Location: Massachusetts, United States. Norumbegapark as a kid, Whalom park 8th grade class trip, nantasket beach high school end of year trips. Shore dinners especially the clamcakes. It closed in 1984. We had a cottage nearby, until the great blizzard of 1978. So sad to hear about the pavillion! Then we started aging and before we knew it Savin Rock as we knew it was gone, but not forgotten. Elvis came there back in the 50s. In late 1985, they canceled the development all together, and announced that they would sell the beloved carousel at auction 28 days later. The place I remember having the coldest water and almost cramping my toes is Old Orchard Beach in Maine. Since the middle of the nineteenth century, Nantasket Beach has been a popular summer vacation destination for city dwellers. Doesnt anyone remember two of the most popular parks in CT Savin Rock in New Haven, CT and Pleasure Beach in Bridgeport, Ct that was a lot smaller than the Rock but had one of the best ballrooms in the country with constant top named performing bands in attendance. What is the state of ionic compounds at room temperature. Jim- thanks so much for sharing your fond memories of Paragon Park with the RetroRoadmap readers! My favorite was Riverside Park in Agawam MA. The antique carousel is still there. Yet, in 14 years (1990-2004), there were only 54 amusement park fatalities. Dubois County Coroner Katie Schuck said Dawn R.. If my memory serves me, there was a airplane ride that soared over the lake ! They tore down the Pavilion the site of many a first kiss and more in the 50s and 60s in Myrtle Beach a few years ago. There were daily parades and a scenic railroad, too. The reason for the hoopla appears to be "Paragon Park: The Musical," co-written by Zoe Bradford and Michael Hammond with music and lyrics by Adam Brooks. Even though that was in 1984, every time he tells the story he apologises to the poor kid sitting behind him all over again. The rest of the site is dedicated to condominium development. On March 28, 1923, flames ripped through Paragon, causing $500,000 in damage and destroying much of the southern end of the park and the cottages along the way toward Atlantic Hill. Six Flags Over Georgia, Batman: The Ride Was 14-Year-Old Who Died at Orlando Amusement Park Too Heavy. My girlfriends father operated the roller coaster. Back before we moved to Connecticut in the. Bemsons was my other favorite with animals and rides. Whalom Park!! I remember riding the Virginia Reel 7 times one night! Lincoln Park, N. Dartmouth, MA We went there all the time as children. Through the decades, the venues Palladium Ballroom hosted a lineup of performers that ranged from Janis Joplin to the Ramones and Pearl Jam. Of the parks you describe, I visited Rocky Point and Bensons Wild Animal Farm as a child. You forgot White City Amusement Park in Shrewsbury MA. Fortunately, there were no deaths involved in Valravn's 2019 crash at Cedar Point. Jankovic was riding "The Voyage" roller coaster on June 4 when she became "unresponsive," the theme park said in a Facebook post. The park reopens for the season April 6. A nice man left money to the town I lived in and every year the town would set up the trip to Whalom Park! Unfortunately it was replaced by a Six Flags. That is the first one for me about 1952. Lincoln Park, North Dartmouth, Ma. We used to ice skate at the pond by the fire station and enjoyed swimming at the jetty. HOURS: Open Saturdays and Sundays through October 30, 2022, 11am-4pm. David Goran is one of the authors writing for The Vintage News As each season ended, friends and family recall the Stones saying privately that it would be the last; they no longer had the energy to devote to such a draining enterprise. It is now located next to the old train station and clock tower. I used to go to Paragon park/Nantasket beach with my family a lot during the sixties. Could hear the train whistle every Saturday from my yard. I never saw that girl again. 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. I believe the amusement park in Lincoln Rhode Island is no longer there. 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. At the center of the park was a lagoon that served as the splashdown point for the popular Shoot the Chute gondola ride. Keep us posted on your book and have a great weekend! Just as I started a family of my own in 1983 I was heart broken when the park closed. I Never see ANY photos of it either. 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. But they would find that recovering from a flood was entirely different. Paragons next major milestones arrived in 1963, when three separate fires swept through the area. This article is a stub. Became engaged watching the submarine races there in 1961. Newton High Schools Senior Proms were held in the Totem Pole Ballroom ~ what a special memory!! In late 1915, he had leased parts of the park to fruit peddler David Stone and fellow hotelier Albert A. we went on the Congo Cruise, which I think briefly had a https://www.facebook.com/pages/Paragon-Park-Memories/103289636409972?sk=info. I never liked to see animals who were unable to have some freedom from confinement. I do remember Whalom Park and Bensons Wild Animal farm as well, we took our own children there a few times as well! I have always been a fraidy cat about going on roller coasters, and I remember my mother telling me that when she was a kid she made my grandfather take her on the giant coaster, and it was the first and last coaster ride shes been on! We would start pressuring Mom and Dad to take us to Rocky Point as soon as the last of the snow melted. It was dismantled and completely rebuilt down in Maryland. The worst came in 1930, when a car on Omaha, Nebraska's Big Dipper roller coaster fell 35 feet to the ground, killing four and injuring 17. Wonderland itself was inspired by the massive Worlds Fair exhibits that had been an international sensation since the mid-19th century. Rollercoaster, FunHouse, Clambakes at the Pavillion, roller skating rink, Dancing ( with name bands, my Aunt sang there with a band for a while! Who lived where the park was. I took my children there every Wednesday . Used to be a boat we could take from Boston to Nantasket for a great day trip. And in the mid-1960s, local radio station WBZ would sometimes have live broadcasts from Paragon Park. This is an unused Paragon Park t-shirt from the long defunct amusement park that was located in Nantasket Beach, Hull Ma. Hopefully at a family get together that poor kid is now telling his children (or grandchildren), You ARE NOT going to believe what happened to me in 1984 at Whalom Park, it sure wasnt funny then but looking back, Back in 1973, a guy made a sci-fi home film that had several filming locations, one of them being the Fun-o-Rama park at Salisbury Beach, MA. Subsequent owners added various entertainments, including a baseball field on which Babe Ruth once played. We used to go every year! Yea and I still remember that poor gorilla confined in that cement cell of a prison. Went there as a little kid driving Rt.2 all the way from Hartford. Even met my husband. Aw, I remember going to Bensons Wild Animal Farm! The wooden coaster was previously known as Giant Coaster when it was located at Paragon Park in Hull, Massachusetts. This post was first published in 2020 and has been updated. There was also Acushnet Park in the very south end of New Bedfordnot as big but great Park. 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. 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 . "It has stood the test of time." It remained so until 1925, when it was topped by two feet by the Revere Beach Cyclone just down the road. Dad saw Mom and went over and told her he was going to marry her. Paragon Park in Hull, Ma-Lincoln Park, Dartmouth, Ma. I was a lonely kid wandering the park every night, until I Copyright 2021 Retro Roadmap. Whalom Park had it all, Playhouse Theatre where many big names came to preform in summer stock. The Aftermath: Roller Coaster. Skeeball and pinball machines were favorite games at Paragon Park's penny arcade. Shortly after railroad executives signed the paperwork the following March, fire broke out in a paint shop at the park. 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. Not only was the band funny, but exceptional musicians . The Chicago event introduced the concept of the midway of attractions now common at amusement parks and carnivals (known then as the Midway Plaisance), and inspired the construction of hundreds of enclosed parks across the country, many of which took their names from the White City nickname of the whitewashed buildings that surrounded the Columbian Expositions central lagoon. 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. On March 28, 1923, flames ripped through Paragon, causing $500,000 in damage and destroying much of the southern end of the park and the cottages along the way toward Atlantic Hill. I lived and graduated from Lunenburg High School in 70. Makes me a bit homesick for Mass, summer, the beach and childhood. Rosanna Arias/FEMA Tmmertransport med hest langs elva Lera ved Dalseng, som renner ut i Brumunda i Veldre, Ringsaker. I remember Savin Rock very well. Lizzie- Myrtle Beach is definitely in the air today as a pal just asked about retro roadmap worthy places to go around that area. save the carousel effort was launched, but this time the result would be the formation of the non-profit Friends of the Paragon Carousel and the purchase of the antique merry-go-round for $1.1 million. Follow The History of Paragon Park on WordPress.com, Paragons Administration Building an original from 1905. There are so many memories made at these parks no one will ever forget. And I can still hear the excited screams of the daring roller coaster riders now. day. A scenic railway was added in 1900. My Dad was. It was designed and constructed by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co., which later built the park's carousel that remains in Hull. I have vague memories of Savin Rock in West Haven, CT. But in the 80s some of my best fun was checking out the abandoned rides of Crescent Park when my grandmother lived in the high rise they built on the land. Two things come to mind.I will bet all of us have family photo and slide albums, perhaps converted now to disc,of our good old days attending these venuestime waits for no one,but we have our memories..and second; it has always baffled me why Cape Cod,of all places,never seems to have boasted a world class amusement parkit would seem like a natural,but . Items in the Price Guide are obtained exclusively from licensors and partners solely for our members' research needs. Lincoln Park was THE BEST! I grew up about miles from Pine Island Park. Of cause my mother loved to play Bingo . Also Lincoln Park in North Dartmouth, MA, where I remember riding the roller coaster 13 times in a row with a friend! 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. Find it all and much more with the interactive Roller Coaster Database. Many made the pilgrimage to photograph the park for the last time, and members of the American Coaster Enthusiasts visited to see the Giant, at one time the worlds tallest coaster, before it met its fate. We took our children there when there were young. This magazine should also research Savin Rock which was in West Haven, CT good history. Wildcat, Bell's Amusement Park, 1997. Fond memories! A 14-year-old girl has died after a roller coaster car came off the track at an amusement park in Denmark. Loved the elephant ride at Benson Animal Farm. Not only did they have the rides which we loved as kids, they had a fabulous summer theater, the Valley Players, owned and operated by Jean and Carleton Guild. As a South Shore kid I really miss Paragon Park in Hull MA (Nantasket Beach). Ron what a great time you mustve had there! The remains of the "Turnpike Cars" roadway ride are hidden in overgrowth beside the parking lot, although are very much visible via Google Maps. I have fond memories of an amusement park called Mountain Park that Isnt mentioned. Summing lessons in Lake Whalom, wonderful memories. Lots and lots of great memories. But the ride was plagued with many problems that remained with it until it was . Beach was great! I grew up in the 80s and 90s in rhode island and Rocky Point was an amazing amusement park. 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. It was a Big Deal! Im now a Hull year-round resident, 1/4 mile from where the park once stood. It was often referred to as Disneyland of the Northeast. There are at least two books published reminiscing about Pleasure Island. 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. We did just one stop at Bensons when I was a child and didnt like it. They were all fun. Its amazing how fast people forget. It opened in 1917, closed in 1984. Where is the Paragon Park roller coaster now, given this? Early 50s. Paragon Park opened to the public on Saturday, June 10, 1905, transforming Nantasket Beach for the better part of the 20th century. Yes. The Palm Garden restaurant, function facility, and performance hall at the base of the hill drew guests of the surrounding hotels and larger parties of conventioneers, corporate dinners, and class reunions. savin rock amusement park in west haven ct. should definitely be added to this list. It was moved from Nantasket Beach and opened as The Wild One at Six Flags America outside Washington, D.C. back in 1986. I loved the carousel. Contents. As the story goes, were it not for the limited number of months in the year it could be open, Disney would have been more involved. The Friends operate the carousel next door to the former railroad station, and in 2013 opened a small museum of Paragon memorabilia. 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. True story. Collections: Detroit Publishing Company Part of: . Great memories. Except for the flying swings incident. Very scary, but such an adventure. But if you are feeling nostalgic, all is not lost: Scenes from Whalom Park were preserved for posterity in the 1982 music video for Touch and Go by the Cars. 6-year-old girl's death at Colorado amusement park due to seat belt issues and inadequate staff training, government agency says A 2020 IAAPA North American Ride Safety Report - in which it. 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. The only coaster at the park was Viper, a Huss-Arrow looper from 1982. We went there many times. They closed long time ago. Growing up, Paragon Park, a small amusement park in Hull MA just across from Nantasket Beach was my idea of the ultimate place to go, and wed hopefully go there once a summer if we were lucky. Long time ago. Worked there for a while after graduation. I have many fond memories of Whalom Park and Im glad you included it. The Super Screamer was there until 1999. Within two seasons, however, Paragon was falling short of its financial projections, Eastern Parks investors wanted to abandon the concept. Keansburg, N.J., March 14, 2013 -- Workers at Keansburg Amusements Park dismantle a roller coaster rendered useless by Hurricane Sandy. I loved the Giant Coaster and the Congo Cruise. Fond memories of Nantasket. \r\rEnjoy! The amusement park closed in 1994 and sat abandoned for years before its remains were finally demolished out of concern for public safety. We used to park before we got to the park, because there were so many pretty girls we couldnt keep our eyes on the road. Nothing like Paragon Park has ever before been seen near than Luna Park at New York, The Boston Globe enthused, referencing the world-famous amusement center at Coney Island.George A. Ive nothing but great memories of how it used to be around here (sounds of the park were like music to my ears. At 98 feet high with an 88-foot drop, the park's giant wooden roller coaster used to be the world's tallest before the park closed in 1984. Paragon park roller coaster on nantasket . 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. Due to a private event, the Paragon Carousel will be open from 12pm - 4pm on Saturday October 22. All rights reserved. At the very last minute, it would make a sharp turn to keep everyone dry. The carousel was always a favorite ride no matter how young or old I was. Waves are just as likely to come from local windswells as distant groundswells, and the best swell direction comes from the northeast. Paragon Park was an amusement park located on Nantasket Beach in Hull, Massachusetts. A Visit To The Retro Roadmap Photo Archives Photos from the American Roadside. During the 1930s, part of the Giant Coaster was rebuilt and a brightly colored Art Deco main entrance was erected in 1937. This land, combined with the Rockland House hotel atop the hill in the rear, would become the basis for Paragon Park. 2022 Dennis Connors Photography. Good memories! It was located off route 5 on Mt Tom in western Massachusetts. Great park. Touted as the strangest farm on earth, this park was developed by John Benson, a British animal trainer who had originally purchased a 200-acre lot about an hour north of Boston to serve as a temporary home for animals he would buy and sell. I took my children there all the time ides were reasonable for a family. Had my first date with my future husband at Riverside. The park opened to rave reviews. . Kahn already knew that the towns zoning rules for the park property lacked a key ingredient: a height limit. Never a fan of ferris wheels but I do recall riding the one at Nantasket on our eighth grade class trip. This makes the second fatal accident at an amusement park this year. This is one of the smaller "camel humps" of the Giant Coaster being disassembled so that it could be reborn as The Wild One in Maryland. 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. Within five years, the rail line was abandoned forever. American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) recognizes Wild One at Six Flags America as an ACE Roller Coaster Landmark, a designation reserved for rides of historic significance.. Wild One's long history began at Paragon Park in Hull, Massachusetts. Savin Rock Amusement Park in West Haven, CT, How about the old boardwalk at Revere Beach, Pleasure Island in Wakefield,Ma The Kiddie Ranch Rte 1 Saugus, Ma. I was in 5th grade so spent much of the summer watching the fishing boats come and leave from Pemberton Pier. I still have a pin and coin purse inwon at games there when I was so very young. Golden. The rest of the site is dedicated to condominium development. Built into the side of Mount Tom it now sits in ruins, closed many years ago. One year I went to Rocky Point Amusement part, this would have to be about 1984-1985 and my Dad at the time worked for Sealtest Ice Cream and they would have a big summer thing down there and we would spend the day first doing carnival activities hosted by the company, then spend the rest of the day at the park. I grew up right near norunbeger park me and my friends would take a row boat across the Charles river to get into the park, we would go almost every day in the summer, we didnt have much money but could go to the park by crossing the Charles river and just walking in. It was 1971. Paragon fans were getting used to the idea that there would be no final season. Paragon Park opened in 1905 and lasted for just under 80 years, closing in 1984. I spend my life in that park. It was small, but close to home, so we got there often! )Danny Sordello. Damage estimates topped $300,000. Photo, Print, Drawing Roller coaster, [Paragon Park], Nantasket Beach, Mass. External links Paragon Park on the Roller Coaster DataBase. After all, when did Paragon Park first open? Within a few weeks, Kahn announced that the developers would ride to the rescue and keep the ride operating, either on-site or at a separate location within the towns borders. Retro Roadmap Photo Archives- Do These Places Look Familiar To You? 1950s. It was worth the over an hour drive to get there. I can always remember when we were getting close to the the beach and we would pick-up the scent of the ocean and we could hear the screams coming from the riders on the coaster. NORUMBEGA AND TOTEM POLE BALLROOM, AUBURNDALE, MA. Thank you! My Mom and Dad went dancing there when they were dating! It was in Killingly, many miles north and east, and my parents had a cranky little boy on their hands. We held Strong Family reunions there, one year my cousin Ted Strong parachuted into the Park! well, all was fine till halfway home and my brother starts getting sick I was on top of my step sister out the window most of the ride home Still great times and I miss when we used to have no cares but having fun.. Does anyone remember the amusement park in Medway, MA that was destroyed in a fire back in the 70s? A rider suffered head, wrist and ankle injuries on Monday after being ejected from a roller coaster in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. There were dances, performances, and exhibitions at the Alhambra Ballroom; the dinner hall on a bluff overlooking the bay was famed for its Rhode Island shore dinners (steamed clams, clam chowder, lobster, clam cakes, fish, corn on the cob, and watermelon). She convinced me to ride the corkscrew roller coaster and that was the beginning of my love of roller coasters. I grew up in Hull and I was in fifth grade when closed the park. Pleasure Beach Ballroom had big bands like The Dorseys (before my time) , but being a product of the 50s I remember seeing Fats Domino and Patsy Cline there. On a dark winter evening homeward-bound in the front passenger seat in our 53 Chevy after Christmas shopping at the Paragon Parks Arcade Bazaar a warehouse-like fluorescent-lit discount toy store in Nantasket Beach my mom told me the heartbreaking truth about Santa Claus. 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. For out-of-state visitors, parking at Nantasket Beach will increase from $10 to $15 per day, and $20 per day. If we had saved enough pennies, we would enjoy the shore dinner before we headed home. I loved Norumbega Park and all the rides. I still visit Nantasket when I can, thumbing my nose at the condos and visiting the carousel (PTC #85) that they saved and moved down the street. The Bat, the world's first suspended roller coaster, failed because of design problems. "They preserved the spirit of the ride," amusement park aficionado B. Derek Shaw told USA Today. The coaster shut down when Paragon Park closed in 1984. Lone Wolf 83 subscribers Subscribe 95K views 11 years ago I found this video in my archives! Well put. The sale was set to close in March, only a few weeks away. Other favorites: the roller coaster that sat right on the edge of the water. More for little ones and still open are Storyland and Santas Village in NH a place families still can enjoy. Somehow, a roller coaster in Japan known for accelerating more quickly than any other in the world and operating at what's dubbed "super death" speed has started to cause injuries. 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. My Aunt bought a house near back entrance. Loved the donkey rides. Now its a shopping center. A scaled down replica of a tour around the Holy Land, the premise certainly has promise. One of the most intriguing to me is Holy Land, USA in Waterbury, CT. Its one of those in-between places that some might say doesnt belong on the list because its being, well, you might say resurrected. I had my first kiss on that ride, and a night The actors included many stars on their way up including Hal (and his then wife, Ruby). But my most vivid, and fond memory was Misquamucut, and this mystery park! village from 54-56. The 25.9-acre amusement park the nation's 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. The $6 million roller coaster replaced the Inverter, a ride that was discontinued in 2017 off the main boulevard. In one incident, a man fell into a pond. Till I was a teenager lived in Naugatuck CT and lived to ride the wonderful carousel at nearby Lake Quassapaug!

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