The Rocket Ships: One of the park's icons were the rocket ships, a ride that went through several names through the life of the park.  The attraction opened as the Circle Swing in 1902 and was built by Traver Engineering of Pennsylvania (The company's namesake, Harry Traver, built several different flat rides and roller coasters.  To find more information click here for my article at Ultimaterollercoaster.com.)  According to Euclid Beach Park Is Closed for the Season, when the ride first opened as the Circle Swing it utilized gondolas similar to those found under the hydrogen-filled dirigibles of the time.  Twenty-five years later the park called Traver Engineering back to change the gondolas into biplanes and the rides was known as the Aeroplanes.  In the next decade the park had one of their maintenance men, Bill Parker, create new rocket-style cars and it was named the Rocket Ships (Bill was known as "Wild Bill" because he walked the arms of the rocket ride attached to nothing while it was in motion).  The Humphreys hoped to capitalize on the space interest brought on by Tom Swift, Buck Rogers and other popular culture icons of the era.  They also added four stars up the side of the tower.  The Euclid Beach ride was the first to have the entire structure placed on a platform, a move that was adopted by many other parks throughout the years.  The park placed a beautiful Artizan "A" Organ in the space under the loading platform and music floated throughout the front of the park amid the whirring of the cables through the lake breezes. 

          The Flying Skooters: The skooters, designed and built by Chicago's Bisch-Rocco company, were a popular ride that sat behind the Tumble Bugs.  These rides appear at some parks today.  Sadly, a lot of parks run their skooters too slowly and/or restrict the motion so that their versions do not give the exciting ride they were designed for.  In my opinion, the best skooters in the country are at Paramount's Kings Island (OH) followed by Knoebels Grove (PA).  Although the ride does not look exciting, experienced pilots can make the tubs dance on the wires.  The snapping was heard throughout the area and many parents passed the ride's skill down through the generations- much like a treasured family recipe.  Euclid Beach's skooters was the ten-car version and 49-feet wide, the cars were four feet by two feet, eight inches and the tubs could be maneuvered to a height of 21-feet.  

            The Dodgem: This was the classic bumper car ride.  These cars went fast, hit hard and, like the skooters, well-run versions are a rarity these days.  According to Euclid Beach Park is Closed for the Season, the first cars (which looked more like awkward bumper boats) "turned left when the rider turned the steering wheel to the right, and went backwards when he attempted to go forward."  These cars opened in 1921 and only lasted nine years before they were replaced by cars from the Dodgem Corp.  According to most records, these cars (pictured to the left) were the ones with the park until it closed.  When the ride opened, the building, 143 by 90 feet, was the largest in the United States and remained one of the biggest throughout its existence.  The electricity was transferred from the ceiling to the cars via the long poles protruding from the rear bumper.  The smell of graphite surrounded the building and the electricity crackled as small, blue sparks jumped out from the ceiling.  For many Cleveland kids this was their first experience behind the wheel.

          The Mill Chute/Over the Falls: The Mill Chute opened at Euclid Beach in 1921.  It was designed and built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, one of the amusement industry's most prolific manufacturers.  The boats carried six passengers and were carried up a thirty-five foot lift before the boats sped under the arcs of lights and splashed into the pool below.  The park modified the ride for the 1937 season and renamed it Over the Falls.  Perce Killaly made the rough sketches and Howard Stoneback, who did a little bit of everything in the park, made all of the final calculations.  He added two feet to the ride's final drop and made the descent steeper.  Today many people complain when a park alters a ride in-house.  However, the old cliché of "times were different" applies in this area because the mechanics had two things many park personnel today do not: substantial financial backing of the park and/or intimate knowledge of the ride.  Although mistakes were made from time-to-time, the majority of park maintenance men cared about the company they worked for, it was a family not the faceless corporation that owns many parks.  Therefore, they created rides that reflected their mechanical abilities and pride in the park.   Twenty-two years later Stonebeck added new boats for the ride and died a few months into the 1959 season.  There is only one boat ride like this in the United States today.  The Boat Chute at Lake Winnepesaukah is a fun ride that still has a water-filled drop into the lake.

The Bug: This ride was another classic from Traver Engineering.  Sadly, it is found in only three parks today (Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Conneaut Lake and Kennywood Park).  Euclid Beach bought the ride from Traver towards the end of the twenties and, like the Rocket Ships, was under the watchful eye of Bill Parker.  Apparently Traver's Turtles were known for spaces developing between the supports and the track, but Parker did not let that happen on his ride through meticulous maintenance.  The ride could always be spotted at night because of the incandescent lights strung throughout the station and the bell was rung when the ride started.

         The Rock-O-Plane: This flat ride sat at the park's east end and was installed sometime between 1959 and 1969.  The looping contraption was built by the Eyerly Aircraft Company of Salem, Oregon.  The ride used to be a staple on American carnival and amusement park midways.  Today, it cannot be found at many parks except Lakeside Park (CO), Oaks Park (OR) and a few others.  The ride is quite simple.  After boarding the Ferris wheel-like ride passengers let their car stay upright or locked it in any position to create a unique upside down roll-over.  There were many different rides in this area of the park during Euclid Beach's final fifteen years like an Allan Herschell Hurricane, an Eli Bridge Scrambler and Spider from the Eyerly company.  There was no explanation why there were so many rides in such a short amount of time in one area, but it could be in hopes to attract lots of teenager's silver coins on a regular basis.  All of the rides could have been easily sold or traded out to the country's traveling carnivals.  The Eyerly company was one of the earliest companies to sell safe and popular attractions that turned riders upside down.  

Kids Rides:

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Adam Sandy, Copyright 2002.