Coney Island Visit Story aired: Tuesday, July 29, 2003
A hundred years ago, when immigrants aboard steamships sailed towards a new life in the New World, their first glimpse of America was not Lady Liberty, and it was not Ellis Island. It was Coney Island. The hundreds of thousands of electric lights that illuminated the towers, minarets and massive mechanical rides on the small island just off the southern coast of Brooklyn were visible up to 30 miles out to sea.
Not only is Coney Island known as the birthplace of fast food, the hot dog, and roller coasters, but it also introduced affordable leisure activities and amusements to working class New Yorkers, particularly immigrants. Once reserved for the wealthy of Newport, Rhode Island, for example, bathing in the ocean became the everyman's activity at Coney and a welcome relief from New York's hot summers.
This summer, Coney Island celebrates the 100th anniversary of Luna Park, one of the three great amusement centers on the island -- in addition to Steeplechase and Dreamland Parks-- and arguably the most influential. Just about every type of amusement at today's great parks, (Disneyland, Six Flags, Busch Gardens) would have been found at Coney Island in the early years of the 20th century.
All three great parks have since burned to the ground, and although the Coney Island of today cannot compare to the grandeur and opulence of a hundred years ago, it remains a popular amusement and beach destination for all New Yorkers. Many of the old traditions have been reborn through the work of the group, Coney Island USA. One example is the great annual Mermaid Parade, which is a reincarnation of the old Mardi Gras parades held at Coney during the first half of the 20th century. Producer Karen Pelland joined historian Michael Immerso at this summer's Mermaid Parade to soak up a little history. Mr. Immerso is the author of "Coney Island: The People's Playground."
