The story of amusement parks is the story of America...

[DGUtley]

The story of amusement parks is the story of America...

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When fairgoers entered the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, they were dazzled by the White City, a sprawling collection of massive exhibit buildings dedicated to manufacturing, transportation, electricity, and other themes that captured the imagination of a country on the move. Boasting a mixture of architectural influences, the gleaming, almost regal structures were assembled around a large reflecting pond festooned with Corinthian and Ionic columns as well as golden and white allegorical statuary.

It was a giddy time in America as the young, growing country was establishing its prominence, and the fair was its coming-out party. The White City, so named for the alabaster substance made of gypsum and other materials that covered the buildings, was a celebration of progress and a brash ode to capitalism. It reinforced the sense of hope and promise — the swagger even — that Americans carried. Visitors were overcome by the scale, spectacle, and opulence of the buildings and grounds as well as the bustle and merriment of its midway and amusements.


Toward the end of the expo’s five-month run, though, keen-eyed observers noticed something amiss with the exhibit halls: Their exteriors were starting to crumble. The buildings’ plaster-like coating was never meant to last. It was a cheap facade that could easily and quickly be formed into virtually anything. It was an illusion, emotionally charged but ephemeral. The fair presented an inspiring vision of a utopian city built on American ingenuity but not one that was built to last or that considered urban reality. The Columbian Exposition, like the amusement parks and theme parks it inspired, was about the America for which its people longed, not necessarily the America they encountered. It was about the American stories they told themselves — tales of reassurance and a brighter tomorrow, even if some of the tales were illusory and fragile.

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https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/22...y-coney-island

[JMWinPR]

Idora was in Youngstown Ohio. Spent many hot August nights there in the 60s. The had a wooden roller Wildcat coaster second only to Coney Islands Cyclone. It became a needle park in the 70s and burned. It was far better than any of the 6 flags. As is C.I.

[JMWinPR]

Anyone familiar with George Jones The Corvette Song? Idora had these flying cages ride. Once you got them going you could do a complete circle. Well Dorothy, my version of the woman in GJ song got this thing moving at a good clip. (We both had consumed some adult beverages). The time was up and the guy signalled us to stop. All that did was to get us moving faster. When he applied the brake, the machine started to shake and emitted a large quantity of sparks at each pass. That attracted a large crowd. As Dorothy was wearing an period appropriate short skirt. They started cheering.....loudly. We rode until we were too tired to walk. We weren't arrested as the line was very long.
Haven't seen or heard from her since that summer.....

[DGUtley]

Idora was in Youngstown Ohio. Spent many hot August nights there in the 60s. The had a wooden roller Wildcat coaster second only to Coney Islands Cyclone. It became a needle park in the 70s and burned. It was far better than any of the 6 flags. As is C.I.

I'm from Sebring. The Wildcat was the first coaster I ever rode in my life.

[Abby08]

Oh, to go back to that simpler time.......Santa Cruz Beach/Boardwalk.......gosh, I'm spacing out on the name of the roller-coaster, I want to say, the "wild mouse?"