Rockaways' Playland
Rockaways' Playland was an
History
Thompson's Amusement Park
The park site was originally developed as a resort area in 1876 by William Wainwright.[2]
In 1900, George Tilyou, owner of Steeplechase Park in Brooklyn's Coney Island, purchased land in the Seaside neighborhood along Rockaway Beach. He called the plot "Steeplechase Park".[3] Within a year, Tilyou offered to sell 2 acres (0.81 ha) to LaMarcus Adna Thompson,[4] a roller coaster designer who had been nearly bankrupted when the assassination of William McKinley prevented him from showing his Switchback Railway at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition.[4] Still, Thompson managed to buy the property by 1901 and begin construction on an amusement park.[2][3]
Thompson's Amusement Park is variously said to have opened in 1901,[3] 1902,[2][5] or 1903,[3][6][7] on land that extended to the Rockaway Beach and Boardwalk. In 1903, a ferry dock was built adjacent to the park, enabling visitors from other boroughs to visit it or one of the other several amusement districts along the beach and boardwalk.[8][9] By 1905, Thompson was operating the amusement park by himself.[2]
After Thompson died in 1919, his family operated the park[8] until they sold it to a syndicate led by Robert Katlin in December 1927.[10] Katlin opened several facilities and amusements including a new arena, gymnasium, and swimming pool.[8]
Geist operation
In January 1928, the park was purchased by A. Joseph Geist, a Queens lawyer and businessman who would go on to serve as the president of the Rockaways Chamber of Commerce and on the Board of Higher Education.[11][12] Renaming it Rockaways' Playland, Geist soon launched an expansion project that added a dance hall, menagerie, and roller coaster.[2][6] He added numerous attractions in the early 1930s, and by 1936, he was advertising that the park contained 24 distinct attractions.[13] New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses shut the amusement area in 1937, as he intended to build the Shore Front Parkway through the area. A waterfront stretch measuring 200 feet (61 m) by 2.5 miles (4.0 km) was condemned, and Geist lost half of his rides.[4] Moses had also destroyed the nearby bungalows in an unsuccessful attempt to shut down Playland.[14] Following a rebuilding program costing between $3 million and $5 million, Geist reopened Playland in 1939.[4]
Playland saw attendance decrease during World War II. A wartime blackout was applied to the area, which mandated that the park's lights be shut off to avoid enemy detection; the blackout was lifted in August 1945.[4] More attractions, including a kiddie park named Joytown, were added in 1949, followed by the installation of new lighting systems the following year under a $1 million modernization program.[13][4] Visitors continued to arrive from various places in the New York metropolitan area such as Jersey City, Lower Manhattan, and Yonkers.[13] Boats to Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn would start operating in 1954,[15] followed by another ferry service to Westchester in 1964.[16]
Throughout the 1950s, Playland hosted numerous events and special occasions.[15] One New York Times article in 1953 described how six hundred orphans were taken to Playland.[17] When Geist died in 1960, his son Richard took over the park and added numerous contests, such as beauty pageants every Monday evening and children's contests each Saturday afternoon.[15][6] Playland saw a small attendance decrease during the 1964 New York World's Fair, hosted in nearby Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, though attendance quickly returned to normal levels after the fair.[16] By 1970, Playland had attracted 175 million visitors in the years since A. Joseph Geist had purchased the park.[6] Attendance began to decline in the late 1970s as the rides became more dated.[16]
The 1985 season was the last operating season for Playland, though at the time, Richard Geist did not intend for the park to close permanently.[16] The following year, insurance premiums increased eightfold, from $50,000 in 1985 to $408,000 in 1986. At that time, Geist decided not to reopen the park.[16][5] Upon Playland's closure, a housing development was planned on Playland's site.[5] The land was still vacant in 1995.[7] While the site was developed by 2003, the Beach 98th Street station of the New York City Subway still bore the name "Playland".[18]
Attractions
At its opening, Thompson's Amusement Park included a
In 1928, a 165-foot-long (50 m) Olympic-size swimming pool was added to Playland, being used for Summer Olympic tryouts.[8][18][19] An 8,000-seat arena was also added;[4][6] before being torn down in 1930, it was used for circuses, as well as for church services on Sundays and for boxing matches on Fridays.[8] A dance hall, gymnasium, and menagerie, were also added,[8][6] and a 5,500-locker bathhouse was built.[4]
In 1930 Geist added a
In popular culture
The Atom Smasher was featured in the 1952 film This Is Cinerama.[13][4][19][21] The release of This Is Cinerama and its popularity and positive reception brought thousands of visitors to Playland.[15] Playland was also shown in the 1982 movie Sophie's Choice.[16][4]
References
Citations
- ^ Sheidlower, Noah (July 22, 2020). "NYC'S LOST HISTORIC AMUSEMENT PARKS". Untapped New York. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Lucev 2007, p. 65.
- ^ a b c d e Gottlock & Gottlock 2013, p. 85.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rabin, Bernard; McKenna, Ken (May 30, 1982). "Playland born of tragedy". New York Daily News. pp. 485, 498 – via newspapers.com .
- ^ a b c Fried, Joseph P. (April 24, 1987). "After 86 Years, Rockaways Playland To Be Razed For 300 Condominiums". The New York Times. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f "Playland Aglitter for 42 d Fun Year". New York Daily News. April 26, 1970. p. 160. Retrieved September 12, 2019 – via newspapers.com .
- ^ a b Kershaw, Sarah (September 3, 1995). "Neighborhood Report: Rockaway; Building a Home for Rockaway's Lost Soul". The New York Times. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gottlock & Gottlock 2013, pp. 86–87.
- ^ Lucev 2007, p. 8.
- ^ "Thompson Amusement Park at Rockaway Park Sold". Brooklyn Times-Union. December 4, 1927. p. 51. Retrieved August 23, 2019 – via newspapers.com .
- ^ "A. JOSEPH GEIST, LAWYER WAS 76; Former Member of Board of Higher Education Dies". The New York Times. August 12, 1963. p. 21. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
- ^ "Sells Amusement Park". Brooklyn Times-Union. January 15, 1928. p. 12. Retrieved August 23, 2019 – via newspapers.com .
- ^ a b c d e f Gottlock & Gottlock 2013, p. 88.
- ^ Lucev 2007, p. 66.
- ^ a b c d Gottlock & Gottlock 2013, p. 89.
- ^ a b c d e f Gottlock & Gottlock 2013, p. 90.
- ^ "600 Get Trip to Playland". The New York Times. July 8, 1953. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ a b c Hevesi, Dennis (December 7, 2003). "In Rockaways, a Tide Is Coming In". The New York Times. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ a b "Rockaways' Playland thrilled New Yorkers for nearly a century, then it was gone". am New York. Newsday. May 16, 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Atom Smasher (Rockaways' Playland)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ "Rockaways Playland, Queens NY". Defunct Parks. September 26, 2015.
Sources
- Gottlock, Barbara; Gottlock, Wesley (2013). Lost Amusement Parks of New York City: Beyond Coney Island. Lost. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-62584-556-6.
- Lucev, Emil R. (2007). The Rockaways. Postcard history series. Arcadia Pub. ISBN 978-0-7385-4990-3.