Ellwood B. Chapman (1871-1955) received the Pugsley Bronze Medal in 1948 for his devotion to conservation movements in Pennysylvania, particularly those relating to the parks and forest reserves. In 1930, he was an organiser of the Pennysylvania Parks Association and was its president from 1930 until he resigned in 1954. Chapman became a director of the Philadelphia Housing Association in 1925 and served as a vice-president from 1931 until 1954 when he was named as honorary director. Chapman was vice-president of Stephen E Whitman & Son, Inc, confectioners and had been with the concern for nearly 25 years when he retired. In 1930, Chapman authored An Outline of a Balanced State Park System for Fifteen Million People which was commissioned by the Pennyslyvania Parks Association.
The report also pointed out that Pennysylvania had only 12,854 acres of state county parks to serve 9,631,000 people which amounted to merely 1.3 acres per thousand population. The primary recommendation of the plan suggested a balanced system of state parks covering the Commonwealth on the basis of ten acres of park land per 1000 people for existing and future populations. The balanced system was to be based on a 30-mile radius surrounding the major centers of population. On this basis Pennsylvania should have had 96,000 acres in 1930 with a projected need of 104,000 acres in 1950. The report further recommended that the Commonwealth prepare a comprehensive statewide park program based on the population needs showing the actual quantity of area needed and general locations in which it was needed. It was pointed out that the deficiency of parks existed in the presence of one of the most generous supplies of scenic and unique sites in the country.