. No Paragon Park??? The roller coaster hit speeds of up to 53 miles per hour during a ride of less than 2 minutes. A scenic railway was added in 1900. I also remember the Revere Beach Amusements alomng Revere Beach in the 50s and 60s. This makes the second fatal accident at an amusement park this year. Glad to know that the Giant Coaster is still around and can be enjoyed by those who have the stomach for it . Download Go. According to a Washington Post article from that time, it was purchased at auction for just $28,000. White City on the shores of Lake Quinsigamond between the Worcester and Shrewsbury linesa wonderful memory. I remember going on it every summer as a child.such great memories!!! But its not the same. Great memories! When I heard they were getting rid of the park it broke my heart. My wife and I had our first date there. I miss Pleasure Island in Wakefield MA! Although the arcades still exist, Salisbury Beach was a favorite growing up. Without even knowing it, wed had our last ride at Paragon Park. When it closed a man I knew bought the huge statue of the steer they had and someone else got the elephant. 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. There are so many memories made at these parks no one will ever forget. Thanks for reviving a special memory! Built in 1917, the wooden. It was often referred to as Disneyland of the Northeast. There are at least two books published reminiscing about Pleasure Island. In the ensuing real estate crash, the developers would lose control of the property and never realize the plans for a second building at the rear of the site. Roller skating, rides, swimming even a boat that gave rides around the lake. The year 1929 is significant in American history as the beginning of the Great Depression, and its impact also was felt at Nantasket Beach. The carousel was always a favorite ride no matter how young or old I was. 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. Thank you for the flashbacks! I remember when they had Elvis performing on the outdoor stagethat was many years ago! The person, who has not been identified, was flung about 10 feet out . It closed in 1984. 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. I took my children there all the time ides were reasonable for a family. Since the middle of the nineteenth century, Nantasket Beach has been a popular summer vacation destination for city dwellers. For Christopher Haraden, who grew up just beyond a curve in the coaster's tracks on Rockview Road, the ride and its riders were the sounds of summer. We would drive to Hull from our house in Boston. It was small. How wonderful you met your husband at Lake Whalom. He loved the junior rollercoaster! It remained so until 1925, when it was topped by two feet by the Revere Beach Cyclone just down the road. How about the screech of the wheels or the screams of the riders? I still think of it and its thrills in y late 70s. Im now a Hull year-round resident, 1/4 mile from where the park once stood. We did just one stop at Bensons when I was a child and didnt like it. One bidder paid $25 for the entire lot of rainbow-colored trash cans. Following the show, wed watch the fireworks from the parking lot. My grandparents lived in Nantasket so I had the pleasure of going to Paragon Park many times during the summer months. Now its a shopping center. Subsequent owners added various entertainments, including a baseball field on which Babe Ruth once played. It is now adjacent to the old train station and clock tower. On September 20, 1922, George A. In addition to a massive saltwater swimming pool and a Ferris wheel with an ocean view, popular rides included the Corkscrew Loop Roller Coaster, the 13-story Freefall, the Log Flume, and the Castle of Terror. The developers interest prompted the Stones to agree on something they both were tired of running the business and the $5.5 million purchase price would give them enough money to comfortably retire. A postcard view of Rocky Point Amusement Park in Warwick, Rhode Island, c. 1930-1945. Games manager Myron Klayman, the brother-in-law of owner Phyllis Stone, was a selectman in Hull at the time of the storm, and recalled serving dual roles in helping the town clean up from the disaster while also directing crews at his employer. 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. village from 54-56. 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. Oh Rich, I know EXACTLY what you mean about smelling the beach before you even got there. On that trip my Dad and I and the oldest boy from the other family went to Mystic Seaport. Lincoln Park, North Dartmouth, Ma. I can remember Whalom as it were yesterday, spent lots of hrs at the park, stayed with my aunt a lot, lived on Chase ave, down by the play house cabins for the stars. Paragon park roller coaster on nantasket . 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. Fire struck again in the fall, destroying the Chateau ballroom at the rear of the park. My older brother worked at Paragon for two summers running rides. I believe Lake Compounce still there. Remember the himalaya ? Silver-colored flagpoles stretched across the entrance, now enclosed by chain-link gates that would swing inward. Boston Public Library/Tichnor Brothers Postcard Collection, Visitors walking the grounds of Rocky Point State Park today may not realize that they are treading on entertainment history, but the reminders are there if you know where to look. The Batman roller. Beginning with the 1920 season, Stone and Golden took over management of the entire Paragon operation, leasing all of the rides and concessions controlled by Dodge. Did you hold on tight or tempt fate and ride with your hands stretched toward the sky? Buick Riviera. Today, all that remains of the park is the carousel that was built in 1928, which now is housed in a pavilion a bit down the road from where it once stood, yet still allows for children to ride its hand-carved horses almost a century after they were first created. Storybook characters, a pirate ship and Dodge City with a saloon and stagecoach holdups were among the attractions. If my memory serves me, there was a airplane ride that soared over the lake ! That park put $1 million into renovating the coaster, and it has been refitted and redesigned multiple times over the decades. On Saturday, a 57-year-old woman died following an accident on a roller coaster called "The Hot Ride." The woman, identified as a German national, slipped from her seat while the coaster was. Ghosts of Paragon Park 1971. Theres a Facebook page called Paragon Park Memories- maybe if you post it there someone else may remember it as well good luck! 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. 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. 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. This was perfect! From dawn to dusk, the restaurant is open all year. They loved it . 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. My favorite ride was the wooden roller coaster and enjoyed being an usher at the playhouse. All I was left with besides a footprint on my backside for not taking more, better photos, when I did have the time, were my memories of having an all day pass discounted by collecting match book covers stapled to my shirt hem and spending the day riding the kiddie cars, the Congo Cruise, the merry go round and more, playing skee ball in the arcade and eating ice cream on a hot summer day. 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. She convinced me to ride the corkscrew roller coaster and that was the beginning of my love of roller coasters. Does ANYONE remember the giant blue slide that was down next to the clock where they moved the Carousel too? Jack! About a dozen years later I visited Paragon Park while on spring break from RIT and took a few pictures. In 1917, another man fell and got creamed into paste after reaching out of the Derby Racer to retrieve his fallen hat. 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. [2]. My family had the summer home on the hill directly behind Hurleys Bathhouse (for those who remember). Not only was the band funny, but exceptional musicians . The midway featured games of skill and chance and performances by Hugo Zacchini, aka the Human Projectile. 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. I have vague memories of Savin Rock in West Haven, CT. Only a few years later, another fire would wreak havoc at Paragon. one year it was HOT and we were gorging on clam cakes at the end of the day but decided one more ride cant hurt.. the one that starts leve and ends up having the rider flying upside down. )Danny Sordello. I too have fond memories of the place, and even though its a shell of its former self, I cant help but hope it returns to its former glory. My Park in Holyoke, MA. Even the repeal of Prohibition in 1933 did little to improve things, although the ability to obtain liquor licenses made it manageable. Part of its track bed would later be incorporated into the footprint of the amusement park. Good memories! Worked there for a while after graduation. The site is now home to condominiums. Maybe 5 +. If we had saved enough pennies, we would enjoy the shore dinner before we headed home. They also hosted many concerts and special shows! We rented a big house, across the street from the beach. 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