Oral History Archive

Ahmed Hussain
Memories of a boyhood helping out in his family's store in Coney Island and learning to play pinball
Rob Weissbard
Milton Berger's nephew describes adventures at Steeplechase Park with Coney's great showman
Mr. Luong
Coney Island homeowner recalls fleeing Vietnam with his family in 1981 and settling in New York City
Ho Cheung Li
Mermaid Avenue pharmacist dispenses news and advice to new immigrants
Beth Allen
Beth Allen recounts her origins as an "incubator baby" in Dr. Martin Couney's sideshow
Ansen Tang
Director of United Chinese Association of Brooklyn in Bensonhurt, Dyker Heights, and Sheepshead Bay
Jerry Omanoff
Memories of living in Coney Island from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s
Carol Polcovar
Writer and playwright who grew up in Coney Island from 1943 to 1956
Jerry Farley (The Jerry Farley)
Record producer and audio engineer who produces live shows at Coney Island Brewery
John Philip Capello
Mystery artist who carved faces into rocks on the shoreline at Brighton Beach
Rachel Rosenberg Simon
Rachel Simon recalls her family's Deli Restaurant on Mermaid Avenue
Eric Schwelke
Memories of living in Luna Park Houses in the 1960s and again in the late 1970s
Frieda Schwelke
Memories of growing up in Coney Island in the 1930s and '40s and moving to Luna Park Houses in 1962
Fred Stern
Bus driver for 35 years on the B36 route and the shuttle bus inside Sea Gate
Jeff Brooks and Monica Ghee
Jeff was given less than a year to live. Monica donated a kidney and saved his life.
Eric Sanchez
Growing up in Coney Island and Gravesend in the 1990s and 2000s
Randy Kasper
Memories of living in the newly opened Luna Park Houses in the 1960s
Orlando Mendez
Growing up in Coney Island in the 1970s and being the third generation of his family to live here today