Here are five parks that are gone but certainly not forgotten. I spent most of my working time working this ride; and I meet Judy Garland and Liza when she was a teenager as they went on this ride. I would show up at the ride with a girl and they would give me a boat all to ourselves. (A fun bit of trivia: The first words ever spoken into a telephone by a U.S. president were uttered at Rocky Point, during an 1877 visit by Rutherford Hayes. Glad to know that the Giant Coaster is still around and can be enjoyed by those who have the stomach for it . Debts incurred in the purchase of the park from the Dodge estate were extended; banks and creditors alike were leaning heavily on the owners of the park. He was the manager and operator of the Green Streak roller coaster in Paragon Park located in Nantasket Beach, Massachusetts. Nearly a quarter of a century later, the Wonderland Greyhound Park opened on the same property. Barnum in that regard created a system in which his patented inventions (with cheeky names like Funny Stairway, Earthquake Floor, Third-Degree Room, Cave of the Winds, and Revolving House of Delusion,) became the basis for the fledgling amusement industry in America. Launched as a trolley park (parks at the terminus of trolley lines were all the rage at the time), the property soon evolved from a series of serene walking paths to a bustling destination filled with midway games and rides like Ferris wheels and carousels. These old beach attractions are truly an endangered species. We used all our tickets there. Crews worked around the clock to rebuild the Giant so that it could open that season. Retro Roadmap Photo Archives- Do These Places Look Familiar To You? Ditto. . We would drive to Hull from our house in Boston. As I remember it was not a very large park, or maybe I didnt get to see it all.But memories are still there. Davids son, Joseph, entered into negotiations with the Old Colony Railroad to purchase the land under Paragon. My family lived in Agawam at the time , and on Sat .nights we could hear the cars racing at the track. They also hosted many concerts and special shows! The Stones took control of the main Paragon property, as well as its rear parking lots and warehouse, while Golden retained the section of former railroad bed that would later house the Turnpike Cars ride and the Magic Mine Train. Aw, Les that sounds like a lot of good times! Within two years, however, the friend needed financial help, and turned to Dodge, who invested in the venture and then launched grander vision of a larger, self-contained amusement park on the vacant land surrounding the Nantasket Steeplechase and the adjacent Old Mill attraction. Other favorites: the roller coaster that sat right on the edge of the water. In 1912, Dodge opened the Hotel Georgian in Park Square, an upscale nightspot in Bostons theater district that he operated until Prohibition forced it to close in 1919. Who makes these lists? Also had my first date with my future husband at Riverside!! By then, the Stone family found itself in an unfamiliar position: unsure of how long the park could survive. Benson opened his property to the public in 1924, and from there he added attractions such as rides, games, and concessions. Now its a shopping center. Cut fresh pasta into small rectangles and pinch the, Copyright 2023 TipsFolder.com | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme. So folks, remember tomorrow never knows if theres someplace or something you like go there now, enjoy it, take photos, and do what you can to make sure it sticks around, because some day it might not be there anymore! Dodge believed in his vision and bought out his partners in 1907. We lived in Rockland when I was very young and could see that often. There was one that you didnt mention it was between Fall River and New Bedford, along the highway then. I loved the wooden roller coaster and the fun house with the mirrors as well as the riding fun house sitting in the red cars! Oh Rich, I know EXACTLY what you mean about smelling the beach before you even got there. We moved to Gulf Breeze, FL and several years later they started . Thank you for the wonderful memories. also Nantasket Beach. Facing massive cost overruns, the parks owners started selling off assets following the 1910 season, which would be Wonderlands last. The financial difficulties of the Depression weighed heavily on Paragons operations. A rider suffered head, wrist and ankle injuries on Monday after being ejected from a roller coaster in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. My girlfriends father operated the roller coaster. The Nantasket Beach Steamboat Company struggled for several years before declaring bankruptcy; the Old Colony Railroad suspended train service in 1932, substituting buses to and from the Nantasket Junction depot in Hingham. Dodge assembled a group of investors to form the Eastern Park Construction Company and leased several acres from the railroad company. DeNoto, who now lives in New York, states in the suit that he took his boy to the park on June 26, 2018 because the lad was finally tall enough to ride the coasters. White City was the bestthe whole family would go on a Sunday afternooncousins, aunts and uncleswhat a blast! The first major fire at Paragon struck in 1911, leveling all of the buildings from the entrance south along Nantasket Avenue to what would become Park Avenue. Could hear the train whistle every Saturday from my yard. Well put. Happy Anniversary to you both. It was 1971. Thanks so much for sharing your memories here! Paragon Park in Hull, MA was the best of the lot of amusement parks, Id say! The parks owners were challenged in a way they hadnt been previously, as cleanup from a fire is relatively straightforward the burned and damaged areas are removed and replaced. No one riding on the roller coaster was injured, Sheth said. )Danny Sordello. Mark Mason, the manager of the Wild World amusement park near Baltimore, paid $28,000 to buy the Giant Coaster, and promptly announced plans to dismantle the ride piece-by-piece and have it rebuilt in time for the next season. My best memories of my being a teenager is my time being at Paragon Park. and I will never forget the day July 2, 1952 when we (my brother and I and cousins) were getting ready to go on the kiddie roller coaster when we suddenly had to leave. A 20-year-old man also fell when he attempted to stand up on the coaster in 1934, and a maintenance worker was killed in 1946 after he was struck while working on scaffolding on the coaster. New owners took over after Bensons death in 1943, and although the park still drew crowds, it had up-and-down years for the next few decades. But my most vivid, and fond memory was Misquamucut, and this mystery park! Following the show, wed watch the fireworks from the parking lot. The amusement park closed in 1994 and sat abandoned for years before its remains were finally demolished out of concern for public safety. We held Strong Family reunions there, one year my cousin Ted Strong parachuted into the Park! Great park. The deejays used a trailer, called the Sundeck Studio, which was outfitted with broadcasting equipment. Never a fan of ferris wheels but I do recall riding the one at Nantasket on our eighth grade class trip. At about this time, a movement within the town of Hull to legalize casino gambling complicated Paragons status within the town vision for the future. And as young teens roller skating. While the Lincoln Park Comet may have rotted away until it was finally removed, The Giant Coaster from Paragon Park lives on at another park. Whalom Park!! Shortly after railroad executives signed the paperwork the following March, fire broke out in a paint shop at the park. Some restaurants and openncafes had pictures of it years ago. The parks next transformation would not come from fire, but from Mother Natures wrath. He didn't survive the incident. Thanks for reviving a special memory! When I heard they were getting rid of the park it broke my heart. "It has stood the test of time." Lincoln Park was the highlight of my summer in the early 70s. Each week, it seemed, brought a new development proposal. A teenager was decapitated by a roller coaster after he hopped a pair of fences and entered a restricted area Saturday at Six Flags Over Georgia, authorities said. Thank you! Hands down, Mountain Park in Holyoke (Western Massachusetts). When young my parents would take me tomthe Wonderland Park in Revere MA. Ill always remember my trips to Whalom Park with my family and especially the rides on the Whip and Tilt-O-Whirl with my grandfather. I was a lonely kid wandering the park every night, until I We rented a big house, across the street from the beach. Chris Haraden lecture - The History of Paragon Park, Official Site of the Paragon Park Carousel, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Paragon_Park&oldid=1135406011, Buildings and structures in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Defunct amusement parks in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 24 January 2023, at 13:40. This is an unused Paragon Park t-shirt from the long defunct amusement park that was located in Nantasket Beach, Hull Ma. they actually replaced a section that burned in the 1960s so the coaster is the way it was originally designed. Built in 1917, the wooden. Theyve got a Facebook page too a great place for everyone to gather and share their memories of the park and fun times there. What we know about the amusement park accident that killed an 11-year-old Iowa boy. Remember the himalaya ? Remember Revere Beach and Canobie Lake when I was a kid growing up in Somerville, Ma. Real estate interests were inspired both by the removal of what some considered the honky tonk amusements and by the zoning loophole Kahns plans had exposed. The coaster was 1,400 feet long and featured an 88-foot drop. Your story brought back many memories. Turns out my very pregnant mother had started to have labor pains. One of the best. About a dozen years later I visited Paragon Park while on spring break from RIT and took a few pictures. Us and some of our neighbors would take advantage of $5 after 5 nights to take the kids to Whalom Park a few times a summer. Paragon Park opened in 1905 and lasted for just under 80 years, closing in 1984. Retro Roadmap creator, vintage road trip lover, photo taker, musician's wife and hostess with the mostess! Neither of their two children expressed an interest in carrying on the family business. I had a bad experience on one as a kid and never went on one until then. The midway featured games of skill and chance and performances by Hugo Zacchini, aka the Human Projectile. I remember riding the elephant at Bensons. I have many fond memories of Whalom Park and Im glad you included it. Great memories and was able to take my kids to a couple of these growing up. Great memories! Format: Dry plate negatives. It was where the class went after graduation of Grammar School in 56 too we also would go to the speedway. I remember Lincoln Park. Believed by many to have helped inspire the future Magic Kingdom, this amusement park flashed briefly across the New England entertainment scene, opening in 1906 and closing at the end of summer in 1910. Mountain Park in Holyoke, MA! Unfortunately it was replaced by a Six Flags. There was a tunnel of love dubbed the Rivers of Venice, an on-site radio station, and of course all manner of roller coasters and other thrill rides. Yes ! Mountain Park in Holyoke was my favorite, my cousins and I would go there when they visited from Acton. Norumbega Park loved going there when I was young! He operated the coaster until it's demise in 1916 when it was destroyed by a fire. Maybe 1977? But they would find that recovering from a flood was entirely different. Who lived where the park was. Paragon Park Hull, Massachusetts, United States Defunct, Operated from 6/10/1905 to 1985 Videos Maps Parks nearby Defunct Roller Coasters: 6 Location Located on Nantasket Beach. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The rest of the site is dedicated to condominium development. White City Amusement Park on Lake Quinsig in Worcester, MA. With the economy still climbing out of a recession, they faced stark reality years of deferred maintenance and the rising popularity of larger theme parks meant that significant investment would be required to modernize Paragon and make it competitive as a destination. The 25.9-acre amusement park the nations largest at the time included roller coasters and other rides, games, vaudeville and movie theaters, a funhouse, and a health center where premature infants in incubators were put on display. 1950s. Miraculously, Paragon opened on time for the 1978 season, but not before family matters would complicate the family business. You forgot White City Amusement Park in Shrewsbury MA. In its 96 years, 1985 was the only season of operation the roller coaster has missed. Mike! I still have a pin and coin purse inwon at games there when I was so very young. I do recall later that year being able to pick up a trinket or two at Building #19, a local salvage and odd lot shop, but even now the sight of this sign makes me kick myself. Dartmouths Child World Store Was Way Better Than Toys R Us, Dartmouth Bootleggers Role in Ending Prohibition, Dartmouth Responds to Homelessness [TOWNSQUARE SUNDAY], Cheers to National Margarita Day at These SouthCoast Spots, Dartmouth Man Pledges $25,000 to Shawmut Diner Rehab, Dartmouth To Be Home Of First SouthCoast Crumbl Cookies, New Bedford Shawmut Diner Donor to Bristol County Sheriff: Use It or Give It Back, Dartmouth School Bus Rear-Ended in Morning Crash, Have Heart-Shaped Pizza Delivered This Valentines Day. Went there as a little kid driving Rt.2 all the way from Hartford. By the 1980s, attendance had started to decline, along with the facility itself. mod i remeber the blizzard of 78 that was freezing and 27ft snow drift i know i shoveled them to make money as a kid froze my butt of lmao, and delivering newspapers in the winter took its toll on me as well , i agree i foze my arse off. He proposed twin 18-story towers, each double the height of the world-famous roller coasters first hill. I went for a visit recently and got inspired for a novel Im working on, but I was looking for some photographic inspiration. A friend, 20-year-old William Haithcoat, and a 20-year-old park employee named Darrel Robertson, attempted to rescue him. He loved the junior rollercoaster! Lots of fun and memories were made from my time spent at Whalom. War rationing and blackout drills during the 1940s put more strain on the parks operations. The Giant Coaster, which was built in 1917 and was removed from the park in 1985, is now known as The Wild One at Six Flags America. When you were at the very top, you would head downhill so fast that it looked like you were going to end up in the water. Thank you for the flashbacks! Movie Stars came from California The Three Stooges often preformed on stage I believe it closed in the late 60s. I miss them both! All three suffered an electric shock, fatal to both Haithcoat and Robertson. It was always fun to hang on the beach side with the arcades. I circled the site, which seemed so big when I was a kid, and realized how small it was, surrounded by chain link fencing now. How wonderful you met your husband at Lake Whalom. At about the same time, Dodge decided to scale back from running Paragon on a day-to-day basis. Contents 1 History 1.1 Sale and move Roller coasters Past This list is incomplete, please expand it if you can. I remember the blue slide my grandfather had the restaurant under the clock I worked there for many years with my whole family,Gee what a great time to live. Subsequent owners added various entertainments, including a baseball field on which Babe Ruth once played. She convinced me to ride the corkscrew roller coaster and that was the beginning of my love of roller coasters. The propertys history as a public attraction dates back to the 1840s, when a steamboat captain named William Winslow purchased the property and started offering scenic dinners there. The Giant Coaster sat silent, and the undulating tracks looked like the skeleton of a dinosaur carcass, being slowly dismantled and eaten away at by the vultures that couldn't wait to turn the site into a condominium complex. The Stone family, by now in sole control of Paragons operations but still sharing ownership of the land with Golden, suffered losses in 1946 and 1949. My favorite ride was the wooden roller coaster and enjoyed being an usher at the playhouse. Elvis came there back in the 50s. A roller coaster ride took a fatal turn at an amusement park in Mexico City this weekend. Traveled from CT many times in my childhood. Everytime I drive into town via George Washington Blvd I think back on when me and my siblings would try to be the first to see the roller coaster. Back before we moved to Connecticut in the. The Giant Roller Coaster of Paragon Park was one of the first sights youd notice as you drove into Hull on George Washington Boulevard. He says he and his son boarded . You forgot Pleasure Island. There was a beautiful picnic area and was home to to the Mountain Park Playhouse for avid theater goers. Lizzie- Myrtle Beach is definitely in the air today as a pal just asked about retro roadmap worthy places to go around that area. Pleasure Island, Wakefield, Mass. ive been in that too by the vfw building on the hill, was so glad to see this site !!!!!!!!!!! Then in myn40s met a man. My favorite ride was the merry go round and, when I got older the race track where you could drive cars around a track. White City on the shores of Lake Quinsigamond between the Worcester and Shrewsbury linesa wonderful memory. Over the winter, Stone and Golden began working on how they would secure the continuation of Paragon. Except for the flying swings incident. the wonderful carousel at nearby Lake Quassapaug! Activist Judeth Van Hamm Wiers, who had initially raised the issue in February and started the fundraising drive in earnest in November, pulled together three local businessmen who pooled their resources to submit the winning bid of $598,800 only $1,200 short of their credit limit in dramatic fashion at the auction. Ron what a great time you mustve had there! Lincoln Park, North Dartmouth, Ma. At the time, the park was called Wild World; hence its new name. It was one of the first landmarks you would spot when driving into Hull on George Washington Boulevard: The Giant Roller Coaster of Paragon Park. (Water World had room to expand because both of DCs older parks had closed some years before.) In 1931, David and Rose Stone created the Paragon Park Operating Company to hold their ownership interest and shield it from creditors. I loved Norumbega Park and all the rides. Dogs are banned from the state-owned Nantasket Beach Reservation from May 1 to September, and a local law change would have no effect on the states rules. Thanks for the article which sent me many, many years back in time. Yet some may have taken a day trip away from the New Bedford and Fall River areas to visit another of New Englands great amusement parks of old the seaside gem Paragon Park on Nantasket Beach in Hull, Massachusetts. . SUMMER - Open six days a week during the summer (closed Tuesdays). After the first fire, it was partially redesigned by Herbert Paul Schmeck who worked on its original construction. In the winter racing cars on the lake. Its layout and format modeled those of Luna and Dreamland at Coney Island, with an ornate front entrance and exhibitions from foreign lands surrounding the lagoon and electric tower. They rehearsed in our barn further down Northampton Street. After spending months being battered in the public realm, Kahn and Quinn abruptly changed course. For one that could never do twirly rides I loved the roller coaster the best. We had so much fun back in those days 1958 ,so many places to go and things to do back then, there were high school dancing, boys club dancing, ice skating, sad that the kids today missed out on all of those things, I will never forget them or the other good times I had growing up. Great memories. I remember a vacation my family took in Misquamucut RI , in maybe 1957 . Paragons next major milestones arrived in 1963, when three separate fires swept through the area. Mountain Park in Holyoke MA. We were bused to school at Hingham. Preservationists swung into action, mounting a publicity and fundraising campaign that drew awareness but far less than the nearly $1 million valuation that had been suggested for the 57-year-old carousel. Maurer Rides, a company from Germany,. Park. But it didnt take him long to see opportunity in the endless parade of locals coming by to catch a peek at his lions, elephants, monkeys, and other exotic animals. Find it all and much more with the interactive Roller Coaster Database. Multiple news agencies reported four cases of fractures in the back or neck linked to the Do-Dodonpa coaster at Fuji-Q Highland Park. Hilarity Hall, a funhouse akin to the Steeplechase, was built next door, and a dance hall that later became a roller rink, toy store, and video arcade. I think fondly of Whalom Park also. I liked Riverside Park in the 70s. With the Stones out of town on vacation, disaster duty fell to Klayman. Here's a list of 13 of the deadliest roller coaster accidents in the last two decades. Paragon Park was great, noise, lights, smells(mostly good) the ocean, good times. I think he is still alive but at a Zoo in another state. Which now-closed New England amusement parks do you miss the most? Contents. well i will stop babbling tc and bs all!! Cause of death was categorized as a result of either external trauma or a medical condition based on available information. Although the Stone and Golden partnership to operate the park had dissolved around 1925, ownership of the land remained divided until 1951. Great times and wonderful memories of a time long gone by. https://vimeo.com/382437881, Paragon PkSo MUCH fun My Family would go into Boston and take the boat I cant remember what pier but it took about 1/2hr 2 get 2 Nantasket BeachIt was a LIFE time ago the Memorys last FOREVER. We would start pressuring Mom and Dad to take us to Rocky Point as soon as the last of the snow melted. Savin Rock was an outstanding amusement park, with roller coasters over the water, the Virginia Reel, a fabulous carousel with brass rings to catch, fun houses and top name hamburger/hotdog drive ins to feed the appetite you worked up walking the miles of rides, races and arcades. My grandparents lived in Nantasket so I had the pleasure of going to Paragon Park many times during the summer months. A case was defined as the death of a person which was associated with a roller coaster in the United States between 15 May 1994 and 14 May 2004. I use to go to Lincoln Park in Dartmouth, Ma. memories of Nantasket! They loved it . One of its readers tipped off the local paper, The Hull-Nantasket Times, which went to press a day early to officially break the news on January 2, 1985 that a condominium developer planned to tear down Paragon Park. On September 20, 1922, George A. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Disneyland, 2003. I grew up in Hull and I was in fifth grade when closed the park. Had my first date with my future husband at Riverside. Navy man, Ill sure the trip was more for him than the two of us kids! I thought it was pretty cool that the Paragon Giant Coaster was on the list of the Smithsonians Top Ten Coasters list. Dad took us there at least once every summer???????? This makes the second fatal accident at an amusement park this year. Great memories ???? One day in June 1911 while the roller coaster company's owner was standing up in a roller coaster car delivering a speech to other passengers about safety, he ironically fell to his death. Whalom Park had it all, Playhouse Theatre where many big names came to preform in summer stock. I am looking for a picture of the flying scooters on the roof accross from the admin bldg. Googling Pleasure Island Massachusetts will yield many fan sites as well as old and new information, not the least of which is a Friends of Pleasure Island website. During the next several months, the town of Hull was in turmoil. In addition to the amusement parks there were shows (I remember seeing Loretta Lynn and others) and they also had auto races on Saturday nights. Billed as a miniature worlds fair, the 10-acre park built by the Eastern Park Construction Company was, in fact, fashioned in the image of an actual fair the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893. As one of the most historic and popular highways in North America (and dare we say the world), Route 66 has gone through a series of changes since its inception in 1926, going from . Willard's Whizzer, Marriott's Great America Amusement Park, 1980. Loved Kings Castle land as a fun place to take my grandson when he was young. Used to be a boat we could take from Boston to Nantasket for a great day trip. about three woopdie doos If I remember it correctly and about 10 lanes wide. In 1916, park owner George A. We were upset we had been looking forward to that ride. In the aftermath of the April fire, Paragon reopened without its signature front entrance. 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