Oral History Archive

Irene Karas
Sea Gate resident on her girlhood memories of Coney Island and passing them on to her daughter
Naum Barash
A Coney Island Polar Bear recounts his 50 years of winter swimming in Ukraine and Brooklyn
Susan Meyer
Memories of growing up in the 1940s and '50s in a tight-knit Jewish community in Coney Island
Gabriel Alegría
Jazz musician and bandleader of the Afro-Peruvian Sextet has lived in Coney Island for the past decade
Eric Safyan
Architect who grew up in Coney Island in the 1980s and designed the renovated Ruby's Bar & Grill
Michael Goldstein (Looch)
Memories of growing up on Mermaid Avenue and working games in Coney Island from age twelve
Lola Glass (Lola the Illustrator)
A nine-year-old artist whose favorite place is Coney Island paints a mural at Deno's Wonder Wheel Park
John Rea Sr.
Owner of Peluso Machine and Iron Works
Father Eugene Pappas
On growing up in Coney Island in the 1940s and the history of Greek-American businesses in the area
Sara Schneider
Got a tattoo of the Astroland Rocket in honor of her first date in Coney Island
Jeffrey L. Wilson
Memories of growing up in Coney Island in the 1980s and '90s and Faber's Fascination Arcade
Mathylde Frontus
On growing up in Coney Island and founding the nonprofit Urban Neighborhood Services
Paul Sanchez
Coney Island singer/songwriter who wrote "A Coney Island Song"
Courtney King
Jamaican-born artist and Coney Island resident
Jeffrey Eisenmesser
Former teacher at Mark Twain Junior High School recalls his Coney Island memories
Jan Brown
A Brooklyn native's boyhood memories of Washington Baths and Steeplechase Park
Patricia Casola
Daughter of Coney Island artist, banner painter and Cyclops creator Dan Casola
Wesley Casola
Son of Coney Island artist, banner painter and Cyclops creator Dan Casola