remained the secretary-director for 34 years. He retired in 1958. At that time, the district had grown to six parks with 3,700 acres.Vradenburg said she is not sure that Wagner would “make it in today’s world.”Today the park district has 14 parks and six conservation areas that cover 11,000 acres. It has 125 miles of trails. The district gets 4.5 million visitors a year.Szabo was hired in 1957 and retired in 1991 as chief naturalist. He built a program and hired a staff to bring the parks closer to people. He started nature walks in 1958. He helped create the Nature Realm on Smith Road in North Akron.In her first book, Vradenburg also notes how park district director-secretary Arthur T. Wilcox started the popular Fall Hiking Spree in 1964. He wanted to get more people into the parks. Those who completed the hiking event were to get staffs made from saplings cut within the park district.More than 1,500 people completed the first spree, and park officials were loath to cut down that many saplings, Hiking staffs of broom handles were substituted that year.The park district is “very pleased” by the book, said spokesman Nate Eppink, who served as its editor.Vradenburg said what impressed her most in looking at the park’s 90 years is how Summit County residents love their park district and how people got involved with the park system.Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.