Coney Island History

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CONEY ISLAND

"Coney Island is the Tom-Tom of America. Every nation has, and needs, and loves, its Tom-Tom. It has its needs of orgiastic escape from respectability - that is, from the world of What-we-have-to-do into the world of What-we-would-like-to-do, from the world of duty that endureth forever into the world of joy that is permitted for a moment. Coney Island is the most human thing that God ever made, or permitted the devil to make." Richard LeGallienne, 1905.

Once the premier playground of the world. The place where the amusement park, the hot dog and the roller coaster were born. At its height, it was home to three amazing amusement parks: George C. Tilyou's Steeplechase Park, Luna Park and the short-lived Dreamland. Located on a relatively small strip of beachfront in Brooklyn, Coney Island captured the imagination of a nation teetering on the edge of the modern age. Much of what was presented at Coney Island as entertainment would become technology in the years ahead: electric lights, movies, futuristic rides and fantastic flights of fantasy.


	Vanished History \| home An introduction \| Coney Island History \| Luna Park \| Steeplechase Park \| Dreamland Park \| Coney Island Extras \| Wentworth By The Sea \| Saltair \| Sutro Baths & Cliff House \| Contact Me - History Polls \| Gif Coney Island History CONEY ISLAND "Coney Island is the Tom-Tom of America. Every nation has, and needs, and loves, its Tom-Tom. It has its needs of orgiastic escape from respectability - that is, from the world of What-we-have-to-do into the world of What-we-would-like-to-do, from the world of duty that endureth forever into the world of joy that is permitted for a moment. Coney Island is the most human thing that God ever made, or permitted the devil to make." Richard LeGallienne, 1905. Once the premier playground of the world. The place where the amusement park, the hot dog and the roller coaster were born. At its height, it was home to three amazing amusement parks: George C. Tilyou's Steeplechase Park, Luna Park and the short-lived Dreamland. Located on a relatively small strip of beachfront in Brooklyn, Coney Island captured the imagination of a nation teetering on the edge of the modern age. Much of what was presented at Coney Island as entertainment would become technology in the years ahead: electric lights, movies, futuristic rides and fantastic flights of fantasy.