Coney Island History: The Five-minute Crash Course
Panoramic View of Coney Island from Dreamland's Chutes in 1907
"Who remembers the Coney Island of forty years ago?"
Sound familiar? Coney Island makes people nostalgic. They always want to bring back the Coney Island of 'yesterday', the one they knew in their childhood. But what may surprise you is that the above quote is the title of a 'letter to the editor' of a newspaper published in 1933.
The key to understanding Coney Island's history is unraveling its numerous different 'yesterdays'. Coney Island often evolved dramatically over short periods of time based on broader social and technological changes taking place in the United States.
Coney Island's Seven 'Yesterdays'
#1| 1870. Shortly after the Civil War, Coney Island is a relatively undeveloped beach.
#2| 1880. By the start of the 1880 season, Coney Island has three new leading luxury resorts. Several major buildings are brought to the West Brighton section of Coney Island (the amusements area people refer to as 'Coney Island' today) from the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, including Sea Beach Palace and the Iron Tower. A very crooked local politician at West Brighton and several wealthy businessmen with ties to the railroad and banking industries drive rapid development at West Brighton, Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach. At West Brighton, the guiding principle is to profit by creating a resort town where vice laws are interpreted rather loosely, similar to Atlantic City during Prohibition in the 1920s. Entrepreneurs there grease palms and establish beer gardens, the world's first modern roller coaster and even an Elephant Hotel. The working and middle class sticks to West Brighton, while the upper middle class and upper classes vacation to its east at Brighton Beach or Manhattan Beach. Coney Island continues to evolve rapidly over the next twenty years, with raw capitalism replacing cronyism after the politician is imprisoned in the mid-1890s.
#3| 1900. Coney Island is now an established leading seaside resort and day-trip destination for people living in New York City. It attracts everyone from horse race bettors to families looking to spend a day in the new concept of an enclosed amusement park at Sea Lion Park and Steeplechase Park. It is the center of a booming manufacturing industry for carousels and roller coasters.
#4| 1905. Luna Park makes Coney Island a household name around the world when it opens in 1903. Known as the Electric City by the Sea because of how it lit up at night, hundreds of imitators spring up around the US and world. A politically-connected copycat, Dreamland, even goes up right across the street from Luna Park in 1904. Coney Island is at its peak.
#5| 1920. Coney Island transforms into the 'Nickel Empire' now that everyone can get there for just five cents on the new subway. Crowds come but businesses complain that no one spends money. Dreamland is no longer around and Luna Park is a shell of its once-mighty self. Coney Island becomes known for its accessible but crowded public beach.
#6| 1960. Coney Island gradually falls into disrepair by the 1960s because of urban decay and NYC urban planning decisions. Steeplechase, the last surviving park, closes in 1964.
#7| Today. Coney Island is in the initial stages of revitalization, with new businesses and a baseball stadium moving in, and the expansion of the Brighton Beach neighborhood. While little of the 'original' Coney Island remains, Coney Island is doing what it has always done best, namely adapting to changing times. This is how it has managed to remain relevant for well over one hundred years.
If you really want to impress your friends and family with Coney Island facts, check out How West Brighton became Coney Island.
Sound familiar? Coney Island makes people nostalgic. They always want to bring back the Coney Island of 'yesterday', the one they knew in their childhood. But what may surprise you is that the above quote is the title of a 'letter to the editor' of a newspaper published in 1933.
The key to understanding Coney Island's history is unraveling its numerous different 'yesterdays'. Coney Island often evolved dramatically over short periods of time based on broader social and technological changes taking place in the United States.
Coney Island's Seven 'Yesterdays'
#1| 1870. Shortly after the Civil War, Coney Island is a relatively undeveloped beach.
#2| 1880. By the start of the 1880 season, Coney Island has three new leading luxury resorts. Several major buildings are brought to the West Brighton section of Coney Island (the amusements area people refer to as 'Coney Island' today) from the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, including Sea Beach Palace and the Iron Tower. A very crooked local politician at West Brighton and several wealthy businessmen with ties to the railroad and banking industries drive rapid development at West Brighton, Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach. At West Brighton, the guiding principle is to profit by creating a resort town where vice laws are interpreted rather loosely, similar to Atlantic City during Prohibition in the 1920s. Entrepreneurs there grease palms and establish beer gardens, the world's first modern roller coaster and even an Elephant Hotel. The working and middle class sticks to West Brighton, while the upper middle class and upper classes vacation to its east at Brighton Beach or Manhattan Beach. Coney Island continues to evolve rapidly over the next twenty years, with raw capitalism replacing cronyism after the politician is imprisoned in the mid-1890s.
#3| 1900. Coney Island is now an established leading seaside resort and day-trip destination for people living in New York City. It attracts everyone from horse race bettors to families looking to spend a day in the new concept of an enclosed amusement park at Sea Lion Park and Steeplechase Park. It is the center of a booming manufacturing industry for carousels and roller coasters.
#4| 1905. Luna Park makes Coney Island a household name around the world when it opens in 1903. Known as the Electric City by the Sea because of how it lit up at night, hundreds of imitators spring up around the US and world. A politically-connected copycat, Dreamland, even goes up right across the street from Luna Park in 1904. Coney Island is at its peak.
#5| 1920. Coney Island transforms into the 'Nickel Empire' now that everyone can get there for just five cents on the new subway. Crowds come but businesses complain that no one spends money. Dreamland is no longer around and Luna Park is a shell of its once-mighty self. Coney Island becomes known for its accessible but crowded public beach.
#6| 1960. Coney Island gradually falls into disrepair by the 1960s because of urban decay and NYC urban planning decisions. Steeplechase, the last surviving park, closes in 1964.
#7| Today. Coney Island is in the initial stages of revitalization, with new businesses and a baseball stadium moving in, and the expansion of the Brighton Beach neighborhood. While little of the 'original' Coney Island remains, Coney Island is doing what it has always done best, namely adapting to changing times. This is how it has managed to remain relevant for well over one hundred years.
If you really want to impress your friends and family with Coney Island facts, check out How West Brighton became Coney Island.
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