Lost Amusement Parks of New York City by Barbara Gottlock

Author:Barbara Gottlock
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Published: 2013-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

A carousel built by Solomon Stein and Harry Goldstein for Golden City was housed in this building. It was owned and operated by Murphy and Nunley. The building and carousel were later transported to Baldwin, New York. Courtesy of Cradle of Aviation Museum/Nunley’s Carousel.

On July 17, 1915, a fierce electrical storm tore through Canarsie, and it did not spare Golden City. The major damage was done to the giant roller coaster, which was considered a total loss by concessionaire Louis Bernt. Several other attractions were damaged as well.

The Warner Amusement Company continued to run Golden City Park until Irving and Jacob “Jack” Rosenthal came along. The brothers immigrated with their large family to New York from Russia in 1902. As a child, Irving sold newspapers on the Lower East Side to help with the family’s support. While still youngsters, they sold souvenir pails and shovels on the beach at Coney Island and managed to save $15,000. They then purchased a secondhand carousel that operated in an amusement park in Connecticut. They parlayed the profit from that venture and found their way to Golden City. Later, the pair would own and operate the famous Cyclone at Coney Island in its first year (1927). Perhaps they are most remembered, though, for purchasing and operating Palisades Amusement Park starting in 1934. They ran that historic park through its glory years until 1971, when the land was sold to developers.

Their saga at Golden City began when Irving and Jack were still very young men. In 1919, they began operating several concessions at Golden City. By opening day 1921, the entire park was under the management of the Rosenthal brothers. The park had been run down a bit in the preceding few years, but the Rosenthals rejuvenated it. The park thrived under the brothers’ management. The Rosenthals scheduled many special events during the park’s seasons to attract even more visitors. In August 1921, they contracted with L.M. Rich to promote “baby shows” at the park. The weeklong contest culminated with a coronation of the “queen” and “king” babies. The turnouts were huge. Other promotions included free “kiddie days,” prizes for the mothers of the largest families, baby carriage decoration contests and public weddings. A 1921 Billboard article described the Rosenthals: “Watch this shore under their [Rosenthals’] management…they are going to startle the amusement park world in the not very distant future.”

Concessions and attractions evolved over time. It is a good guess that the big theater productions were becoming passé. Folks were looking more for thrill and amusement rides. Bumper cars built by the Dodgem Company made an appearance in 1921. The park was renovated end to end for the 1922 season. Rides operating in 1922 included several coasters, the Whip, the Frolic, an aeroplane swing, the aforementioned bumper cars, a mammoth new fun house, a refurbished Old Mill, a yacht race, the Kentucky Derby (a popular group participation game), pony tracks, numerous shooting galleries, Venetian swings, the Japanese Rolldown, a new chutes ride and the Balloon Racer, among many others.

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