Dreamland (Coney Island, 1904)

Template:Short description Template:Good article Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox amusement park Dreamland was an amusement park that operated in the Coney Island neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City, United States, from 1904 to 1911. It was the last of the three original large parks built on Coney Island, along with Steeplechase Park and Luna Park.<ref name=Goldfield2006>Template:Cite book</ref> The park was between Surf Avenue to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It was arranged roughly as a horseshoe, with a pier facing south toward the Atlantic Ocean. Dreamland contained several attractions that were larger versions of those at Luna Park, and it included a human zoo, several early roller coasters, a Shoot the Chutes ride, and a replica of Venice. Dreamland also hosted entertainment and dramatic spectacles based on morality themes. Several structures, such as the Pompeiian, Electricity, and Submarine Boat buildings, were dedicated to exhibits.

Former state senator William H. Reynolds announced plans in July 1903 for an amusement park rivaling Luna Park, originally known as the Hippodrome. The Dreamland Company started constructing the park in December 1903, and the park opened as Dreamland on May 15, 1904. The park operated between May and September of each year, and Reynolds constantly changed Dreamland's shows and attractions every season. Coney Island had reached its peak popularity by the late 1900s, but Dreamland struggled to compete with Luna Park, which was better managed.

During the early morning of May 27, 1911, just after the start of Dreamland's eighth season, a worker kicked over a bucket of hot pitch, starting a fire that spread through the park's wooden buildings. Firefighters were unable to control the fire because of low water pressure; nearly all of the structures were quickly destroyed, although no one was killed. The site's northern portion, on Surf Avenue, was quickly redeveloped with various concessions. The New York City government acquired the southern portion through condemnation in 1912, but disputes over compensation continued for eight years. The site became a parking lot in 1921 and was redeveloped as a recreation center in 1935; the New York Aquarium was eventually built on the site in 1957.

Development

Between about 1880 and World War II, Coney Island was the largest amusement area in the United States, attracting several million visitors per year.<ref name="Kasson pp. 7–8">Template:Harvnb</ref> Sea Lion Park opened in 1895 and was Coney Island's first amusement area to charge entry fees;<ref name="Parascandola p. 12">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Immerso p. 55">Template:Harvnb</ref> this in turn spurred the construction of George C. Tilyou's Steeplechase Park in 1897, the neighborhood's first major amusement park.<ref name="Parascandola p. 12" /><ref name="Immerso p. 56">Template:Harvnb</ref> Frederic Thompson and Elmer "Skip" Dundy opened Luna Park, Coney Island's second major amusement park, in 1903 on the site of Sea Lion Park, which had closed the previous year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Immerso pp. 60–61">Template:Harvnb</ref> William H. Reynolds, a former state senator and successful Brooklyn real estate developer, decided to construct Dreamland following the success of Luna Park.<ref name="heartofconeyisland">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He intended for Dreamland to compete with Luna Park. Dreamland was supposed to be refined and elegant in its design and architecture, compared to Luna Park with its many rides and chaotic noise.<ref name="ed">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Reynolds announced plans in July 1903 for an amusement park rivaling Luna Park, which was to be built in a style resembling London's Hippodrome.<ref name="nyt-1903-07-18">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116303782">Template:Cite news</ref> According to local media, he reportedly paid $180,000 for a pier on the Coney Island Beach,<ref name="n116301657" /> as well as $447,500 for two parcels at Surf Avenue and West Eighth Street,Template:Efn measuring Template:Convert deep and Template:Convert wide.<ref name="n116303782" /><ref name="n116301657">Template:Cite news</ref> The Times Union subsequently said that the purchase prices for the site were not correct.<ref name="n116302233">Template:Cite news</ref> The Surf Avenue parcels had belonged to John Y. McKane,<ref name="n116303782" /> who had operated a bathing house on the site.<ref name="n116309582">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116308932">Template:Cite news</ref> Previously, the parcels had also included the Coney Island Athletic Club's arena<ref name="n116302233" /> and the Culver Depot, the then-terminal of what is now the New York City Subway's Brighton and Culver lines.<ref name="n116302233" /> Although C. L. Turnbull and P. I. Thompson were nominally the buyers, but they acted as proxies for Reynolds, allowing him to acquire the Surf Avenue site at a discount of more than $50,000.<ref name="n116329537">Template:Cite news</ref> Once Reynolds acquired the site, he made a deal with the New York City Board of Estimate to demap West Eighth Street, which separated McKane's parcels from each other.<ref name="Dreamland 1998">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> The street, which had taken up one-sixth of the proposed park's width, contained a trolley terminal that needed to be relocated.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" />

Originally, the park was supposed to be known as the Hippodrome.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /><ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> In August 1903, Reynolds and several other men established the Wonderland Company, which had a capitalization of $1.2 million<ref name="n116302233" /> and existed specifically to develop an amusement park on the site.<ref name="n116301413">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116302768">Template:Cite news</ref> The amusement pier was planned to contain a dance hall and bathing pavilion, while the main portion of the site would be arranged around a large tower that would overtop Luna Park's.<ref name="n116303407">Template:Cite news</ref> The company took title to the plots in September 1903 and received a $200,000 mortgage loan from the Title Guarantee and Trust Company.<ref name="n116301413" /><ref name="n116302768" /> The Edison Company was hired to manufacture the park's lights in late 1903; the new park was expected to have more electric lights than had existed on all of Coney Island during the preceding season.<ref name="n116303112">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116303645">Template:Cite news</ref>

Construction of the park itself began in December 1903.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116303407" /> General contractor Edward Johnson Company employed about 2,000 workers,<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> who were employed in three shifts of eight hours each.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /><ref name="n116303407" /> The park was known as Dreamland by January 1904.<ref name="n116304227">Template:Cite news</ref> Reynolds, wishing to surpass Luna Park by every metric, reportedly spent $3.5 million on Dreamland.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /><ref name="Immerso p. 68">Template:Harvnb</ref> Dreamland had one million lights, compared to 250,000 lights at Luna Park; even Dreamland's firefighting show was more elaborate than that at Luna Park.<ref name="Berman Museum of the City of New York 2003 p. 35">Template:Cite book</ref> Dreamland also planned to differentiate itself from Luna Park by adding novel attractions, as well as operating a private beach and bath house (something that Luna Park lacked because of its inland location).<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /> Samuel W. Gumpertz was among those who helped develop the park.<ref name="p1322451669">Template:Cite news</ref>

Operation

1904 to 1907

Dreamland opened on May 15, 1904,<ref name="Denson" /> with a fire show that employed 4,000 performers.<ref name="nyt-1904-05-15">Template:Cite news</ref> The park was $1.9 million in debt, more than the entire amount invested in the competing Luna Park. Dreamland charged 10 cents for admission on weekdays and 15 cents on weekends, plus an additional fee of up to 25 cents for individual rides.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /> The park closed for the season on September 24, 1904.<ref name="nyt-1904-09-25">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p571501013">Template:Cite news</ref> Reynolds said Dreamland had recorded a $400,000 net profit during the operating season,<ref name="p571501013" /> despite erroneous reports that the park had been placed in receivership.<ref name="nyt-1904-09-25" /> Although the Leapfrog Railway roller coaster was completed with the rest of the park, it did not open until the 1905 season.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" />

Reynolds spent $500,000 on new attractions and shows ahead of the 1905 season,<ref name="nyt-1905-04-23">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p571554145">Template:Cite news</ref> which ran from May 13<ref name="nyt-1905-05-14">Template:Cite news</ref> to September 24.<ref name="n116400677">Template:Cite news</ref> Among these was a show based on the Creation myth, which had been exhibited at the 1904 St. Louis Exposition;<ref name="p571622108">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116385572">Template:Cite news</ref> this attraction alone cost $250,000.<ref name="nyt-1905-04-23" /><ref name="p571554145" /> The park also added an exhibition of a Roman hippodrome around the lagoon; replaced the submarine ride with the Hell Gate boat ride; and added a Japanese-themed theater.<ref name="nyt-1905-04-23" /><ref name="n116385572" /><ref name="p2092500035">Template:Cite magazine</ref> City officials temporarily closed Dreamland's pier in May 1905, citing the fact that the pier was too narrow to accommodate crowds.<ref name="p571523427">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1905-05-17">Template:Cite news</ref>

Many of the park's shows were replaced for the 1906 season, and park officials also rebuilt the pier.<ref name="nyt-1906-05-20">Template:Cite news</ref> The new attractions for that season included a reenactment of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake's aftermath; a Moqui Indian village; a rebuilt Creation show;<ref name="nyt-1906-05-20" /><ref name="p571566767">Template:Cite news</ref> and the Touring New York car show.<ref name="p1505502927">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The park opened for the 1906 season on May 20,<ref name="nyt-1906-05-20" /> and it began hosting vaudeville shows for the first time that June.<ref name="p1529031002">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Dreamland's third season ended on September 24, 1906.<ref name="p571877383">Template:Cite news</ref> Prior to the 1907 season, concessionaire William Ellis introduced an attraction called the Orient, anchored by a theater that presented several shows.<ref name="Immerso p. 74">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="nyt-1907-04-212">Template:Cite news</ref> Park officials also built a new administration building and installed other shows.<ref name="p572020079">Template:Cite news</ref> Park officials gave $50 to the first guest of the season on May 18, 1907,<ref name="p572020079" /><ref name="nyt-1907-05-19">Template:Cite news</ref> and the park operated through September 21 of that year.<ref name="n116403740">Template:Cite news</ref> At this point, the park hosted several shows that were based on themes of morality,<ref name="Immerso p. 73" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> such as "The End of the World" and the "Feast of Beshazzar and the Destruction of Babylon".<ref name="nyt-1907-04-212" /><ref name="p126887439">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

1908 to 1911

Coney Island had reached its peak popularity by the late 1900s, when millions of people visited the neighborhood every year.<ref name="Immerso p. 81">Template:Harvnb</ref> Despite its many amusements, Dreamland struggled to compete with the better-managed Luna Park.<ref name="Immerso p. 82">Template:Harvnb</ref> As such, for the 1908 season, the park's management decided to offer free admission during weekdays;<ref name="n116405304">Template:Cite news</ref> although the free-admission policy did not extend to individual rides, the policy still attracted visitors.<ref name="n116405087">Template:Cite news</ref> The park opened for the season on May 23, 1908,<ref name="nyt-1908-05-24">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p572085031">Template:Cite news</ref> and operated until September 20.<ref name="n116407917">Template:Cite news</ref> For this season, Ellis added an auditorium with more than one thousand seats, and the park also added shows such as Freak Street, the Moroccan Jugglers, and an Old Virginia show.<ref name="nyt-1908-05-24" /> Following the 1908 season, Dreamland hired Wells Hawks of the New York Hippodrome to lead the publicity bureau, and they hired Gumpertz as the general manager.<ref name="p572170798">Template:Cite news</ref>

Prior to the 1909 season, four thousand workmen completely revamped the park's attractions.<ref name="nyt-1909-04-25">Template:Cite news</ref> The ballroom was expanded to accommodate 1,500 couples.<ref name="p572170798" /> Other additions included a wisteria garden on the site of the former hippodrome track, a circus ring near the tower, a scenic railway roller coaster,<ref name="p572170798" /><ref name="nyt-1909-04-25" /> a Deep Sea Divers attraction, and a village of Filipinos.<ref name="n116468302">Template:Cite news</ref> The park's operators said "everything at Dreamland will be new but the ocean".<ref name="n116468302" /> The park's sixth season began on May 15, 1909,<ref name="nyt-1909-05-16">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p572231671">Template:Cite news</ref> and ended on September 19.<ref name="nyt-1909-09-20">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p572315576">Template:Cite news</ref> That year, New York City mayor George B. McClellan Jr. attempted to prevent the park from staging live shows on Sundays, citing the city's blue laws,<ref name="nyt-1909-05-22">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p572175923">Template:Cite news</ref> although Reynolds strongly opposed the legislation.<ref name="nyt-1909-05-222">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p572223319">Template:Cite news</ref> Dreamland had previously held a license permitting it to present shows seven days a week. When the license was renewed in June 1909, the shows were allowed only six days a week.<ref name="nyt-1909-06-24">Template:Cite news</ref> Gumpertz said the city government took issue with Dreamland's circus, which was free of charge.<ref name="nyt-1909-05-18">Template:Cite news</ref> City officials also objected to the Filipino villagers' attire, which exposed their legs.<ref name="n116594919">Template:Cite news</ref>

Kings County sheriff Patrick H. Quinn announced in February 1910 that the park would be auctioned off on behalf of Eugene Wood and Joseph Huber,<ref name="n116474133">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p1031408019">Template:Cite magazine</ref> the corporation's two largest bondholders, who wanted to reorganize the company.<ref name="n116474817">Template:Cite news</ref> The auction only involved a nominal change of ownership, as Huber and Wood bought the park the next month.<ref name="n116475005">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116475128">Template:Cite news</ref> Dreamland's seventh season began on May 14, 1910,<ref name="p572374365">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1910-05-15">Template:Cite news</ref> and ran until September 18.<ref name="p572389732">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1910-09-19">Template:Cite news</ref> Among the new attractions for the 1910 season were Alligator Joe's alligator and crocodile farm, a Bornean village, and a ride called Trip to the North Pole.<ref name="nyt-1910-05-01">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p1031413324">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In preparation for Dreamland's 1911 season, its operators made additional changes.<ref name="Berman 2003 p. 36">Template:Cite book</ref> For instance, the buildings were repainted in white and red,<ref name="p1031420180">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="n116475499">Template:Cite news</ref> and the structures near the Surf Avenue entrance were demolished to make way for a lighting plant with 130,000 additional light bulbs.<ref name="n116475772">Template:Cite news</ref> Various rides such as the Great Divide, Canals of Venice, Tub Ride, and Hell Gate were enlarged,<ref name="n116377428" /> while the ballroom and restaurant had been relocated from the pier to near the Surf Avenue entrance.<ref name="n116377428">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116477686">Template:Cite news</ref> The site of the old ballroom was converted to a skating rink, and the bathing pavilion on the ocean was expanded significantly.<ref name="n116476395">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116476999">Template:Cite news</ref> The park added thirty new shows,<ref name="n116476103">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116477383">Template:Cite news</ref> such as Joseph Ferari's animal show, a biblical show known as the Sacrifice, and a village of "human curiosities".<ref name="n116476395" /><ref name="n116476999" /> It also added a miniature subway around the park, a carousel, and a dual-tracked roller coaster.<ref name="n116477686" /> Some existing attractions were retained, such as Bostock's Wild Animals, which included a dwarf elephant named Little Hip and a one-armed lion tamer known as Captain Jack Bonavita.<ref name="Immerso pp. 82–83">Template:Harvnb</ref> Dreamland also hired Omar Sami as a carnival barker for the 1911 season,<ref name="n116465336">Template:Cite news</ref> and the park opened for its eighth season on May 20, 1911.<ref name="n116476103" /><ref name="n116477383" /><ref name="n116476223">Template:Cite news</ref>

Destruction

Fire

Despite the implementation of fire-safety regulations in certain areas of Coney Island after a major blaze in 1902, these regulations were not extended to Dreamland. Consequently, the park remained highly vulnerable to fire.<ref name="n116304227" /> During the early morning of May 27, 1911, the Hell Gate attraction was undergoing last-minute repairs by a roofing company owned by Samuel Engelstein.<ref name="n116552472">Template:Cite news</ref> A leak had to be caulked with tar. During these repairs, at about 1:30 a.m.,Template:Efn the light bulbs turned off and a worker kicked over a bucket of hot pitch, causing the light bulbs to explode.<ref name="Reiss p. 20">Template:Harvnb</ref> Winds from the ocean caused the fire to quickly spread throughout the park.<ref name="Reiss p. 20" /><ref name="n116548156">Template:Cite news</ref> The Dreamland fire was the first double-nine-alarm fire that the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) had ever fought in Brooklyn.<ref name="n116327177">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1911-06-04">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn This alarm, which signified the most severe type of fire, summoned FDNY companies from across Brooklyn.<ref name="n116329244">Template:Cite news</ref>

Fires had been a persistent problem at Coney Island, so a high-pressure water pumping station had been constructed at West 15th Street near Coney Island Creek during the 1900s.<ref name="F. Webster 1911 p. 23-PA30">Template:Cite magazine</ref> On the night of the Dreamland fire, the water pressure was extremely low:<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="nyt-1911-05-27">Template:Cite news</ref> the pumping station was capable of supplying water at Template:Convert, but the pressure had dropped to Template:Convert.<ref name="n116552472" /> Furthermore, even though Coney Island's firehouse was within Template:Convert of Dreamland, the other FDNY companies had to travel long distances to reach Coney Island. By the time other FDNY companies reached the neighborhood, the entire park had caught fire.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-27" /> As a result of the conflagration's intensity, as well as the low water pressure, firefighters could not even enter the park; they attempted to extinguish the fire from its borders.<ref name="p1031428446">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Immerso pp. 83–84">Template:Harvnb</ref> As the park burned, tens of thousands of onlookers traveled from across New York City to see the fire.<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="p1031428446" /> Firefighters quickly shifted their focus to saving adjacent structures.<ref name="Immerso pp. 83–84" /> Several buildings on the south side of Surf Avenue caught fire, although almost all buildings on the north side remained undamaged.<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="p1031428446" />

Bonavita and Ferari attempted to save the animals, some of whom escaped,<ref name="Immerso p. 83">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name=n120077639/> though about 60 animals died.<ref name="ed" /> A lion named Black Prince rushed into the streets and climbed a roller coaster before being shot.<ref name=n120077639>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Seitz Miller 2011 p. 286">Template:Cite book</ref> Another animal, Sultan, was shot several dozen times before being killed by an axe blow.<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="Immerso p. 83" /> Early editions of The New York Times claimed the incubator babies had perished in the flames,<ref name="nyt-1911-05-27" /> but the infants were all saved,<ref name="Immerso p. 83" /> and the Times subsequently corrected itself.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-28">Template:Cite news</ref> According to contemporary accounts, New York City Police Department (NYPD) sergeant Frederick Klinck made several trips into the burning structure to rescue incubator babies.<ref name="n116316087" /> The conflagration extended east to Balmer's bathing pavilion at West 5th Street and west to the new Giant Coaster at West 10th Street. The Giant Coaster acted as a firebreak that prevented the fire from spreading,<ref name="n116548156" /><ref name="n116316087" /> as did several brick buildings east of the park's central tower.<ref name="Immerso p. 84">Template:Harvnb</ref> The tower collapsed just after 3 a.m.,<ref name="n116548156" /> and all attractions were on fire by 3:30 a.m.<ref name="Immerso p. 84" /> Around 4 a.m., the water pressure returned to normal, but most of the park had been burned by then.<ref name="n116548156" /><ref name="n116327177" /> The fire was extinguished at 5 a.m.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-28" />

Aftermath

The NYPD initially estimated that the park had sustained $4 million in damage,<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="n116327177" /> although other estimates ranged between $2.25 and $5 million.<ref name="n116327177" /> The fire destroyed almost everything in the park.<ref name="n116329537" /> The Dicker family's adjacent hotel also burned down,<ref name=n129762792>Template:Cite news</ref> as did both of Dreamland's piers.<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="n116553703">Template:Cite news</ref> Only one building remained intact after the fire,<ref name="nyt-1932-07-14">Template:Cite news</ref> and all concessions were destroyed.<ref name="n116548156" /> Conversely, the El Dorado Carousel, which had been relocated to the area shortly before the fire, survived relatively intact.<ref name="Immerso pp. 84–85">Template:Harvnb</ref> The entire complex had been constructed of combustible materials, so insurers saw the park as high-risk. The park was consequently insured for only about $400,000.<ref name="n116316087" /><ref name="n116547498">Template:Cite news</ref> A preliminary investigation found that the fire had started when the tar spread across the floor, creating a short circuit that caused the light bulbs to explode.<ref name="n116552472" /><ref name="n116553703" />

As a result of the fire, 1,600 Dreamland employees lost their jobs; another 900 people worked in neighboring businesses that had also been destroyed.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-27" /> Hundreds of workers were clearing the site several hours after the fire had been extinguished,<ref name="n116553703" /> and some of Dreamland's shows resumed on May 28, 1911, the day after the fire.<ref name="n116331657">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1911-05-29">Template:Cite news</ref> Coney Island attracted 350,000 visitors on that day; concessionaires attracted some of these visitors by exhibiting debris and dead animals,<ref name="n116331657" /><ref name="nyt-1911-05-29" /> and workers also tried to salvage the Giant Racing Coaster.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-28" /> The New York State Legislature also introduced legislation to ban infant incubators in the state's amusement parks.<ref name="n116552472" /> The Dreamland fire negatively impacted its competitors' business, as the fire drove away visitors who would have gone to Dreamland.<ref name="n116608011">Template:Cite news</ref>

Condemnation proceedings

Immediately after the fire was extinguished, Reynolds indicated that he would not rebuild the burned park.<ref name="n116552472" /><ref name="Immerso p. 85">Template:Harvnb</ref> Two days after the fire, Reynolds proposed selling Dreamland's site to the New York City government for a "fair price", which would allow the city to convert the land to a public park.<ref name="n116331273">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116331322">Template:Cite news</ref> The Times Union reported the price as $3 million,<ref name="n116331462">Template:Cite news</ref> but Reynolds denied these allegations.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-30">Template:Cite news</ref> He suggested that the New York City government could buy the Template:Convert tract surrounding his park for that amount.<ref name="p574782176">Template:Cite news</ref> The New York City Board of Estimate began considering buying the Dreamland site in mid-June 1911,<ref name="p574780758">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1911-06-18">Template:Cite news</ref> and it voted to acquire the Dreamland site via condemnation at the end of July 1911.<ref name="p574786524">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1911-07-28">Template:Cite news</ref> The board approved a revised proposal that October in which it agreed to pay $1 million for a Template:Convert site.<ref name="nyt-1911-10-20">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The revised proposal excluded the northernmost Template:Convert of Dreamland's site, on Surf Avenue, thereby splitting the park's site into two sections.<ref name="n116626706">Template:Cite news</ref> Brooklyn borough president Alfred E. Steers immediately advocated for selling the site and developing a boardwalk along the ocean.<ref name="n116606709">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p574829997">Template:Cite news</ref>

Legal disputes quickly arose over who held the Dreamland site's property title.<ref name="p1016425289">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p574885635">Template:Cite news</ref> The Morey and Lott families claimed in late 1911 that nearly all of Coney Island fell under a quitclaim deed granted by Nicholas Johnson, who had agreed to sell the land even though he had no right to the property.<ref name="p1016425289" /> Barnet Morey's heirs sued Dreamland in February 1912,<ref name="n116609316">Template:Cite news</ref> and the city formed a condemnation commission the same month to determine how much compensation the former owners should receive.<ref name="n116659358">Template:Cite news</ref> The city took title to the Dreamland site in March 1912.<ref name="nyt-1914-11-20">Template:Cite news</ref> Although the condemnation commissioners began taking testimony that October,<ref name="n116659358" /> the proceedings were delayed because of the lawsuit.<ref name="nyt-1912-10-27">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116609634">Template:Cite news</ref> A New York Supreme Court justice dismissed the Morey and Lott families' lawsuit in May 1913,<ref name="n116609868">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116611415">Template:Cite news</ref> and the Dreamland Company received $1,000 in damages.<ref name="n116611191">Template:Cite news</ref>

The condemnation commission announced in late 1914 that it would pay $2.189 million to property owners,<ref name="nyt-1914-11-20" /><ref name="p575301505">Template:Cite news</ref> which included the Dreamland Company, the Prospect Park and Coney Island Railroad (PP&CI), and the Balmer family.<ref name="n116658409">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116659877">Template:Cite news</ref> The award was revised downward to just over $2.1 million in June 1915,<ref name="n116624804">Template:Cite news</ref> but the city appealed the award, and the condemnation proceedings were delayed for years.<ref name="n116626706" /> The New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, ruled in early 1916 that Dreamland Company's and PP&CI's awards were too high.<ref name="nyt-1916-03-18">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116658252">Template:Cite news</ref> The city selected a second group of commissioners,<ref name="n116658409" /> which decided in February 1919 to reduce the total award to $1.4 million.<ref name="n116657355">Template:Cite news</ref> The commissioners notified the state government of the revised award in October 1919;<ref name="n116657315">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116659021">Template:Cite news</ref> by then, the cost of the condemnation itself had grown to $800,000.<ref name="n116659358" /> The State Supreme Court was asked to confirm the revised award in June 1920, eight years after the condemnation proceedings had begun.<ref name="n116660899">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116661060">Template:Cite news</ref>

Subsequent site usage

Northern section

By July 1911, independent concessionaires had rebuilt their booths on the northern portion of the site, facing Surf Avenue; the remainder of the park remained ruined.<ref name="p1031427088">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The northern part of the site contained "a sideshow of freaks and some shooting galleries" in 1912.<ref name="nyt-1912-07-28">Template:Cite news</ref> Gumpertz leased the northern parcel in 1914, measuring Template:Convert on Surf Avenue and Template:Convert deep;<ref name="n116625915">Template:Cite news</ref> he intended to restore the attractions there.<ref name="p1040292589">Template:Cite magazine</ref> By the next year, the northern part of the site had roller coasters, side shows, and shooting galleries named after Dreamland.<ref name="nyt-1915-05-23">Template:Cite news</ref> Film producer William Fox acquired the northern part of the site at an auction in March 1921 for $407,750,<ref name="n116660133">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1921-03-23">Template:Cite news</ref> and he resold it in June 1921 to Gumpertz and William M. Greve for $450,000.<ref name="n116659703">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1921-06-09">Template:Cite news</ref> Gumpertz and Greve planned to rebuild the park, although this never happened.<ref name="n116661263">Template:Cite news</ref>

Southern section

The southern section of the park was not redeveloped for several decades after the 1911 fire.<ref name="Reiss p. 20" /> The remaining buildings on the southern part of the Dreamland site were razed by 1915.<ref name="n116624949">Template:Cite news</ref> The site was supposed to be part of the unbuilt Seaside Park.<ref name="n116663072">Template:Cite news</ref> The New York City government had planned to rebuild Dreamland's pier and fill it with rock;<ref name="n116546783">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116609798">Template:Cite news</ref> the pier was supposed to be completed in mid-1914,<ref name="n1166259152">Template:Cite news</ref> but two years later it still had not been rebuilt.<ref name="p509605700">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p1031505638">Template:Cite magazine</ref> R. H. Pfoor proposed constructing a bathhouse on Dreamland's site in 1919, but city officials rejected the proposal.<ref name="n116658830">Template:Cite news</ref> The city government converted its portion of the site into a Template:Convert parking lot in 1921.<ref name="n116661462">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1921-06-19">Template:Cite news</ref> The city had expanded the parking lot to 2,000 spaces by 1922,<ref name="nyt-1922-07-02">Template:Cite news</ref> and it also operated a seasonal skating rink on Dreamland's site.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Morris Auditore and Harry Shea leased the site from the city in 1926;<ref name="p1112746573">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1926-03-31">Template:Cite news</ref> the Supreme Court initially issued an injunction blocking the lease, but the Appellate Division reversed the injunction.<ref name="nyt-1926-06-26">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="p1112564414">Template:Cite news</ref> The next year, the New York City Board of Aldermen blocked a proposal for the city to either sell the land or convert it into some "public use".<ref name="nyt-1927-02-09">Template:Cite news</ref>

Auditore and Shea operated the parking lot until 1933, when their lease was canceled because they could not afford to pay $26,000 a year.<ref name="nyt-1933-02-23">Template:Cite news</ref> Although the Park Association of New York City suggested that the site be converted back into a public park, the city leased the parking lot to Irving Rosoff in February 1933.<ref name="nyt-1933-02-24">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n116662530">Template:Cite news</ref> City park commissioner Robert Moses canceled Rosoff's lease the next year.<ref name="p1114850390">Template:Cite news</ref> By 1935, the city planned to rebuild Dreamland as an Template:Convert recreation center with courts for handball, ping-pong, and shuffleboard, as well as a large open field for archery and other games. In addition, the recreation center was to contain more than 600 trees, as well as a connection to the Riegelmann Boardwalk, which was built along the Atlantic Ocean shoreline after Dreamland had been destroyed.<ref name="n116663072" /><ref name="nyt-1935-04-07">Template:Cite news</ref>

The city government first considered relocating the New York Aquarium to the Dreamland site in 1941 after the closure of Castle Clinton, the aquarium's previous home in Manhattan.<ref name="nyt-1941-05-03">Template:Cite news</ref> Although plans for the new aquarium were announced in 1943,<ref name="nyt-1943-07-28">Template:Cite news</ref> it did not open until 1957.<ref name="nyt-1957-06-07">Template:Cite news</ref> The New York Aquarium occupies the entire Dreamland site.<ref name="Reiss p. 20" /><ref name="nyt-1989-07-07">Template:Cite news</ref> A Template:Convert bronze bell, which had been installed on Dreamland's pier until the 1911 fire, was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean in 2009. According to Charles Denson of the Coney Island History Project, the bell was the only surviving major remnant of Dreamland's pier.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Description

The park was on a parcel between Surf Avenue to the north, West 5th Street to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and West 10th Street to the west.<ref name="n116316087" /> At its peak, Dreamland had 14,000 employees and could accommodate at least 100,000 guests at once.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> Everything in Dreamland was reputed to be bigger and more wide-ranging than in neighboring Luna Park.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" /> Dreamland had a larger central tower and one million electric light bulbs illuminating and outlining its buildings,<ref name="mccullough">Template:Cite book</ref> four times as many lights as Luna Park.<ref name="ed" /> An individual connected with the Edison Company said in 1903 that Dreamland's lighting contract was "the largest contract for lighting ever made in the United States, and I believe in the world".<ref name="n116303112" /> Dreamland's illumination cost $4,000 a week; it cost $100 a night just to light the central tower.<ref name="nyt-1911-05-27" />

Manhattan-based architectural firm Kirby, Petit & Green designed Dreamland's buildings.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116257316">Template:Cite news</ref> The structures were generally painted in light colors.<ref name="n116257316" /> At the time of the park's opening, the buildings were reported to be clad with artificial stone,<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /><ref name="n116257316" /> and Template:Convert of asbestos fireproofing and Template:Convert of utility pipes were used.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> However, the frames of the buildings were made of lath (thin strips of wood) covered with staff (a moldable mixture of plaster of Paris and hemp fiber).<ref name="ed" /> Consequently, the entire park was highly susceptible to fire.<ref name="n116316087">Template:Cite news</ref> Throughout most of Dreamland's history, the attractions were painted white with small touches of green or yellow; the exception was the 1911 season, when the buildings were all repainted red and white.<ref name="n116475499" /> Dreamland advertised itself as an educational attraction, as symbolized by its main entrance, which contained a female representation of education.<ref name="Reiss p. 19">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Layout and attractions

The park was arranged roughly as a horseshoe, with a pier facing south toward the Atlantic Ocean.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> Several rides were imitations of Luna Park's, such as a submarine ride and a Shoot-the-Chutes replica.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> Multiple buildings, such as the Pompeiian, Electricity, and Submarine Boat buildings, were dedicated to exhibits.<ref name="n116308932" /> New attractions were added every season.<ref name="n116329537" /> To facilitate circulation, the paths were designed with gentle slopes and few steps.<ref name="n116376979">Template:Cite news</ref>

Entrance and lagoon

Dreamland's primary landside entrance was on Surf Avenue, where there was an arch measuring Template:Convert deep, Template:Convert high, and Template:Convert wide; the portal was intended to resemble a theater's proscenium arch.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> There were several smaller, similarly designed portals along Surf Avenue.<ref name="n116308932" /> Guests paid a ten-cent entry fee to pass through the gates, then paid an additional fee for the attractions.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" />

At the park's center was a lagoon surrounded by a promenade.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> Originally, Dreamland's operators had planned to install flood gates that allowed salt water into the lagoon during high tide. The lagoon measured Template:Convert wide and Template:Convert long, spanned by a large pedestrian bridge at its southern end.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> The footbridge over the lagoon had ornate columns with glass globes, as well as carved lions on either end. There was a miniature railway underneath the promenade.<ref name="n116308932" /> The side shows were arranged around the lagoon.<ref name="n116307596" /> Kirby, Petit & Green designed the buildings around the lagoon in numerous architectural styles that complemented each other, in contrast to Luna Park.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> A hippodrome track was built around the lagoon in 1906.<ref name="nyt-1905-04-23" /><ref name="p2092500035" /> The track was replaced with bathhouses by 1910, and a pergola was also constructed on the lagoon's shore.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" />

At the northern end of the lagoon was the Beacon Tower, a French Renaissance-style edifice<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /><ref name="n116379990">Template:Cite news</ref> measuring Template:Convert square at its base and approximately Template:Convert Template:Efn tall.<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="Reiss p. 19" /><ref name="n116257316" /><ref name="n116307596">Template:Cite news</ref> The tower's gold-and-white facade contained large arches; bas-reliefs carved by Perry Hinton; and 100,000 electric lights.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /><ref name="n116379990" /> Elevators transported visitors to the roof,<ref name="n116257316" /><ref name="n116307596" /> which was decorated with a ball and eagle.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> The tower contained water-storage tanks with a capacity of Template:Convert.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> An attraction called Hiram Maxim's Airships was added just north of the tower in 1905;<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> it consisted of airships that were hung from a Template:Convert tower.<ref name="Immerso p. 73">Template:Harvnb</ref>

East side

On the north side of the park, to the left of the Surf Avenue entrance, was a medieval-style entrance with a show called Our Boys in Blue.<ref name="n116257316" /> Another structure, just south of Our Boys in Blue, hosted an illusion presented by Ben Morris.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> Just right of the entrance, at the park's northeast corner, was Bostock's wild animal exhibit,<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> housed in a Grecian-style structure with motifs of wild animals.<ref name="n116308932" /> Next to this structure was another edifice that contained the Chilkoot Pass attraction,<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /> which was essentially a massive bagatelle board where guests used their own bodies to play the game.<ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /><ref name="Immerso p. 70">Template:Harvnb</ref> The Chilkoot Pass building was situated within a classical-style structure whose main entrance resembled a proscenium arch.<ref name="n116308932" /> The Haunted Swing and Funny Room were housed within a Mission Revival-style building next to the Chilkoot Pass.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /><ref name="n116377994">Template:Cite news</ref> South of that was a fishing pond operated by comedian Andrew Mack, located inside a building that resembled a boat and a lighthouse.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116377994" />

East of the lagoon, next to the fishing pond, was an imitation of Venice made of papier-mâché;<ref name="Reiss p. 19" /> it featured canals with gondolas, as well as a replica of the Doge's Palace.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> The latter building housed the Canals of Venice ride,<ref name="n116377994" /> which contained additional replicas of various Venetian landmarks.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116307596" /> Next to the Doge's Palace was a scenic railway called Coasting Through Switzerland, which ran through a Swiss alpine landscape.<ref name="n116329537" /> The scenic railway building was designed in the Art Nouveau style,<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /> with a golden proscenium arch measuring Template:Convert wide and Template:Convert high.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116377994" /> Attached to Coasting through Switzerland was a structure housing the Fighting the Flames show, where two thousand people pretended to put out a fire every half-hour.<ref name="n116308932" /> The show building, measuring Template:Convert,<ref name="n116257316" /><ref name="n116377994" /> was meant to resemble a seven-story hotel and several small stores;<ref name="n116308932" /> it was replaced in 1906 by a show themed to that year's earthquake in San Francisco.<ref name="p571566767" />

West side

Near the park's southwest corner was a human zoo called the "Lilliputian Village", designed as an imitation of a 15th-century German village.<ref name="n116309582" /> It was populated by three hundred little people,<ref name="Reiss p. 19" /><ref name="Immerso p. 69">Template:Harvnb</ref> who had their own livery tent, stable, laundry, and fire department.<ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /><ref name="Immerso p. 69" /> Next to the Lilliputian Village was the Destruction of Pompeii, a Greek-style structure with an exhibit that displayed the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.<ref name="n116308932" /> An adjacent structure, the Electricity Building, had a facade that depicted machinery;<ref name="n116308932" /> the building contained the park's actual mechanical plant.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> A third structure, next to the Pompeian and Electricity buildings,<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116377994" /> housed a submarine ride called Over and Under the Sea;<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> the submarine ride was replaced in 1905 by the Hell Gate boat ride, which featured a whirlpool.<ref name="nyt-1905-04-23" /> LaMarcus Adna Thompson's Thompson Scenic Railway, which predated the park, was accessed via an Art Nouveau-style structure.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" />

The attractions on the southwestern corner of the park were replaced in 1907 with the Orient attraction, which consisted of a massive staff arch measuring Template:Convert high, as well as a series of structures surrounding a theater.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> In addition, in 1909, Gumpertz added a "Filipino village" which featured two hundred Igorot hunters.<ref name="Immerso p. 82" />

A building with baby incubators, designed as a German farmhouse, was at the park's northwest corner. The lower half of the building was clad in brick. By contrast, the upper half had a timber facade and a tiled gable roof.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /> The baby-incubator building cared for and exhibited premature babies,<ref name="Halley 2018 q165">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> including triplets who were members of the Dicker family. At the time, the technology was not allowed in hospitals, but the incubators were allowed in side shows; two of the triplets survived to adulthood.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> Yet another building housed Wormwood's Dog and Monkey Show,<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> housed in a building that was decorated with motifs of monkeys and dogs.<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" />

Oceanfront

Dreamland's oceanfront pier contained a structure with a restaurant and a ballroom.<ref name="n116257316" /> The ballroom was supposedly the largest in New York State at the time of its construction;<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> it spanned Template:Convert,<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="Reiss p. 19" /> with dimensions of about Template:Convert,<ref name="n116308932" /> and was surrounded by a balcony.<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="nyt-1904-05-15" /> The ceiling of the ballroom measured Template:Convert high<ref name="n116379990" /> and had 10,000 lightbulbs.<ref name="Reiss p. 19" /> Adjoining the ballroom was the restaurant, measuring Template:Convert.<ref name="n116308932" /> The lower part of the structure was a ferry landing with booths and small shows.<ref name="n116307596" /> When Dreamland opened, the landing was served by ferry lines to Harlem, 23rd Street, and the Battery in Manhattan;<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="n116308932" /> the ferry rides cost up to 35 cents, but that price included admission.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> The lower deck of the pier was known as the Bowery,<ref name="n116309582" /><ref name="n116308932" /> a replica of Manhattan's Chinatown, which the Times Union described as a place where "the lid will be off".<ref name="n116257316" /> The adjoining segment of the Coney Island Beach was originally a private beach.<ref name="heartofconeyisland" />

The oceanfront featured a Japanese building, a two-story structure capped by a central tower, which led to an airship attraction and some tea rooms.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116377994" /> The airship attraction was an exhibition of Santos-Dumont Airship No. 9.<ref name="n116377994" /> Another show, called the Seven Temptations of St. Anthony,<ref name="n116308932" /> was targeted toward male guests.<ref name="Dreamland 1998" /> At the foot of the park's lagoon were two Shoot-the-Chutes with two ramps that could handle 7,000 hourly riders.<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /> Two boats, each carrying 20 people, slid down the ramps,<ref name="Immerso p. 68" /><ref name="n116379990" /> which extended Template:Convert into the ocean.<ref name="Reiss p. 19" /> Another oceanfront attraction was the Leap-Frog Railway, a switchback railway-style attraction on a Template:Convert pier, where two 40-person carts were accelerated toward each other at high speed before passing each other at the last second.<ref name="n116308932" /><ref name="n116379990" /><ref name="Immerso pp. 69–70">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Concessions

Template:External media

In a bid for publicity, Reynolds awarded a concession for the park's peanut-and-popcorn stands to Broadway actress Marie Dressler,<ref name="n116306988">Template:Cite news</ref> with young boys dressed as imps in red flannel acting as salesmen. Dressler may have been in love with Captain Jack Bonavita, Dreamland's one-armed lion tamer.<ref name="mccullough" /> Bonavita, who commanded lions in the Bostock animal arena, had one arm amputated after his hand was severely clawed by one of the lions and a blood infection spread through that hand.<ref name="ed" />

Impact

When Dreamland opened, the New-York Tribune wrote: "Nothing but a personal visit and inspection can do anything like justice to the subject."<ref name="n116308932" /> A writer for The Brooklyn Daily Eagle called Dreamland "a city of amusement in itself", which was successful because of "the intelligent use of unlimited money expended for the best interest of unnumbered patrons in search of innocent amusement".<ref name="n116376979" /> During its last full season of operation, in 1910, a writer for Billboard said: "It's a great big Dreamland this year, and it's good clean through".<ref name="p1031406201">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The writer Marcia Reiss wrote in 2014 that the park was a "dazzling white city", calling it "Coney Island's grandest and shortest-lived amusement park".<ref name="Reiss p. 19" /> The design of Dreamland also inspired the creation of similar amusement parks around the world, such as Magic-City in Paris.<ref name="nyt-1911-06-03">Template:Cite news</ref>

The park has been depicted in various works of popular culture. Artist Philomena Marano created a body of work inspired by the park in the papier collé method, American Dream-Land.<ref name="Denson">Denson, Charles, Coney Island Lost and Found, Ten Speed Press, 2002, pages 227–231</ref><ref name="Interview with Philomena Marano">Breuckelen Magazine Video "Interview with Philomena Marano" Template:Webarchive June 2014</ref> Brian Carpenter wrote a play treatment which he used as a springboard for lyrics and compositions behind his second studio album for Beat Circus entitled Dreamland. The album featured Todd Robbins, an alumnus of Coney Island, and its booklet includes historical images of Dreamland donated by the Coney Island Museum.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Public Theater also staged the play Fire in Dreamland in 2018, which is based on the park's 1911 conflagration.<ref name="Gothamist 2018">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Clement 2018">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

References

Notes

Template:Notelist

Citations

Template:Reflist

Sources

External links

Template:Sister project

Dreamland at amusement-parks.com
Maps and postcards of Dreamland
Dreamland Park History
Dreamland and William Reynolds at Heart of Coney Island
Panoramic photo, "Destruction of Dreamland", 1911, from the Library of Congress
Oral histories about Dreamland (1904–1911) collected by the Coney Island History Project

Template:Coney Island

Dreamland (Coney Island, 1904)

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