Oral History Archive

Filtering by 1920 - 1929 back to all
Jeanette Bigelson
At age 103, Coney Island resident shares her memories and secrets to a long and happy life
Frank Gurrera
Machinist at MTA's Coney Island Overhaul and Repair Shop and oldest active TWU Local 100 member
Ida Rosenblum Gambrell
Memories of Coney Island in the 1920s and '30s
Greg Birbil
Greg Birbil's father, Paul, was a candy maker who owned the Paradise Ice Cream Parlor on Surf Avenue
Steven Feinstein
Reflections on running Wilensky Hardware, a 100-year-old family business on Mermaid Avenue
Rachel Rosenberg Simon
Rachel Simon recalls her family's Deli Restaurant on Mermaid Avenue
Mark St Leon
Australian circus historian whose family performed at Coney Island's Luna Park in the early 1900s
Esther Delgado
Growing up in Gravesend and going to Coney Island in the 1940s and living there today
Sam Person
Family memories of Nat Faber's Fascination arcade and amusement business empire
Edith Storch
Memories of growing up on West 36th Street in Coney Island's West End in the 1930s
Van Milana
Grandson of sword swallower Joseph "Ajax" Milana and DeWise Purdin "The Handless Sharpshooter"
Charles Berkman
Memories of growing up in Coney Island during the Great Depression and 55 years practicing law
Joel Zika
The founder of the Dark Ride Project on documenting Spook-A-Rama and other historic dark rides
Charles Robert Feltman
Great-grandson of Feltmans Restaurant founder and hot dog inventor Charles Feltman
Antoinette Balzano
Granddaughter of Anthony "Totonno" Pero tells the story of how he founded Totonno's Pizzeria in 1924
Louise Milano
Louise Milano's mother, Carolina, operated Carolina Restaurant on Mermaid Avenue for 60 years
Judge Steve Arniotes
The story behind the Boardwalk Lido Restaurant and the family who operated it from 1927 until 1960
José Beth Smolensky
Juilliard trained musician whose family owned Washington Baths