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    Western New York Amusement Parks
    Western New York Amusement Parks
    Western New York Amusement Parks
    Ebook180 pages46 minutes

    Western New York Amusement Parks

    By Rose Ann Hirsch

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    About this ebook

    For more than 100 years, western New Yorkers have enjoyed the region's exciting amusement parks. During the days of trolleys and steamships, area businessmen created Celoron Park, Crystal Beach Park, and other fine local summer resorts. Decades later, lifelong memories were formed for neighborhood baby boomers who visited Glen Park and Fantasy Island, as well as one of New York State's finest theme parks, Darien Lake. Western New York has always been a proving ground for some of the nation's most famous roller coasters. The terrifying Cyclone, the fast and furious Silver Comet, and the extreme Ride of Steel have attracted the very bravest of visitors. In the new millennium, the summer tradition of visiting local amusement parks continues with a blend of family-orientated parks and theme parks that appeal to all ages.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 18, 2012
    ISBN9781439639283
    Western New York Amusement Parks
    Author

    Rose Ann Hirsch

    As a western New Yorker, Rose Ann Hirsch grew up visiting several of the area's parks and spent 31 summers riding the Comet at Crystal Beach. She has written various articles and books on amusement park topics, including Kiddie Parks of the Adirondacks.

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      Book preview

      Western New York Amusement Parks - Rose Ann Hirsch

      (NLC).

      INTRODUCTION

      The freshwater lakes, creeks, and rivers of Western New York have provided not only natural resources for the area, but also became prime locations for the area’s amusement parks. There is a continuing debate over where the eastern border of the region ends—whether or not it encompasses Rochester and Wayne County. This book defines Western New York as designated by New York State Tourism, which states that it is comprised of eight counties: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans, and Wyoming.

      Western New York is dotted with many cities. The largest is Buffalo, followed by Niagara Falls and Jamestown. Although these cities are situated on waterways, city residents were still drawn to nearby shoreline resorts in search of an escape from the urban heat, the day-to-day grind, and to enjoy some social interaction with neighbors, friends, and family.

      Amusement parks positioned on the lakes and rivers offered swimming from sandy beaches, shady picnic groves, athletic fields, boating, dancing, roller skating, bowling, concerts, entertainment, and mechanical rides. Hotels sprang up around the resorts, boasting airy lake-view rooms with wonderful amenities such as private baths with hot and cold running water. Some hotels were noted for their restaurants, whose menus offered delicious dinners of locally caught yellow perch, bass, and trout.

      Cottages ranged from tiny, one-room dwellings to large abodes two or three stories high, with spacious sleeping porches and fully equipped kitchens. The conveniences of the Industrial Revolution allowed for more leisure time for middle-class families. It was not uncommon for a family, along with a myriad of aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents, to rent a cottage at one of the resorts for the duration of the summer.

      Resorts that sported beaches and direct access to bodies of water drew the most patrons. Owners capitalized on their natural resource, building contemporary bathhouses equipped with showers and automatic hair dryers. Lockers, beach chairs, umbrellas, towels, and sanitized bathing suits could be rented at the bathhouse. Resort owners also created water playgrounds at their parks by installing water toboggan slides, water swings, water seesaws, and diving platforms.

      Mechanical rides were in demand. Resort owners often turned to independent business owners to pack their midways with rides, games, and food. This was a typical practice throughout the amusement industry. A concessionaire owning a ride or game would rent a place inside an amusement park for the season by paying rent to the midway’s owner. The concessionaire and his family worked hard to attract patrons to their ride in order to make the rent and a profit during the short season.

      In Buffalo, there were parks inside the city limits with plenty of amusing distractions inspired by the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. While the Pan-Am was not the success its backers had hoped it to be, its thrilling midway full of illusions and amazing rides motivated local entrepreneurs to recreate that excitement in smaller, easy-to-reach neighborhood venues.

      Several of the region’s amusement parks were built on the outskirts of the cities by trolley companies as a means to increase ridership on the weekends. As times changed and the automobile became the family’s main mode of transportation, the trolleys became obsolete. The freedom automobiles gave their owners sent them out of the area in search of far-away vacation destinations earlier generations had only dreamed of. In-town amusement parks soon suffered from a lack of patrons, resulting in financial losses and closure.

      Fire was a park’s greatest enemy. It could easily wipe out an entire midway before the fire department arrived. Other factors and the Great Depression of the 1930s played a major role in the closures of many Western New York resorts, including Fort Niagara Beach and the fledgling Neptune Park in Niagara Falls.

      Western New Yorkers loved their amusement parks. The parks were central to summer activities. Relationships flourished at the parks. Lifelong romances were sparked on a park’s ballroom floor; friendships were forged between patrons, workers, and owners. Several famous area residents got their start at the local amusement parks, including composer Harold Arlen whose band played aboard Crystal Beach’s steamship Canadiana during the 1920s. Arlen went on to create such memorable songs as That Old Black Magic, and Somewhere over the Rainbow.

      Many of the region’s amusement parks were family owned and operated. Employees included family members and local teenagers who swept the midway, manned concession stands, operated rides, cleaned restrooms, danced and sang in park shows, and portrayed characters and mascots.

      Despite Western New Yorkers’ love for their amusement parks, the financial difficulties and high insurance costs that plagued the parks in the later decades of the 20th century could not be averted. Even the amusement parks that had survived the Great Depression suddenly had patronage and monetary losses. Old rides broke down beyond repair; others simply lost their appeal. The days of the independent concessionaire were over, and new rides were too costly to be purchased by owners already feeling the burden of maintaining their existing rides. Modern technology finally caught up with Western New York amusement parks. Rides had become bigger, faster, and higher; the thrills had become more intense. Family-owned parks buckled under the pressure. Since it was no longer feasible for the younger generation to make a living operating an amusement park, they closed the park after their parents retired. For many waterfront amusement parks, the profit from the sale of the land far outweighed the profit the park generated, resulting in closures.

      Of all the amusement parks that once were scattered around Western New York, three have struggled through adversities and continue to operate today. One amusement park has been reborn. All offer unique experiences to Western New Yorkers as they continue a local summertime tradition.

      One

      THE FIRST SUMMER RESORTS

      The earliest record of an amusement park in Western New York is a small advertisement in the Buffalo Courier Times, dated July 1853, for a picnic grove and man-powered carousel in Olcott. The addition of summer cottages and the palatial Olcott Beach Hotel helped Olcott thrive as a summer resort. The opening of Olcott’s Luna Park in 1898, with its Dreamland Ballroom and other amusements, drew day-trippers as well as overnight visitors. A terrible fire destroyed Luna

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