Glen Echo Park

Glen Echo Park in Glen Echo, Maryland outside of Washington D.C. is a must-visit for fans of amusement park history. It's preserved by the National Park Service and only home to one surviving ride, but I can't think of any other park with as many layers of history as Glen Echo. It began as a National Chautauqua Assembly in 1891, with distinctive stone architecture and many lecture halls. This was not particularly successful, so by 1911 the Chautauqua had been transformed into an amusement park. After decades of operation, Glen Echo was a hotspot for the Civil Rights Movement in 1961, and the park eventually closed in 1968. It was reestablished as an art center beginning in the 1970s, with the old park buildings being restored. Today, it's a fascinating place.

Oh, and the park grounds sit next to a former home of Red Cross founder Clara Barton. There's an interesting story where a one-time owner of the park wanted to acquire Barton's land, so he built a roller coaster called the Dip right in her front yard in hopes of forcing her off the property. 

When that didn't work, he built a Ferris wheel too. Barton remained unshakable.

Like countless other early amusement parks, people came to Glen Echo on the trolley. This preserved trolley trestle sits abandoned in the woods next to the bridge that takes you into the park grounds. In the park's heyday, the Coaster Dips and the Derby Racer both plummeted into this ravine, crossing the creek twice for an added thrill.

The colorful carousel building comes into view after you cross the bridge. The ride and domed building were built in 1921 by William Dentzel, and it is absolutely one of the best carousels in the country.

You can pay $2.00 for one ride or $5.00 for an all-day pass. There is something special about the sound of a band organ drifting through a quiet park.

The carousel has one of the most beautiful restoration jobs I've seen on a ride, and this horse mostly features 100+ year old original paint, which explains why it is not rideable.

The horses that don't have original paint still feature the original colors.

The star of the show is this Wurlitzer 165 band organ, which echoes wonderfully throughout the wooden building.

The park has no shortage of music for the organ. Some of these rolls are likely almost a century old.

I always take delight in carousel building architecture. The Glen Echo carousel appears to have half the number of light bulbs on its sweeps compared to other Dentzel carousels. Kennywood's, for example, has bulbs that fill in the gaps seen here.

 I'll let the plaque explain the role the ride played in the Civil Rights Movement. When you know the important history behind a ride like this, it makes it all the more special to experience.

There's more than just the carousel here, like this vintage concession stand. I would love to see the park after dark with its abundance of neon.

The building at left is the last vestige of the old Chautauqua days at the park. I love how it runs right into this neon-rimmed canopy, representing two eras in the park's history.

The carousel is wonderful, but the park's Streamline Moderne entrance is also a sight to behold. I would have loved to have lived in an era where fantastical amusement park architecture like this was the norm—imagine rolling up to the park in a trolley after dark and walking under this archway blazing with neon.

I dig these cut-throughs in the bottoms of the marquee supports. They don't have to be there, but they add to the charm.

Some of the trolley tracks remain, and occasionally a replica trolley is parked in front of the entrance.

The streamlined architecture continues along the former main midway. Once home to games and concessions, it's now home to cultural institutions including a conservatory of music.

The vintage Cuddle Up pavilion is all types of amazing, from the rounded canopy to the neon sign and perfectly integrated ticket booth. I couldn't help but think how the distinctive rumbling of a Cuddle Up would have mixed with the carousel organ across the midway.

The whimsical paint job on the carousel roof was added in the mid-century, then painted over after the park closed. It was restored when the park was acquired by the National Park Service, and they deserve great credit for maintaining such an intricate design.

The bumper car building is another delight. Now used as a pavilion, the interior contains many spindly trusses from which the metal ceiling used to hang.

The Spanish Ballroom was also restored when the NPS took control. I'd love to see the interior.

The First Aid depot is quite quaint. If I could live in this building, I would.

The final touch of Art Deco in the park is the Crystal Pool entrance. It's just a facade, as the pool that once sat behind was perched on the edge of the ravine.

Again, I will have to come back to this park when it's dark to see the lights!

Along the midway sits an untouched shooting gallery behind a glass window, though it appears to also be used as storage for maintenance. Knoebels is the last park I know of that still operates a real shooting gallery like this one.

Glen Echo clearly doesn't bring in the crowds anymore with its only attractions being a carousel and the history, but it's pleasant walking around the park with the carousel happily spinning in the center.

Here's a short video of the carousel spinning to the tune of "A Whale of a Tale" from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.

Before we go, let's take one last ride on the carousel. The lion is the trademark of Dentzel, and this one glows.

I chose the deer for my final ride. It's a nice change of pace to ride the stationary animals or the chariots every once in a while.

If only all carousels could be maintained as well as this one!

See, I wasn't the only person at the park! Here we see two ghosts that have been waiting for candy apples since 1968.

With that, we say goodbye to what could be called a museum of amusement park history. I enjoyed my first visit to Glen Echo Park immensely, and I look forward to returning in the future.