The area bounded by Erdman Avenue on the south, Chesterfield Avenue on the north, Crossland Avenue on the east and Lake Montebello on the west is known as Mayfield. Many attribute the name to the choice of one of the largest landowners of the area, Judge John J. Dobler.
At the onset of the 1900s, the main artery through Mayfield was really a dirt tract. In dry weather the dust on Harford Road was six inches deep. Rain made it a mud trough. The road surface was rutted from the big wagons used to haul stones from the quarry at Hall’s Spring. The west side sported streetcar tracks, while the east was lined with honey bean locust trees. The neighborhood was mostly farmland except for Erdman Cemetery. Most of it was owned by Judge Dobler, Charles Knox and Theresa Skirven.
Improvements were slated for Harford Road: paving, re-grading, and the running of ever-increasing numbers of electrical and telephone wires underground. The estates were surveyed and laid out into streets and lots; especially Dobler’s larger acreage. Development began in earnest. Lots were sold and houses built. Judge Dobler’s home (now the Disney House) and the Eutaw Methodist Church were among the first to be built on Mayfield Avenue. 1909 marked the laying of the cornerstone for the church. The original Eutaw Church on the hill at Hall’s Spring remains. It serves as a picnic area in Herring Run Park.
Numerous other churches were to follow. Boulevards were constructed and gardens and parks were laid out. All provided a setting for the massive houses that were built of brick, stone or frame. Later, even the smaller semi-detached houses reflected this grand view of pleasant city living.
The growth of Mayfield was controlled and orderly. It became, and still is, a most pleasant neighborhood in which to live…surrounded today by the pastoral lands of Clifton Park, Herring Run and Lake Montebello.
