Helping his Dad run a dark ride called the House of Horrors
Joel Minesquero's father operated a spookhouse and performed in the sideshow in Coney Island. Joel takes us on a tour of his favorite spots and reminisces about his rides on the Parachute Jump and his efforts as an outside talker for his father...
Content type: Oral History Item
Lived in Coney Island during the 50's
In the 1950s, Gene and his older brother lived in Coney Island. Gene has vivid memories of Steeplechase Park, the Wonder Wheel and his favorite ride, the Bobsled. He recalls his brother selling Good Humor ice cream on the beach, charging double or...
Content type: Oral History Item
A painter with a Coney Island legacy
Marie Roberts hails from an illustrious Coney Island family. Her grandfather was the Acting Battalion Chief of the Coney Island district and fought some of the most notable fires in Brooklyn history including the Dreamland fire of 1911 that burned...
Content type: Oral History Item
Has lived in Coney Island for 41 years
Marina has lived in Coney Island for 41 years and in same apartment for 32 years. She remembers the many second-hand stores, her first knackwurst at Rosenberg's deli, the truck with the swimming pool for kids at 30th Street, spending the night...
Content type: Oral History Item
Fan of the new Luna Park
Mi Won has been visiting Coney Island since her parents brought her as a little girl in the 1970's. Today, she is a teacher in Queens who enjoys amusement rides as much as her students do. She and her sister paid their first visit to the new...
Content type: Oral History Item
Radio broadcaster and Coney Island native
Freda Aron, née Umansky, was born in Brooklyn in 1915 and grew up in Coney Island in the 1920s and '30s as the child of Russian immigrant parents. After attending Bay Ridge Girls High School, she graduated from Lincoln High School's first...
Content type: Oral History Item
Fond memories of Coney Island
Joseph Svehlak recalls two generations of stories from Coney Island. His mother grew up in lower Manhattan as a first generation American born to European parents in the early 1910’s. On Sundays after church, her father would take her and her sister...
Content type: Oral History Item
Maintained Astroland Park's Astrotower for 25 years
Frank has maintained the Astrotower at Astroland since 1982. In this 2007 interview he describes his job and tells the story of a raccoon in the Tower which became a news story.
The park closed at the end of the 2008 season and the Astrotower was...
Content type: Oral History Item
A fan of the Cyclone
Richard describes skipping school to visit in the 1970's when there was a "sense of adventure" in Coney Island. He describes the fun of riding the Cyclone and his hopes for the future of Coney Island. This photo of Richard comes from...
Content type: Oral History Item
Artist and photographer
Lily Binder has photographed Coney Island extensively since her first visit in the 1970s. She claims that "The Cyclone is the most physically and mentally cleansing minute of your life because you can't think. It's pure adrenaline......
Content type: Oral History Item