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N0KFQ > TODAY 16.06.14 15:33l 63 Lines 2959 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: Today in History - Jun 16
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Sent: 140616/1429Z 23564@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.60
Jun 16, 1884:
First roller coaster in America opens
On this day in 1884, the first roller coaster in America opens at
Coney Island, in Brooklyn, New York. Known as a switchback
railway, it was the brainchild of LaMarcus Thompson, traveled
approximately six miles per hour and cost a nickel to ride. The
new entertainment was an instant success and by the turn of the
century there were hundreds of roller coasters around the
country.
Coney Island, a name believed to have come from the Dutch Konijn
Eilandt, or Rabbit Island, is a tract of land along the Atlantic
Ocean discovered by explorer Henry Hudson in 1609. The first
hotel opened at Coney Island in 1829 and by the post-Civil War
years, the area was an established resort with theaters,
restaurants and a race track. Between 1897 and 1904, three
amusement parks sprang up at Coney Island--Dreamland, Luna Park
and Steeplechase. By the 1920s, Coney Island was reachable by
subway and summer crowds of a million people a day flocked there
for rides, games, sideshows, the beach and the
two-and-a-half-mile boardwalk, completed in 1923.
The hot dog is said to have been invented at Coney Island in 1867
by Charles Feltman. In 1916, a nickel hot dog stand called
Nathan's was opened by a former Feltman employee and went on to
become a Coney Island institution and international franchise.
Today, Nathan's is famous not only for its hot dogs but its hot
dog-eating contest, held each Fourth of July in Coney Island. In
2006, Takeru Kobayashi set a new record when he ate 53.75 hot
dogs with buns in 12 minutes.
Roller coasters and amusement parks experienced a decline during
the Great Depression and World War II, when Americans had less
cash to spend on entertainment. Finally, in 1955, the opening of
Disneyland in Anaheim, California, signaled the advent of the
modern theme park and a rebirth of the roller coaster.
Disneyland's success sparked a wave of new parks and coasters. By
the 1970s, parks were competing to create the most thrilling
rides. In 2005, Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey,
introduced the Kingda Ka roller coaster, the world's tallest (at
456 feet) and fastest (at 128 mph).
By the mid-1960s, the major amusement parks at Coney Island had
shut down and the area acquired a seedy image. Nevertheless,
Coney Island remains a tourist attraction and home to the
Cyclone, a wooden coaster that made its debut there in 1927.
Capable of speeds of 60 mph and with an 85-foot drop, the Cyclone
is one of the country's oldest coasters in operation today.
Though a real-estate developer recently announced the building of
a new $1.5 billion year-round resort at Coney Island that will
include a 4,000-foot-long roller coaster, an indoor water park
and a multi-level carousel, the Cyclone's owners have said they
plan to keep the historic coaster open for business.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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