Even the repeal of Prohibition in 1933 did little to improve things, although the ability to obtain liquor licenses made it manageable. Shortly after railroad executives signed the paperwork the following March, fire broke out in a paint shop at the park. Most definitely Riverside in Agawam. Police said the ride was going full-speed when the Ferguson was struck. Pleasure Beach Ballroom had big bands like The Dorseys (before my time) , but being a product of the 50s I remember seeing Fats Domino and Patsy Cline there. I also recall a booth with a figure inside dressed like a gypsy woman. The Giant Coaster, which was built in 1917 and was removed from the park in 1985, is now known as The Wild One at Six Flags America. They also hosted many concerts and special shows! Not only was the band funny, but exceptional musicians . The park opened to rave reviews. Through the decades, the venues Palladium Ballroom hosted a lineup of performers that ranged from Janis Joplin to the Ramones and Pearl Jam. The site is now home to condominiums. we went on the Congo Cruise, which I think briefly had a Who makes these lists? Believed by many to have helped inspire the future Magic Kingdom, this amusement park flashed briefly across the New England entertainment scene, opening in 1906 and closing at the end of summer in 1910. My first date with my now wife of 38 years was there! Paragon Park Hull, Massachusetts, United States Defunct, Operated from 6/10/1905 to 1985 Videos Maps Parks nearby Defunct Roller Coasters: 6 Location Located on Nantasket Beach. Following the show, wed watch the fireworks from the parking lot. Wish I had more photos from back then, but had no idea the park would be closed. Paragon had its own saltwater lagoon, which surrounded a central electric tower that rose 110 feet into the sky, by far the largest structure at Nantasket Beach. Now its a shopping center. village from 54-56. According to a Washington Post article from that time, it was purchased at auction for just $28,000. But they would find that recovering from a flood was entirely different. Billed as a miniature worlds fair, the 10-acre park built by the Eastern Park Construction Company was, in fact, fashioned in the image of an actual fair the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893. But another group of preservationists began to think about how memories of the park could be saved, and fixed its gaze upon the antique carousel. Trailblazer (1974). Lost in that fire was much of the holiday inventory of Toy-A-Rama, a seasonal store in Paragons former roller skating rink that competed against the Arcade Bazaar. I grew up in Hull and I was in fifth grade when closed the park. "It has stood the test of time." She convinced me to ride the corkscrew roller coaster and that was the beginning of my love of roller coasters. ive been in that too by the vfw building on the hill, was so glad to see this site !!!!!!!!!!! A 20-year-old man also fell when he attempted to stand up on the coaster in 1934, and a maintenance worker was killed in 1946 after he was struck while working on scaffolding on the coaster. Wild Mouse was a B. Kicking off the Park's expansion of Pioneer Frontier, it was the first attraction at Hersheypark to be completely themed.Trailblazer is the second-oldest running coaster in the Park and a family favorite.It features a helix that circles a total of 4 times and reaches speeds of up . They loved it . In Africa, what are the two most common biomes? I lived in Leominister and took the bus to whalom Park on Saturdays. The roller coaster hit speeds of up to 53 miles per hour during a ride of less than 2 minutes. Theres a Facebook page called Paragon Park Memories- maybe if you post it there someone else may remember it as well good luck! I remember a vacation my family took in Misquamucut RI , in maybe 1957 . He says he and his son boarded . I do remember Whalom Park and Bensons Wild Animal farm as well, we took our own children there a few times as well! Cyndinow living in South Jersey but always a New Englander. The doll has to be from the fiftys because my aunt died, and she was 81 when she died in 1992. There was one that you didnt mention it was between Fall River and New Bedford, along the highway then. On Saturday, a 57-year-old woman died following an accident on a roller coaster called "The Hot Ride." The woman, identified as a German national, slipped from her seat while the coaster was. On a dark winter evening homeward-bound in the front passenger seat in our '53 Chevy after Christmas shopping at the Paragon Park's Arcade Bazaar - a warehouse-like fluorescent-lit discount toy store in Nantasket Beach - my mom told me the heartbreaking truth about Santa Claus. As each season ended, friends and family recall the Stones saying privately that it would be the last; they no longer had the energy to devote to such a draining enterprise. Im now in what you would call the elderly stage of my life (Im almost 77). By then, the Stone family found itself in an unfamiliar position: unsure of how long the park could survive. Yet, in 14 years (1990-2004), there were only 54 amusement park fatalities. I really did enjoy Paragon Park. Also Lincoln Park in North Dartmouth, MA, where I remember riding the roller coaster 13 times in a row with a friend! Wildcat, Bell's Amusement Park, 1997. one year it was HOT and we were gorging on clam cakes at the end of the day but decided one more ride cant hurt.. the one that starts leve and ends up having the rider flying upside down. Great memories ???? Lizzie- Myrtle Beach is definitely in the air today as a pal just asked about retro roadmap worthy places to go around that area. I remember when they had Elvis performing on the outdoor stagethat was many years ago! A new stone-carved front entrance designed by Hugh Cairns would add elegance to the Nantasket Avenue side. Time finally caught up with Whalom Park, however, and not long after it closed permanently, the parks remaining structures were razed to make way for a condominium complex. Touted as the strangest farm on earth, this park was developed by John Benson, a British animal trainer who had originally purchased a 200-acre lot about an hour north of Boston to serve as a temporary home for animals he would buy and sell. It put Paragon Park on the map as a must-visit for anyone coming to New England, and was beloved by locals as well. Master carousel artisan Charles I.D. Ill never forget Lincoln Park Great Great Memories. One of its readers tipped off the local paper, The Hull-Nantasket Times, which went to press a day early to officially break the news on January 2, 1985 that a condominium developer planned to tear down Paragon Park. A postcard view of Rocky Point Amusement Park in Warwick, Rhode Island, c. 1930-1945. digital file from original About this Item. It is the oldest coaster in any Six Flags park. The person, who has not been identified, was flung about 10 feet out . New owners took over after Bensons death in 1943, and although the park still drew crowds, it had up-and-down years for the next few decades. In October 2014, it was reborn as the 120-acre Rocky Point State Park. My late Mom loved the arcade area, especially. The roller coaster, known as the Green Streak, replaced an earlier, figure-8 model that had been located at the rear of the complex next to the Palm Garden. I remember Savin Rock very well. He didn't survive the incident. Mountain Park in Holyoke, MA where I grew up. All rights reserved. Thanks for reviving a special memory! Norumbega Park loved going there when I was young! My sister was born early on the morning of July 3rd. Where is the Paragon Park roller coaster now, given this? Does anyone remember Funland Park worked there too. I took my children there all the time ides were reasonable for a family. My best memories of my being a teenager is my time being at Paragon Park. The coaster was rebuilt and reopened in 1986. My sons favorite memory is throwing up on the flying swings. I still think of it and its thrills in y late 70s. rollercoaster type ride , called the wild Mouse Does anyone know of this? Whalom Park! Thank you for the flashbacks! Youd once drive into Hull on George Washington Boulevard and watch the horizon for the rising coaster in the distance; now, its a monstrous condo building. Thank you! Jack! Share. It was designed and constructed by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co., which later built the park's carousel that remains in Hull. memories of Nantasket! On September 20, 1922, George A. I think fondly of Whalom Park also. In 1916, park owner George A. Looff built the parks first merry-go-round in 1892 and another in 1895. also Nantasket Beach. The financial difficulties of the Depression weighed heavily on Paragons operations. I remember thinking that day that I would come back and photograph the place right, and get some good shots as there were rumors that the park would close after the next season. Great memories growing up there with the park, the bowling alley and the roller skating rink! This is an unused Paragon Park t-shirt from the long defunct amusement park that was located in Nantasket Beach, Hull Ma. Kings Castle, Whitman, great amusements for kids to age 10 maybe 12. This article is a stub. Like Lincoln Park, the land on which Paragon Park was situated is now the site of condominiums. But in the 80s some of my best fun was checking out the abandoned rides of Crescent Park when my grandmother lived in the high rise they built on the land. We were bused to school at Hingham. It was similar to another of its kind in the Adirondacks north of Schroon Lake, Frontiertown. It must have been about 1956 when we went to Cowboy Village. We lived in Hamden and Dad thought it was fairly close by in Killingworth. I grew up in the 80s and 90s in rhode island and Rocky Point was an amazing amusement park. In Africa, what three biomes are the most common? But I do have a copy of the book Savin Rock Memories by Gil Johnson and Bennett W. Dorman. [1] More rides that Paragon hosted over the years were the Trabant, the Tilt-A-Whirl, Galaxy Coaster, the Skydiver, Paratrooper, Matterhorn, Himalaya, Round Up, Scrambler, Crazy Tea Cups, Twister Kiddie Coaster, Caterpillar, the Whip, Batman-slide, Super-slide, Salt and Pepper Shakers, Swing ride, Rotor, along with many rides that were smaller versions of these, geared towards children. Pleasure Island Norumbega were our amusement parks of choice. Great memories. Maybe 5 +. I recall going to Storytown in Lake George area now a Six Flags. Mountain Park in Holyoke, MA! My favorite was Riverside Park in Agawam MA. My older brother worked at Paragon for two summers running rides. I remember Whalom Park and Bensons Animal Farm fondly. During the next several months, the town of Hull was in turmoil. Paragon Park was an amusement park located in Hull, Massachusetts, USA. The Giant Coaster sat silent, and the undulating tracks looked like the skeleton of a dinosaur carcass, being slowly dismantled and eaten away at by the vultures that couldnt wait to turn the site into a condominium complex. Yet some may have taken a day trip away from the New Bedford and Fall River areas to visit another of New Englands great amusement parks of old the seaside gem Paragon Park on Nantasket Beach in Hull, Massachusetts. Paragon Park on Nantasket Beach in Hull, MA has to be the most beloved old amusement park in New England and one of the top 10 in the country. Perhaps the most famous attraction at Whalom Park was its 1940 Flying Comet wooden roller coaster, built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, the same outfit responsible for the wooden coasters at Coney Island. In 1931, David and Rose Stone created the Paragon Park Operating Company to hold their ownership interest and shield it from creditors. Kahn already knew that the towns zoning rules for the park property lacked a key ingredient: a height limit. My grandparents took me. The $6 million roller coaster replaced the Inverter, a ride that was discontinued in 2017 off the main boulevard. Rick- that vaguely rings a bell with me but I dont have any photos. Many in Hull remained unconvinced. Today, the only surviving remnant of Paragon Park on the boardwalk is the historic Paragon Park Carousel, which was moved from its original site. The 25.9-acre amusement park the nation's largest at the time included roller coasters and other rides, games, vaudeville and movie theaters, a funhouse, and a "health center" where premature infants in incubators were put on display. Thank you for the wonderful memories. Benson opened his property to the public in 1924, and from there he added attractions such as rides, games, and concessions. It remained on the site for a short time after the closing, a hulking ghost of the parks past. 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