Oral History Archive

Linda Zhang

Coney Island homeowner for 19 years enjoys organic gardening and walking on the boardwalk

Stanley Fox

Retired Coney Island arcade operator recalls his family's 30-plus years in the business

Sheila Levrant de Bretteville

Memories of growing up a block from the ocean and being head of Lincoln High School's Art Squad

Olga Lozar

A Sea Gate resident who is a Coney Island Polar Bear talks about the pleasures of winter swimming

Xin Song

Artist who used traditional Chinese paper cutting to create public art in Bay Parkway subway station

Allen James

Coney Islander, musician/songwriter in alt-rock band Newborn, lifeguard

Crystal Isley

Memories of growing up in Coney Island Houses in the 1980s and '90s

Robert Whitney

Memories of a gorilla show, a bungalow colony, and an underground city beside the beach

Yanglun Hsiao

A filmmaker and film editor from Taiwan living in Brighton Beach

Stanley Fox, Part 2

Retired arcade operator's memories of when Coney Island's amusements were open in the wintertime

George Ancona

The art of growing up Mexican American in Coney Island in the 1930s and '40s

Alito Hernandez

From breakdancing on the streets of Coney Island with Fresh Kids to Peter Gennaro's Street Dreams

Silvana, Adrianne and Silverio Conte

Silvana, Adrianne and Silverio Conte, owners of 51-year-old SAS Italian Records in Bensonhurst

Yi Xin Tong (in English)

Living in Gravesend, artist from China's Mount Lu feels closest to home at Coney Island Creek

Yi Xin Tong

Living in Gravesend, artist from China's Mount Lushan feels closest to home at Coney Island Creek

Arthur Nintzel

Boyhood memories of Ocean Tide Baths and the B&B Carousell's Lincoln horse

Sam Shlivko

Growing up in the Russian community in Coney Island and Brighton Beach

Carmela

Growing up on West 16th Street between Mermaid and Neptune in a cold water flat in the 1940s and '50s