Euclid Beach Park in Cleveland, Ohio closed forever on September 28, 1969, yet it remains a fondly remembered defunct park. Although its three legendary wooden roller coasters were lost to time, a few of its attractions live on today... including a vintage kiddie car ride that is the last of its kind left operating. Another survivor is the park's old carousel, which can now be ridden at the Cleveland History Center, not far away from the site of the old park.
The carousel was the nineteenth machine built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company and as seen here, it operated at Euclid Beach from 1910 until the park closed in 1969. After a stint at Old Orchard Beach in Maine, it triumphantly returned to Cleveland and reopened in 2014.
The ride's figures are much larger than a typical PTC carousel. I forget the name of the carver who directed the creation of the horses, but he was known for his oversized figures which give the carousel life.
The arch depicted in the middle panel of this bench was the park's iconic entrance, and it amazingly still stands today, even being repaired after an automobile crashed into it in 2007.
The Cleveland History Center was holding a special event that paid tribute to defunct Northeast Ohio amusement parks in addition to Euclid Beach (unfortunately there are many). Several people brought memorabilia to display. Here are some items from Geauga Lake, which closed in 2007 and previously contained SeaWorld Ohio. The SeaWorld park was a separate gate until it was merged into Geauga Lake when Six Flags took control of the park. (It's a long story...) After Cedar Fair bought the giant park in 2004, the old SeaWorld side became a waterpark. Cedar Fair ultimately closed Geauga Lake after three years because it was a competitor to Cedar Point.
Impressively, someone still has an old Shamu costume from SeaWorld Ohio as well as Geauga Dog, the classic mascot of Geauga Lake!
The Raging Wolf Bobs opened at Geauga Lake in 1988 and operated until shortly before the park's closure. One of the ride's vintage PTC coaster cars has been restored by a local fan, and it was on display at the museum that day.
This old map of Geauga Lake is pretty impressive for a small amusement park that was not owned by a major corporation. My dad visited the park several times and recalls the old "Double Loop and Corkscrew too!" catchphrase in TV ads.
Another short-lived Cleveland amusement park was Luna Park, which was the sister to Pittsburgh's park of the same name. However, Luna in Cleveland lasted twenty years longer than in Pittsburgh, closing in 1929.
Another Euclid Beach attraction that can still be ridden today is the Great American Racing Derby, which operates at Cedar Point as Cedar Downs. I'm unsure if this horse is from a Derby Racer that operated somewhere else or if it's a replica.
Cedar Downs still operates more than a century after it opened at Euclid Beach, and it's a treasure as one of only two rides of its type left operating.
One of the museum volunteers was kind enough to show us the interior of the Euclid Beach carousel, and it's always cool to see all the cables from which the ride platform is suspended. Most carousel pavilions make the cables invisible because the roof covers them.
Not a detail was missed in the ride's restoration!
The volunteer operating the carousel had previously worked at Euclid Beach Park himself, so I'm sure things came full circle for him!
Note the large "PTC" insignia on the shield carved into the horse.
The ride still operates with its original band organ, which is always wonderful to see!
Another exhibit at the Cleveland History Center is this large car museum in the basement.
I was not expecting to find such an elaborate collection!
In any case, the Cleveland History Center was amazing and I recommend it to anyone visiting the city.
We'll finish out this post by looking at yet another Euclid Beach attraction that lives on today, the "Kiddie Turnpike" seen in this display board at the museum.
After a period of operation in Indiana, the Euclid Beach Kiddie Turnpike was added to Idlewild Park in Ligonier, Pennsylvania in 1999. This ride is significant as the last "Arrowflite" car ride built by Arrow Dynamics left operating, made famous by Disneyland's short-lived Midget Autopia.
Known as Ricky's Racers (the park mascot is Ricky Raccoon), the ride is off-limits to adults.
However, I was able to ride it several times as a child.
The cars have been repainted since I rode it as a kid, but they still look great.
Here's a video of the ride in action (click "full screen" for a bigger picture). The drive system has been modified, and the cars move at a more leisurely pace than they did in the past.
I'm sure that very few people know this is the last ride of its kind left operating, but it is one of many classic western Pennsylvania amusement rides that deserve to be preserved.
Idlewild is still one of my favorite places with its beautiful tree cover and greenery. Here are a few pictures of the rest of the park, which sits in Pennsylvania's mountainous Laurel Highlands.
The Rollo Coaster was built in 1938 and is a perfect starter coaster for kids. It also has a really fun name.
Idlewild opened in 1878 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in America. It originally developed along a railroad line that brought picnickers to the area from Pittsburgh, and this sign dates from those days. Although the railroad made its last run through the park in 1952, the park's miniature train still travels along part of the old railroad alignment.
Most of the park sits on the north bank of the Loyalhanna Creek, but several rides, including Ricky's Racers, are on the south bank. The bridge to reach that part of the park is well over century old and adorned with flower baskets.
I hope you have enjoyed this trip from Cleveland to the Western Pennsylvania mountains! If you're interested in seeing more of Idlewild, I edited together more of my pictures (and a couple of tributes to the park's defunct rides) in the video below:
13 comments:
Budblade
said...
Great pictures! Thanks for posting. I visited the Cleveland history center in 2017, and I also recommend it. Very cool place
It looks like the carousel received an excellent restoration, including the band organ.
In the carousel photo after the "No. 19" image, the paint job on those white/cream colored horses looks great. So shiny! They almost look translucent, like they're made of alabaster.
I like that gumball yellow finish on the car you're ''driving'. That is you, right? I think I prefer the shiny, non metallic paint jobs better.
The Rollo Coaster looks like it would be a lot of fun, zipping through the forest. It looks great weaving around all the trees.
Idlewild looks like a wonderful old amusement park with a lot of old original rides. Thanks for this tribute to grand old parks, Andrew.
Wonderful photo documentation, Andrew. Is the "Amusement Now" YouTube channel yours? I did hit the subscribe button. I comment there under the name "@cayoooga".
JB, you couldn't ask for a better restoration job on a 100+ year old ride! Yes, that is me in the car. I don't know why they changed the colors, but I can't be too picky! The Rollo Coaster is heavily wooded, and it's always a fun zip through the trees. Thanks for the comment!
I’m late to the party! I love old carousels, and luckily they seem to survive when a park closes - somebody else comes along. I figure that some must not survive though, since I knew a couple that collected carousel horses and other animals, they had a houseful of them. Even a basement that was dug out of the earth, full of carousel critters tucked away!
Wow, somebody crashed into that arch? Probably some crazy kid on his cellphone, am I right? (Biting social commentary).
Geauga Dog, now there’s an obscure character.
i used to have some Cleveland Luna Park items (nothing fancy), but don’t know where they are now. Reading your blog post made me remember them!
The Racing Derby looks different from a standard carousel, how do those operate?
Love old cars, and those brushed steel beauties are pretty great. The Cleveland History Center does look like it’s worth a visit.
And I love that there is still a “Midget Autopia” operating somewhere. I’d love to know how many were out there at the peak, because I have seen vehicles for sale that always say they are from the Disneyland iteration.
Whoa, that Rollo Coaster looks awesome, it reminds me a bit of the Gold Rusher at Magic mountain, only older and cooler.
I love the shots of these parks with rivers and forests, so different from what we have here in SoCal.
Major, the Euclid Beach carousel came very close to being sold off piece by piece, but luckily a buyer footed the bill for the whole machine! Usually they auction each figure individually, and then the whole ride is offered for the combined price of each individual figure. Wow, that sounds like an amazing basement! I would love a Dentzel figure of my own someday!
Apparently the arch came close to collapsing after the collision, but they were fortunately able to repair it. I could also be called a "crazy kid on his cell phone" sometimes! Though never when I'm driving (hehe)!
That's awesome you had some items from Luna Park. Maybe they will be unearthed in "the box" one day! :-) The Derby Racer has a complicated mechanism of gears and pulleys underneath the ride platform that move the horses up and down and forward and backward. It's much more intense than a regular merry-go-round.
That is a great question about how many Midget Autopia-type rides there were at the model's peak. Of course if anything can be labeled as "1950s Disneyland," it will automatically fetch ten thousand dollars.
Thanks for the comment, and I'm glad you appreciated the post!
That Euclid Beach Park carousel is beautiful! What a great restoration job! I have two friends (brothers) who are much older than me and were raised in Euclid, Ohio. They spent many hours at the park as children and teenagers and I got to hear a lot of their stories about the park. Unfortunately, that included the sad one, about about their beloved park closing and being torn down. I visited Cleveland with one of them years ago, but the museum hadn't been built yet. I did get to see that original arch though! They said that a mall in the area would host an annual event, celebrating the old park. There would be ride vehicles on display and the restored "Laughing Sal" from the old Laff in the Dark ride. These items were all owned by private collectors, and loaned out for the event. Also, someone had converted one of the chrome "swinging" Rocket Ship vehicles into a driveable car and would give rides to people during that event.
And the Humphrey Company did live on past the park's closure, and continued to make their "famous" popcorn balls and salt water taffy, and sold them at that annual event, as well as through mail-order. Now I'm wondering if that company still exists today? I'm so glad to see that the carousel was restored. My friends have gone back home and ridden it, so it's nice that they were able to relive a bit of their childhood.
I remember hanging out with John Waite and listening to his stories of working at Euclid Beach Park, as a teenager. I wish I remembered all of them now. I know the Flying Turns was his favorite ride. He really should have written a book, because he had some great stories about working there, and at Disneyland during the "Walt" years, as well as working for Bud Hurlbut.
That's a great pic of you in the Ricky's Racers car, Andrew! Thanks for sharing more of your "amusement" related trips/adventures with us. Now I'm going to go back and watch your videos!
TokyoMagic!, thanks for sharing your personal connections to Euclid Beach! How cool that you are close to people who visited the park frequently as kids. There is a great documentary on YouTube called Euclid Beach: Gone Too Soon, and it includes surreal shots of people walking through the abandoned park in the 70s. Euclid Beach fans are known to be a passionate group (though they are sadly decreasing in number), and I know they still hold an event in September called "Sights and Sounds of Euclid Beach" where they display the rocket car and give rides in it like you said. The same group also restored an old car from the Thriller coaster into a driveable vehicle. Maybe one day I will make it out for that event!
Fortunately, the Humphrey Company is still operational today. I bought one of their popcorn balls at this event, and of course, I saved the wrapper! I'm sure that riding the carousel again is an emotional experience for anyone who visited the park.
Admittedly, I did not know who John Waite was, but I found the article written about him on the OC History Roundup blog, and what an amazing career in the amusement industry! I love hearing stories from people who visited defunct parks, and you're fortunate to have the chance to talk to him about Euclid Beach (and I'm assuming Knott's and Disneyland)! By the way, the wooden Flying Turns coaster built at Knoebels in 2013 is styled after the old Euclid Beach Flying Turns, but it's much smaller in scale. However, it's an accomplishment because it took them 7 years to perfect and is the only wooden Flying Turns operating today (the first one built since the 1940s)! Thanks for the great comment!
Andrew, I think I have watched that documentary that you mentioned. I know there is another one on YouTube called, "Euclid Beach Park Is Closed For the Season." That was originally available on VHS tape. My friends had a copy of that. There is also a book with that same title, and a second book by the same authors called, "Euclid Beach Park - A Second Look." I have a copy of the first book. A funny thing happened when looking at my friends' copies of the books. The second book had a picture in it, which I thought might be of them when they were children. I asked them about it, and they confirmed it. But they themselves had never noticed that they were actually in the book!
Thanks for that info about the Humphrey Company. I was tempted to buy some of their Candy Kisses/taffy, but I see they have a disclaimer stating that currently, they are not using the original recipe.
John Waite had a great story about working at Disneyland, and an early morning conversation he had with Walt Disney, before the park opened. For the life of me, I cannot remember the details of that story now. I hope someone wrote his stories down, because he had a lot of them!
Andrew : that American Adventure development sketch of Franklin’s Print shop was done by imagineer CLEM HALL …. Who also did the 1975 and on versions of the Haunted Mansion stretching portraits. Clem Hall was a master painter who had a background in formal portrait painting … then was a studio artist in Hollywood before coming to WED in the very early 70’s . At Disney Clem did lots of well used and published images of Walt Disney Worlds new Tomorrowland, Disneyland Space mountain and big thunder mountain railroad for both parks . He was a master at arial views and is probably most remembered for his Birds Eye view of EPCOT CENTER.
One thing I’m am dumbfounded about is that this is a Smithsonian exhibit and that Marc Davis rendering is a know fake!!
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13 comments:
Great pictures! Thanks for posting. I visited the Cleveland history center in 2017, and I also recommend it. Very cool place
Budblade, thank you! The History Center is a hidden gem
It looks like the carousel received an excellent restoration, including the band organ.
In the carousel photo after the "No. 19" image, the paint job on those white/cream colored horses looks great. So shiny! They almost look translucent, like they're made of alabaster.
I like that gumball yellow finish on the car you're ''driving'. That is you, right? I think I prefer the shiny, non metallic paint jobs better.
The Rollo Coaster looks like it would be a lot of fun, zipping through the forest. It looks great weaving around all the trees.
Idlewild looks like a wonderful old amusement park with a lot of old original rides. Thanks for this tribute to grand old parks, Andrew.
Wonderful photo documentation, Andrew. Is the "Amusement Now" YouTube channel yours? I did hit the subscribe button. I comment there under the name "@cayoooga".
JB, you couldn't ask for a better restoration job on a 100+ year old ride! Yes, that is me in the car. I don't know why they changed the colors, but I can't be too picky! The Rollo Coaster is heavily wooded, and it's always a fun zip through the trees. Thanks for the comment!
K. Martinez, yep, that's my YouTube channel. Thanks for subscribing! I don't post a lot of videos anymore but maybe I will start again at some point.
I’m late to the party! I love old carousels, and luckily they seem to survive when a park closes - somebody else comes along. I figure that some must not survive though, since I knew a couple that collected carousel horses and other animals, they had a houseful of them. Even a basement that was dug out of the earth, full of carousel critters tucked away!
Wow, somebody crashed into that arch? Probably some crazy kid on his cellphone, am I right? (Biting social commentary).
Geauga Dog, now there’s an obscure character.
i used to have some Cleveland Luna Park items (nothing fancy), but don’t know where they are now. Reading your blog post made me remember them!
The Racing Derby looks different from a standard carousel, how do those operate?
Love old cars, and those brushed steel beauties are pretty great. The Cleveland History Center does look like it’s worth a visit.
And I love that there is still a “Midget Autopia” operating somewhere. I’d love to know how many were out there at the peak, because I have seen vehicles for sale that always say they are from the Disneyland iteration.
Whoa, that Rollo Coaster looks awesome, it reminds me a bit of the Gold Rusher at Magic mountain, only older and cooler.
I love the shots of these parks with rivers and forests, so different from what we have here in SoCal.
Thanks, Andrew!
Major, the Euclid Beach carousel came very close to being sold off piece by piece, but luckily a buyer footed the bill for the whole machine! Usually they auction each figure individually, and then the whole ride is offered for the combined price of each individual figure. Wow, that sounds like an amazing basement! I would love a Dentzel figure of my own someday!
Apparently the arch came close to collapsing after the collision, but they were fortunately able to repair it. I could also be called a "crazy kid on his cell phone" sometimes! Though never when I'm driving (hehe)!
That's awesome you had some items from Luna Park. Maybe they will be unearthed in "the box" one day! :-) The Derby Racer has a complicated mechanism of gears and pulleys underneath the ride platform that move the horses up and down and forward and backward. It's much more intense than a regular merry-go-round.
That is a great question about how many Midget Autopia-type rides there were at the model's peak. Of course if anything can be labeled as "1950s Disneyland," it will automatically fetch ten thousand dollars.
Thanks for the comment, and I'm glad you appreciated the post!
That Euclid Beach Park carousel is beautiful! What a great restoration job! I have two friends (brothers) who are much older than me and were raised in Euclid, Ohio. They spent many hours at the park as children and teenagers and I got to hear a lot of their stories about the park. Unfortunately, that included the sad one, about about their beloved park closing and being torn down. I visited Cleveland with one of them years ago, but the museum hadn't been built yet. I did get to see that original arch though! They said that a mall in the area would host an annual event, celebrating the old park. There would be ride vehicles on display and the restored "Laughing Sal" from the old Laff in the Dark ride. These items were all owned by private collectors, and loaned out for the event. Also, someone had converted one of the chrome "swinging" Rocket Ship vehicles into a driveable car and would give rides to people during that event.
And the Humphrey Company did live on past the park's closure, and continued to make their "famous" popcorn balls and salt water taffy, and sold them at that annual event, as well as through mail-order. Now I'm wondering if that company still exists today? I'm so glad to see that the carousel was restored. My friends have gone back home and ridden it, so it's nice that they were able to relive a bit of their childhood.
I remember hanging out with John Waite and listening to his stories of working at Euclid Beach Park, as a teenager. I wish I remembered all of them now. I know the Flying Turns was his favorite ride. He really should have written a book, because he had some great stories about working there, and at Disneyland during the "Walt" years, as well as working for Bud Hurlbut.
That's a great pic of you in the Ricky's Racers car, Andrew! Thanks for sharing more of your "amusement" related trips/adventures with us. Now I'm going to go back and watch your videos!
TokyoMagic!, thanks for sharing your personal connections to Euclid Beach! How cool that you are close to people who visited the park frequently as kids. There is a great documentary on YouTube called Euclid Beach: Gone Too Soon, and it includes surreal shots of people walking through the abandoned park in the 70s. Euclid Beach fans are known to be a passionate group (though they are sadly decreasing in number), and I know they still hold an event in September called "Sights and Sounds of Euclid Beach" where they display the rocket car and give rides in it like you said. The same group also restored an old car from the Thriller coaster into a driveable vehicle. Maybe one day I will make it out for that event!
Fortunately, the Humphrey Company is still operational today. I bought one of their popcorn balls at this event, and of course, I saved the wrapper! I'm sure that riding the carousel again is an emotional experience for anyone who visited the park.
Admittedly, I did not know who John Waite was, but I found the article written about him on the OC History Roundup blog, and what an amazing career in the amusement industry! I love hearing stories from people who visited defunct parks, and you're fortunate to have the chance to talk to him about Euclid Beach (and I'm assuming Knott's and Disneyland)! By the way, the wooden Flying Turns coaster built at Knoebels in 2013 is styled after the old Euclid Beach Flying Turns, but it's much smaller in scale. However, it's an accomplishment because it took them 7 years to perfect and is the only wooden Flying Turns operating today (the first one built since the 1940s)! Thanks for the great comment!
Andrew, I think I have watched that documentary that you mentioned. I know there is another one on YouTube called, "Euclid Beach Park Is Closed For the Season." That was originally available on VHS tape. My friends had a copy of that. There is also a book with that same title, and a second book by the same authors called, "Euclid Beach Park - A Second Look." I have a copy of the first book. A funny thing happened when looking at my friends' copies of the books. The second book had a picture in it, which I thought might be of them when they were children. I asked them about it, and they confirmed it. But they themselves had never noticed that they were actually in the book!
Thanks for that info about the Humphrey Company. I was tempted to buy some of their Candy Kisses/taffy, but I see they have a disclaimer stating that currently, they are not using the original recipe.
John Waite had a great story about working at Disneyland, and an early morning conversation he had with Walt Disney, before the park opened. For the life of me, I cannot remember the details of that story now. I hope someone wrote his stories down, because he had a lot of them!
Andrew : that American Adventure development sketch of Franklin’s Print shop was done by imagineer CLEM HALL …. Who also did the 1975 and on versions of the Haunted Mansion stretching portraits. Clem Hall was a master painter who had a background in formal portrait painting … then was a studio artist in Hollywood before coming to WED in the very early 70’s . At Disney Clem did lots of well used and published images of Walt Disney Worlds new Tomorrowland, Disneyland Space mountain and big thunder mountain railroad for both parks . He was a master at arial views and is probably most remembered for his Birds Eye view of EPCOT CENTER.
One thing I’m am dumbfounded about is that this is a Smithsonian exhibit and that Marc Davis rendering is a know fake!!
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