This was Progress?

The people of Cleveland lost more than an amusement park when Euclid Beach closed- they lost a part of their childhood, their place of recreation; really a part of themselves. Many did not believe that September 28, 1969 was the last day the coaster cars would run and the carousel would spin. The Beach slowly lost money during the sixties and was just one of many parks that would see their lives end during this time. Across the country several places of family fun closed their doors. The Forest Park Highlands (MO) burned in 1963, Olympic Park (NJ) shut its gates in 1965 and Riverview Park (IL) closed in 1967. The beach had many of the same problems that these and other parks faced during the 1960's. A combination of suburbinization (white flight), a surge in the popularity of television shows, resurgence of the movies and the growing popularity of convergence attractions like malls all helped to pound the final nails in the proverbial coffin. Today all that remains of the park is the famous gate and a nearby McDonalds that is full of picture's from the beach's heyday. The many parks that flourished in the Cleveland area are now history. The last survivor, Geauga Lake, was bought by the Six Flags Corporation and is now just another theme park. For Cleveland's citizens the best bets today for a traditional park Conneaut Lake Park in Conneuat Lake, Pennsylvania, Wyandot Lake (also owned by Six Flags, but kept in the traditional style) in Columbus, Ohio, Waldameer Park in Erie, Pennsylvania and Kennywood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Today the shores of Euclid Beach are filled with nothing but memories.

To help bring a bit of closure to the saga of Euclid Beach, I have started a list of rides that operated at the park and their locations today. If you can make any additions or corrections to this list please inform me. Thanks to Mark Rosenzweig and Jeffery Seifert for their information via rec.roller-coaster.

Ride	Location Today
Antique Cars (Arrow Development)	Moved to Old Indiana
Carousel (Philadelphia Toboggan Company)	Moved to Old Indiana
Carousel (Philadelphia Toboggan Company)	In storage in Cleveland, Ohio
Flying Skooters (Bisch-Rocco)	Moved to Old Indiana, sold at auction and current whereabouts unknown
The Great American Racing Derby (Prior & Church/Illions)	Bought by Cedar Point in 1965 and debuted at the park in 1967
Rotor (Chance Rides?)	Moved to Old Indiana and dismantled because of mechanical problems


Here are some views of the park today from the southwest corner of the park. To the left of where the pictures were taken is a McDonalds with several pictures of the park blown up and put on the wall.

This is the gate of Euclid Beach Park today. The gate was named a Cleveland Historic Landmark, which is the reason it still stands today.


The photo on the left shows the walkway along the beach. The water is to the left, but the view has been obscured by trees. The other photo shows a bridge that exists at the current senior apartments. Apparently it was from Euclid Beach's old auto ride and was too expensive to remove so the developers kept it in place.


These two views are of the Euclid Beach Pier. The left photo is looking up the pier from the bottom. The area just to the left is where the fountain used to be. The other photo was taken from the top. The pier was chopped in half, it used to go out to where the jetty (which was added after the park opened). The railings and lamps are from the park, as you can see in this photo.

If you want to keep an amusement park built around the same time as Euclid Beach from being bulldozed click here to find out more about saving Whalom Park. If you have lost an amusement park you know the unique socio-economic determent it has on a city- please do your part to help.