Jennifer Sopko's Blog

On top of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and a contentious presidential election, Western Pennsylvania amusement park fans last recently received the disheartening news that Idlewild and SoakZone in Ligonier and Kennywood in West Mifflin would both be retiring several longtime attractions. I wrote about the impending loss of Idlewild’s Ferris Wheel, kiddie Rainbow Wheel and Bubbling Springs ball pit in the November 4, 2020 issue of the Latrobe Bulletin which you can read here, as well as the November 10, 2020 issue of The Ligonier Echo.

[image error] Idlewild’s second Ferris Wheel was added to the park for the 1984 season. It was one of two twin Ferris Wheels originally installed in 1959 at Kennywood Park in West Mifflin.
Photo by Jennifer Sopko

[image error] Ad from the May 22, 1943 issue of the Latrobe Bulletin announcing that Idlewild would not open for that season.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has certainly made the 2020 season an unprecedented one for Idlewild and SoakZone, with the park’s nearly two-month delay in opening and its new health and safety protocols for guests and employees. Originally scheduled to open on Saturday, May 16, Idlewild will now open to the general public on Saturday, July 11, after invite-only and season passholder days during this upcoming week.

However, 2020 isn’t the first year the park has been closed for a partial or even a full season.

Pennsylvania’s oldest operating amusement park closed for the entire 1943 and 1944 seasons due to World War II rationing and economic difficulties, reopening on a limited basis in 1945 before returning to full operations the following year.

The 1943 season would be the first time that Idlewild had closed since it was established by the Ligonier Valley Rail Road (LGV) in 1878 as a scenic picnic grove along the line. By that time, gasoline rationing had halted pleasure driving. Although Idlewild was located along an active railroad line (the LGV would not disband until after its final run on August 31, 1952), automobile traffic to the park had been steadily increasing.

Even in January, park management wasn’t sure about the park’s fate that summer.

“Don’t know as yet if we will open Idlewild this year or not. Time will tell. In either case will write you full details of our plans before anything is made public,” C.C. Macdonald, former Idlewild manager and later owner wrote in a January 1, 1943 letter to Harry Whiteman, president of the Latrobe Bulletin. The letter was published in the newspaper later that week.

The Idlewild Management Company’s (IMC) inevitable decision was to close Idlewild for the 1943 season. Macdonald, whose family had managed the park since 1931, voiced his regrets for the necessary step in the May 12, 1943 issue of the Ligonier Echo. The same announcement would also appear in other regional newspapers:

“Due to conditions over which we have no control and which would cause us to lower the high morale that has been maintained at Idlewild for many years, we have decided to keep the park closed for the 1943 season. We regret very much to take this action and can only state to our friends and patrons that, when the war is over, we will endeavor to show them a bigger and better Idlewild along with our usual clean, wholesome fun and entertainment.” – C.C. Macdonald

The annual Ligonier Valley Reunion, which had been held at Idlewild Park since its beginning as a Sunday school union picnic more than 50 years prior, was one of the many traditional group picnics hosted at the park forced to cancel that year.

The 1944 season was a bust as well. Idlewild remained closed for a second consecutive year.

Management made some necessary business decisions during the park’s closure for these two entire seasons. The IMC’s board of directors reduced some officers’ salaries. They also sold off some rides, including the Skooter cars and the Custer Cars. Contracts with the Ferris wheel and popcorn stand concessionaires were discontinued effective at the end of 1943. The park’s five black bears in their small menagerie were split up and sold to the Pittsburgh Zoo, Brackenridge Park Zoo in San Antonio, Texas, and another unnamed zoo in the U.S. Lake Bouquet was drained and about 30,000 bass, bluegills and catfish were transferred to a hatchery and restocked in streams.

Financial difficulties notwithstanding, the Macdonald family was also dealing with personal difficulties during the park’s hiatus. In January 1944, younger son Richard (Dick) Macdonald, a lieutenant in the United States Air Force, was injured in an airplane accident during his time as a test pilot in England. He would eventually return home in May to continue his recovery.

[image error]This panoramic photo shows one of the last group picnics for the 1942 season – the Air Raid Wardens picnic on August 15, 1942 – before Idlewild Park completely closed for the 1943 and 1944 seasons during World War II. Image courtesy of Mark Clemens.

There was little news about Idlewild in the media until the fall of 1944, when it was announced that the park would be coming back to life for the 1945 season.

“We may not be able to open all the rides and amusements, but if enough help is available, activities will be on the same scale as previously,” Mr. Macdonald promised.

[image error] Ad from the Latrobe Bulletin, August 8, 1945.

In 1945, the Idlewild Management Company formally voted to reopen the park during holidays and weekends until the termination of hostilities in Europe. Idlewild opened on June 2, 1945, just missing its traditional Decoration (Memorial) Day grand opening, with the swimming pool following on June 15. At first, Idlewild was only open three days a week (Wednesday, Saturdays and Sunday), but eventually returned to a six-day schedule, being closed on Mondays). There was limited free entertainment for a while (Slim Bryant and his Wildcats and the Mt. Pleasant Girl Band appeared on the park’s outdoor stage in August). Some of the amusements and refreshment stands remained closed due to a labor shortage; beginning in July, rides were only operated three days of the week because of the lack of help.

Nevertheless, Idlewild was open! Picnics were once again scheduled at the park, including the Ligonier Valley Reunion in August. Crowds swarmed to the Ligonier Valley – including Idlewild – to enjoy the Fourth of July holiday:

 “Thousands of people jammed Idlewild Park. There the swimming pool as at Ligonier Valley Beach was filled. Hundreds stood in line to buy amusement tickets and then waited their turn at the rides. From noon until late in the evening the roads were bumper to bumper extending from the entrance to Idlewild to the Kingston bridge and east as far as the eye could see. Cars were parked on both sides of the road. Many seeing the park filled to the gates with autos stopped at the roadside and walked, carrying their heavy picnic baskets with them.”

Gas rationing would be lifted in August and park-goers would set record attendance numbers for Labor Day, leading to a “very satisfactory” 1945 season for the park, all things considered. The IMC invested more than $50,000 into numerous improvements for the 1946 season, which included adding new buildings and revamping existing ones, refurbishing the swimming pool, replacing the sold Skooter cars, renovating the Penny Arcade, buying new refreshment stand equipment, converting a picnic pavilion into a butcher shop and cold storage building, and adding a new gate and expanded road at the park’s entrance. Since then, the park has operated for full seasons under the Macdonald family, Kennywood Park Corporation and Palace Entertainment, until now.

Idlewild has endured another pandemic in its history: the 1918 Spanish Influenza pandemic. However, since the second wave of the illness and resulting social and economic restrictions didn’t hit Western Pennsylvania full force until the fall, the park’s traditional summer operations weren’t affected much, if at all, by the pandemic. The deadly flu epidemic would pass by the following spring. Idlewild was open as usual for the 1918 and 1919 seasons, hosing picnics and moonlight dances, although not as many as usually scheduled, due to World War I. The war affected the park more that the pandemic, chiefly because of its impact on railroad transportation; Pennsylvania Railroad company cars that would typically be used for picnic excursions were instead used to transport soldiers. For three consecutive years, Idlewild did not hold a picnic on Decoration Day, “because of the inability to get cars” but still hosted picnics for Independence Day and the Ligonier Valley Reunion. Around 10,000 people were reported at the annual Ligonier Valley Reunion on August 15, 1918 alone. The picnic’s proceeds would be given to the Ligonier Military Aid organization “to use for the health and comfort of the young men from this section who are in the service of their country fighting and ready to fight to conquer the Huns.”

What obviously makes the current COVID-19 health crisis so different for Idlewild is that the global quarantines and economic shutdowns implemented to help slow the spread of the virus occurred happened during this spring and summer, hampering the park’s off-season preparations and operating schedule. Not only that, but we haven’t seen at amusement parks until now such health and safety precautions that the park is taking to protect its patrons and employees, including limiting the maximum numbers of guests each day, requiring facemasks and social distancing, taking temperatures, and installing hand sanitizing stations and Plexiglas barriers. We likely won’t see the park’s typical regular stage entertainment or special events this year. The pandemic has created an unprecedented time for amusement parks, which in turn have had to take unprecedented measures to keep people safe. The 2020 season will certainly be one to remember in Idlewild’s long and storied history.

If you’re planning on going to Idlewild and SoakZone or any other amusement parks this season, please have fun, but also take care to stay safe and healthy.  Please refer to Idlewild and SoakZone’s comprehensive list of COVID-19 safety measures on the park’s website at https://www.idlewild.com/healthandsafety.

 

“Ligonier Valley Annual Reunion. Twenty-seventh Annual Gathering at Idlewild Thursday, August 15.” The Ligonier Echo. July 24, 1918.

While I enjoyed every aspect of Idlewild that I included in my book, one of the most compelling, challenging and fascinating subjects I researched was the history of merry-go-rounds and carousels at the park. This is the second in a series of blog posts that I hope will create a comprehensive history of this beloved attraction at Idlewild and highlight the sources that I used. Part One can be read here. This is a work in progress and my posts will be updated as more information is discovered over time. Please feel free to contact me if you have any useful sources – newspaper articles, pamphlets, company records, photographs – that can add to my research. Thank you! 

**************************************************************************************

In my previous blog post in this series, I covered the earliest newspaper references to merry-go-rounds at Idlewild Park before 1891. Unfortunately, we may never be able to corroborate these accounts or glean any additional details about these devices. Park histories have traditionally identified the first merry-go-round as one that debuted in 1891. This season marked the first significant slew of developments at Idlewild with the addition of the park’s first man-made lake (Lake St. Clair), a new large dining hall and a mammoth dancing pavilion called the Auditorium, among other improvements, including the aforesaid merry-go-round.

[image error]The Moses Parsons merry-go-round at Idlewild in 1891. Latrobe View Company photo courtesy of the Ligonier Valley Historical Society.

Idlewild’s new attraction was owned or operated by a retired oilman named Moses Buffum (M.B.) Parsons of Ligonier. (Parsons’ occupation is given in his death certificate below.) Sometimes his name was misspelled as Parson. Born in Westfield, New York in 1838, Parsons eventually lived in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, but by 1889, the newspapers began reporting his appearances in Ligonier, probably after he retired from the oil industry. In late 1892, he married Elsie D. Menoher, a member of a well-known family in the Ligonier Valley. Elsie’s brother owned two hotels in town. The couple soon settled in a brick house on the corner of Market and Loyalhanna Streets in Ligonier Borough and had two children, son Harrison (b. 1894) and daughter Carolyn (b. 1899). This was presumably a second marriage given the couple’s approximately 25-year age difference and the fact that Moses had an older daughter from a previous relationship who died in 1897. By 1899, it appears that Parsons found himself in some financial difficulties, filing for bankruptcy that year. The family moved to Pittsburgh in 1900. Moses Parson’s death certificate from 1912:

[image error]Certificate of Death for Moses Buffum Parsons. November 21, 1912.

So how did Moses Parsons become interested in operating a merry-go-round at Idlewild? That may never be known, but we do know he became involved in 1891. In his 1955 doctoral thesis, “The Ligonier Valley Rail Road and its Communities.” James Madison Myers details an agreement between M.B. Parsons and Ligonier Valley Rail Road superintendent George Senft for a merry-go-round that season. Senft signed a lease with Parsons for a space in the park on which he would operate a “steam riding gallery” for no less than 56 persons. Parsons’ rent was 50 percent of the daily gross receipts and he was responsible for maintaining rider safety as well as his employees’ behavior.

[image error]

[image error]From James Madison Myers’ 1955 doctoral thesis on the Ligonier Valley Rail Road. Courtesy of the Ligonier Valley Rail Road Association.

Unfortunately, the Ligonier Valley Rail Road papers that Myers cites as the source of the lease information have not been found, so we cannot fact-check this passage. There is a discrepancy between the date of the lease in the text (March 10, 1891) and in the footnote (January 10, 1891). This is the only existing source (so far) that ties Parsons to a merry-go-round at Idlewild in 1891.

There is only one newspaper reference to a merry-go-round at Idlewild in 1891. From the August 12, 1891, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

The revenue that the merry-go-round generated was apparently satisfactory enough for Senft to arrange a new contract for 1892 with a surety and continue a business relationship with Parsons that included a two-year agreement covering the 1895 season. A surviving letterpress book that contains copies of Ligonier Valley Rail Road superintendent George Senft’s correspondence reveals some details about the concession agreement between the LVRR and M.B. Parsons, at least in respect to the 1892 season.

From a March 18, 1892 letter from Senft to illegible name regarding Parsons’ contract for the merry-go-round privilege, which he left with R.B. Mellon, along with three judgement notes upon which is a guarantee.

[image error]Courtesy of the Ligonier Valley Rail Road Association

The Parsons merry-go-round generated business during the 1892 season. From a letter from Senft to Rev. Hartzel regarding a check to be sent to Parsons for 50% of the merry-go-round proceeds dated August 4, 1892:

[image error]Courtesy of the Ligonier Valley Rail Road Association

However, could Myers have gotten the year of the initial lease with Parsons completely wrong? Did Parsons enter into proprietorship in 1892, not 1891? Based on newspaper reports, Parsons bought out the merry-go-round at Idlewild and put a new device in for the 1892 season. From the May 11, 1892, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

From the May 18, 1892, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

A “Neighbor” who returned to his native land for the 1892 Ligonier Valley picnic submitted his recollections of his visit to the area, which included some impressions of the merry-go-round that gave a small detail about the cost to ride the machine – a nickel got you two rides. From the October 5, 1892, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

Some newspaper reports revealed the Parsons merry-go-round’s whereabouts during Idlewild’s off-season. While the amusement itself was stored in a local warehouse, it appears that the organ provided music for at least two local hotels in Ligonier (see National Hotel mentioned above; Hotel Loyalhanna is likely the Menoher House, later the Commercial Hotel; both hotels were owned at one point by John Freeman Menoher, Parsons’ brother-in-law) and for at least one sleighing party through town. It was described as a German organ.

From the February 1, 1893, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

From the February 15, 1893, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

Unfortunately, we don’t know the manufacturer of Parsons’ merry-go-round(s). It does appear that at least one of however many he set up at Idlewild (assuming he upgraded or replaced them) came from somewhere in New York. The Parsonses also owned vineyards in western New York where Moses would take frequent business trips, so it’s possible he sourced his “steam riding gallery” from an upstate New York company (Armitage-Herschell Company, perhaps?). From the November 14, 1894, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

I connected with Fred Dahlinger, Jr., author, historian and expert in amusement park, carousel, band organ and circus history. He provided invaluable insight on what Parsons’ machine and accompanying musical device may have been: likely a track machine with static figures and an externally mounted boiler and cable drive engine. (Thank you Fred!) According to Fred, the phrase “steam riding gallery” would “surely seem to indicate a North Tonawanda-built ride, by Armitage-Herschell, as you deduced, with an imported (German or French, usually) band organ. These were usually smaller, cylinder-operated, military style, with brass trumpets, clarinet and piccolos, and not necessarily drums or a cymbal…These rides were portable, hauled on perhaps two wagons, with the steam boiler and engine on integral wheels.” (Information kindly provided in email correspondence to Jennifer Sopko from Fred Dahlinger, Jr. October 30, 2019 and November 20, 2019.)

Manufacturer notwithstanding, under Parsons’ management, the merry-go-round became the most popular attraction at Idlewild Park particularly during large group picnics like the Ligonier Valley Reunion on August 23, 1893 and the Reformed Church Reunion on August 24, 1893. From the August 30, 1893, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]Ligonier Valley Reunion
[image error]Reformed Church Reunion

Apparently, Parsons’ device was not exclusive to Idlewild Park, as he procured privileges to operate the merry-go-round at other locations. From the September 13, 1893, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

We know that Moses B. Parsons operated a merry-go-round at Idlewild Park during the 1892, 1893, 1894 and 1895 seasons as The Ligonier Echo specifically names him when mentioning the merry-go-round in picnic reports. From the May 16, 1894, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

From the August 8, 1894, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]Lutheran Picnic – August 2, 1894

From the September 5, 1894, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

From the June 12, 1895, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

From the August 28, 1895, issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]Ligonier Valley Reunion – August 22, 1895

Another letter from George Senft to T. Mellon & Sons dated September 2, 1895 also corroborates the Parsons merry-go-round operating at Idlewild in 1895. Senft sent the company a check to sign for Parsons’ proceeds from the concession. This would be Parsons’ final season as a merry-go-round proprietor at Idlewild.

[image error]Courtesy of the Ligonier Valley Rail Road Association

 

Last updated: May 6, 2020

 

Did YOU ever have a Rumpus? Please check out my expanded history of Idlewild’s lost dark ride, the Rumpus, courtesy of Laff in the Dark.

[image error]

Thank you to Bill Luca and George LaCross of Laff in the Dark for the opportunity to share the story of the Pretzel Amusement Ride Company attraction that was destroyed by a fire just after Idlewild Park opened for the 1947 season.  More than 70 years later, we’re still wondering about this intriguing dark ride that spooked park guests for just a decade. Images courtesy of Idlewild and SoakZone, Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters Inc., the Ligonier Valley Rail Road Association, Mike Mesich, Mike Funyak, John Smetanka and Mark Clemens. Thanks also to Ina Mae Smithley, the late Harry Frye and the late Connie Deemer for sharing their memories of the Rumpus.

If you have more information or images to the add to the history of Idlewild Park’s Rumpus dark ride, please contact me!

[image error] Eldora Park in Carroll Township, PA. Courtesy of the Donora Historical Society

I’m pleased to announce my next book project! I am seeking stories, documents and photographs for a forthcoming book from The History Press that will share the histories of the lost and forgotten amusement parks that once brought communities together across Western Pennsylvania.

Tentatively titled Lost Amusement Parks of Western Pennsylvania and slated for publication in 2021, my new book will shed light on the fascinating stories of these long-gone recreation spots, from early picnic groves to traditional amusement parks, including: trolley and railroad parks with origins tied to transportation; the first African-American-owned amusement park; and all of the parks’ classic amusement rides that thrilled countless people of all ages.

[image error] Lake Scene at Olympia Park near McKeesport, PA. Courtesy of Andrea Cartwright.

I NEED YOUR HELP! My book will cover a lot of ground: the histories of dozens of amusement parks across the 26 counties that comprise Western Pennsylvania. I am looking for any information, documents, company/owner records, newspaper articles, postcards, photographs, other images and research sources and, of course, YOUR MEMORIES of these lost parks. Do you remember swimming at Jeannette’s Oakford Park, whipping around on the Wild Mouse at White Oak’s Rainbow Gardens or seeing the Rolling Stones perform on the Danceland stage at Pittsburgh’s West View Park? I want to hear all about it! Please contact me with any and all information you may have. I’m excited to work on this new book and I hope the public can contribute to it. Thank you!!

**************************************************************************************

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jennifer Sopko is a Pittsburgh-based writer and historian with a love of local history. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. For more than 15 years, Sopko has written about the Ligonier Valley, Westmoreland County and Western Pennsylvania for several regional publications, including the Latrobe Bulletin, the Ligonier Echo and Westmoreland History magazine. She is the author of two History Press books: Idlewild: History and Memories of Pennsylvania’s Oldest Amusement Park (2018) and Ligonier Valley Vignettes: Tales From the Laurel Highlands (2013).

ABOUT THE PUBLISHER: Founded in 2004, The History Press publishes local and regional history and culture from coast to coast. Be it narratives of local heroes, tragic losses, collections of homegrown recipes, historic mysteries and everything in between, History Press books act as valued touchstones for community identity. Publishing varied and dynamic titles complete with rich archival materials to illuminate each text, their books are useful resources for research and preservation. From cornerstone series Haunted  America and Hidden History to the tasty morsels in American Palate titles, each book is infused with abundant local color and aimed at a general readership.

 

 

[image error]I’m pleased to announce that Idlewild Park is the subject of the 2019 Historic Photography Show at the Ligonier Valley Library’s Pennsylvania Room! I’ll be guest curator of this wonderful annual exhibit that will also feature documents, memorabilia and other items featuring Pennsylvania’s oldest operating amusement park. Please contact me if you’d like loan anything for this exhibit. More details follow in the press release below.

Ligonier, PA — You can’t beat fun when you check out the 18th Annual Historic Photography Show at the Ligonier Valley Library’s Pennsylvania Room. “Memories of Idlewild Park” will celebrate the history of Ligonier’s beloved amusement park, Idlewild and SoakZone.

The public is asked to loan photographs, documents and memorabilia for the upcoming exhibit, slated to run from Tuesday, April 16 through Tuesday, July 9.

Idlewild has charmed people across Western Pennsylvania and beyond since its origins as a 19th century picnic grove for the Ligonier Valley Rail Road. The Historic Photography Show will show how the Mellon family’s scenic picnic grounds evolved into a traditional amusement park in the 20th century and how Idlewild continues to delight generations as an award-winning family attraction today. Established in 1878, Idlewild and SoakZone is recognized as the oldest operating amusement park in Pennsylvania and the third oldest in the United States.

Local historian and author Jennifer Sopko will guest curate the Historic Photography Show, bringing together a fascinating collection of photographs and memorabilia discovered during the research for her 2018 book Idlewild: History and Memories of Pennsylvania’s Oldest Amusement Park.

The Pennsylvania Room will host an opening night reception on Tuesday, April 16 at 6:00 p.m., with other programs planned during the duration of the show. Sopko will present an overview of Idlewild’s history on Tuesday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. She will be joined by Idlewild and SoakZone director of marketing Jeff Croushore, who will share what’s new at the park for the 2019 season. A children’s event will be held Saturday, May 18 at 10:30 a.m., more details to be announced later.

The public is welcome to view “Memories of Idlewild Park” in the Pennsylvania Room and Hallway at the Ligonier Valley Library, located at 120 West Main Street, Ligonier, PA 15658. Library hours are 10:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Sunday.

The mission of the Historic Photography Show is to present a facet of Ligonier Valley history that is interesting, educational and may have been overlooked in the past. The photographs and documents copied become a permanent part of the Pennsylvania Room collection, an invaluable resource for researchers.

If you have photographs or items you would like to loan for “Memories of Idlewild Park,” please stop by the Pennsylvania Room or call the Ligonier Valley Library at 724-238-6451 and ask to speak with Shirley McQuillis Iscrupe, Pennsylvania Room archivist.

 

While I enjoyed every aspect of Idlewild that I included in my book, one of the most compelling, challenging and fascinating subjects I researched was the history of merry-go-rounds and carousels at the park. This is the first of a series of blog posts that I hope will create a comprehensive history of this beloved attraction at Idlewild and highlight the sources that I used. This is a work in progress and my posts will be updated as more information is discovered over time. Please feel free to contact me if you have any useful sources – newspaper articles, pamphlets, company records, photographs – that can add to my research. Thank you! 

**************************************************************************************

Idlewild’s current carousel, Philadelphia Toboggan Company No. 83, is the park’s longest resident carousel and has remained in this same location at the park since it came there in 1931. However, Idlewild’s history with merry-go-round attractions stretches back to the park’s early days as a 19th century picnic grove. The earliest report of a merry-go-round operating at Idlewild dates back to 1889, although without few details or corroborating sources. The first reference to this amusement device I found appeared in the July 10, 1889 issue of The Ligonier Echo. A “fly horse” was reported at the park during the Fourth of July celebration that year.

[image error]

The Latrobe Advance also mentioned a merry-go-round present at that same picnic in its July 10, 1889 issue:

[image error]

Later that summer, a local doctor enjoyed the “jolly-come-round” at the annual Lutheran Harvest Home Picnic on August 8, 1889, according to two articles in the August 14, 1889 issue of The Ligonier Echo.

[image error] [image error]

A merry-go-round was specifically mentioned to be at the Blairsville picnic in September 1889, according to the September 4, 1889 issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

Here’s where it gets interesting. The proprietor of the Idlewild merry-go-round may have loaned the concession out for the 32nd Annual Exhibition of the Indiana County Agricultural Society held at the Indiana County Fairgrounds from October 1-4, 1889.

[image error]

The September 18, 1889 issue of The Indiana Progress and the September 19, 1889 issue of The Indiana Democrat both described the “large flying machine which will be brought to the fair from Idlewild Park” in detail, including the number of horses (24), the fact that it also had an unknown number of carriages, the fact that it had some sort of music system, its mode of operation (steam-powered), its size (40 feet in diameter), and its value and fare (machine valued at $3,000, patrons charged 5 cents per ride). It does not specify a manufacturer, however.

[image error]

The September 18, 1889 issue of The Indiana Weekly Messenger mentions Kunsel & Law as the proprietor of a “Steam Riding Gallery” to be soon set up on the lot of Judge White behind Armory Hall. If this device is the same as the one reported by the other Indiana newspaper to be brought to the fair from Idlewild Park, then we can deduce that Kunsel & Law is the earliest known proprietor of a merry-go-round at Idlewild Park. However, only one reference to this proprietor and one reference to the merry-go-round coming from Idlewild have been found and still no mention of a manufacturer.

[image error]

At any rate, newspaper reports indicate that a merry-go-round did indeed end up at the Indiana County Fairgrounds for the four-day fair. In general, the amusement was popular at fairs and parks in western Pennsylvania, but perhaps a bit unsafe. There were a few reported incidents on the merry-go-round at the Indiana fair (again, purportedly from Idlewild) and the death of a young girl that resulted from riding on a merry-go-round in Uniontown (it’s also unclear whether it was the same one). From the October 2, 1889 issue of The Indiana Weekly Messenger:

[image error]

From the October 10, 1889 issue of The Indiana Democrat:

[image error]

From the October 16, 1889 issue of The Indiana Progress:

[image error]

A merry-go-round operated at Idlewild Park during the 1890 season, as corroborated by several newspaper reports on picnics that summer. Some editorial comments on the device at the Fourth of July celebration appeared in the July 9, 1890 issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

The Latrobe Advance reported that the Fourth of July was the largest picnic ever held here and described all of the events and attractions that grand and successful day, including the merry-go-round, in the July 9, 1890 issue:

[image error]

It appears there may have been some criminal mischief at the annual Lutheran picnic, which was attended by Pennsylvania Governor James Beaver. The device is called the “original” merry-go-round of the summer. From the August 20, 1890 issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

Innocent sports at the M.E. Sunday school of Indiana picnic included the merry-go-round. From the August 20, 1890 issue of The Ligonier Echo:

[image error]

Unfortunately, there is little detail given in these accounts, save the Indiana papers, about who built these early merry-go-rounds, how big they were, how many horses they had, how they were powered (steam, mule), the materials they were made from, their paint colors if any, their carving styles, where they were set up at the park, etc. We do not have any corroborating sources for the claim that an Idlewild merry-go-round was loaned for the 1889 Indiana fair, so we can’t be 100% that the description of the device at the fair applied to Idlewild’s. Was the jolly-come-round/merry-go-round at Idlewild reported at picnics in 1889 the same flying jinny/merry-go-round reported at picnics in 1890 or from a different proprietor? There are no surviving Ligonier Valley Rail Road or Idlewild Park records from this period that can help answer these questions, unfortunately. No photographs have yet come to light, either. YET is the key word, says this eternal optimist.

Last updated: August 16, 2018

[image error] Pittsburgh Press, May 21, 1965

In 1965 the Idlewild Management Company decided to resurrect the zoo concept that had faded away during the World War II years. Featuring a collection of North American wild animals and a domestic petting zoo, Frontier Safariland debuted to the public on May 23, 1965 at the start of Idlewild Park’s new season. It was built on the south side of the Loyalhanna Creek within the former Woodlands area, surrounded by surviving vestiges of old Lake Woodland.

[image error] Proposed Plot Plan for Safariland, Courtesy of the Idlewild and SoakZone Archives

Renamed Safariland Zoo and then Frontier Zoo, the concession enjoyed a successful 20-year run at Idlewild before it was closed after the 1985 season. The park opened the New Zoo Review the next year, a more “participatory” zoo area that only lasted for a few seasons before closing down to make room for the Raccoon Lagoon kiddieland area in 1990. The zoo featured a wide variety of animals that were cared for by an concessionaire, most notably William Holmberg of Ligonier, who took over Frontier Zoo in 1968 and managed the attraction until it closed. At its inception, the zoo’s more exotic animals included California sea lions, a llama, an armadillo, peafowl and flamingos, among others. Visitors could feed whitetail and ornamental deer in a petting area. The zoo also included a monkey house. Holmberg added other unique species like camels and miniature donkeys during his tenure.

[image error] Captain Idlewild at Frontier Zoo (1980), Courtesy of the Idlewild and SoakZone Archives

Alan Fisher, who portrayed park mascot Captain Idlewild in 1980, recalled he was not a fan of the zoo because of the misbehaving animals, a spider monkey in particular. I’ll spare readers the details, but if you’ve visited a zoo and watched how these animals behave, you know what I’m hinting at. But the most interesting – well, morbid – story I read in relation to the zoo took place about five years after it closed. In January 1990, William Holmberg sold two chimpanzees – an 18-year old female named Missy and a 20-year old male named Boom Boom (or just Boom) to The New York University Medical Center’s Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates to be used for breeding. Holmberg had raised the two chimpanzees from babies and housed them in former car dealership building on Route 711 just north of Ligonier after Frontier Zoo closed while he searched for a new home where they would not be used for research.

Dr. John Kelliher, a veterinarian or the U.S. Food and Drug Adminstration, was hired to transport the primates from Ligonier to the laboratory. While he was being transferred from his home cage to a transport cage around 2:15 a.m. on January 15, 1990, Boom escaped and attacked Kelliher, severely disfiguring the vet, tearing off two fingers, a thumb and one ear. Holmberg shoved Kelliher into a cage to protect him from being mauled any further. The truck driver who accompanied Kelliher alerted the police. After four ineffective gunshots from Holmberg, a state trooper finally killed Boom Boom. Idlewild never had any trouble with either chimpanzee, and Holmberg had treated them well while they lived at the park and at his home. So why the sudden attack? Police believed that the vet might have been carrying the scent of another male chimpanzee, which threatened Boom Boom.

Today, Saturday, May 19, 2018, marks the official opening day for Idlewild and SoakZone’s 141st season!

Although the park has already hosted some events this year and the once-separate Story Book Forest used to open the first weekend in May, traditionally Memorial Day weekend marked the formal opening of the park each year, back to when it served as a simple picnic grounds. Today would be akin to one of the early “look in” days that decades ago the park would host, notably in the 1930s, when “picnickers will be given an opportunity of viewing the improvements made to the park since it closed last fall.” The park has limited operations this weekend and next but will be open seven days a week starting June 1st.  I’m looking forward to seeing the new children’s escape room, checking out the upgraded souvenir stand in Olde Idlewild (hopefully my book is there!), munching on Auntie Anne’s pretzels and welcoming Rollo Coaster back over Memorial Day weekend.

Please enjoy some newspaper advertisements from past season openings!

Click to view slideshow.

[image error] Postmarked 1908, this souvenir postcard is courtesy of the Latrobe Area Historical Society.

Happy Birthday, Idlewild and SoakZone! Today marks the 140th anniversary of Pennsylvania’s oldest amusement park. On May 1, 1878, William Darlington penned another letter to Judge Thomas Mellon settling terms for the Ligonier Valley Rail Road to lease part of a scenic Ligonier Township estate for “picnic purposes or pleasure grounds.”

[image error]A photograph of the original letter, William Darlington to Thomas Mellon, May 1, 1878. as reproduced in James Madison Myers, “The Ligonier Valley Rail Road and Its Communities” (1955). The original letter was purportedly among the Ligonier Valley Rail Road papers.

 

Dear Sir:

In compliance with your request, I will and do hereby agree to grant to the Ligonier Valley Railway Company the right and privilege to occupy for picnic purposes or pleasure grounds that portion of my land in Ligonier Township, Westmoreland County as follows—the strip or piece of ground lying between the railway and the creek and extending from the old cornfield to Byards run —also two or three acres on the opposite or South Side of the creek adjoining or near the same. Without compensation in the shape of rent for three years from the first of April 1878 provided no timber or other trees are to be cut or injured—the under brush you may clear out if you wish to do so.

Yours respectfully,

Wm. M. Darlington

It’s only been four days since William Darlington’s last epistle to Thomas Mellon. Plenty of time to raise some more questions about this deal! Did Darlington receive a letter from the judge during this time, or did the two men finally meet in person to hammer out the terms that would allow the Ligonier Valley Rail Road to use the Darlingtons’ land for picnic grounds? Darlington’s letter states that the three-year, no-rent lease agreement with the railroad company began as of April 1st, a full month before the date of this letter, but why backdate the lease? In his April 27 letter, Darlington balks at a longer agreement that’s implied had no rent attached, so the agreement wasn’t fully arranged as of April 1. Perhaps there was a gentlemen’s agreement to allow some casual picnic activity on the grounds while the two men negotiated. It’s conceivable that folks were picnicking and camping on the Darlington property long before the railroad established Idlewild and perhaps Idlewild itself existed a little bit earlier than the May 1, 1878 date that we’ve all come to understand as the park’s “birthday.” Without Mellon’s letters, or additional ones from Darlington, we don’t know any further details about the park agreement, unfortunately.

[image error] Land surveys and abstract of title, 1803-1879, Box 3, Folder 32, Darlington Family Papers, 1753-1921, DAR.1925.01, Darlington Collection, Special Collections Department, University of Pittsburgh

Idlewild Park’s original boundaries were much smaller than the amusement park complex we know today.  In 1878, there was comparatively little development of the land, presumably some type of dwelling, as the property served as a tenanted farm for many years. The railroad company wouldn’t be permitted to develop the park on the northern side of the train tracks until 1891, so any early improvements (i.e. railroad station, dining hall, dancing platform) would be confined along the creek. I included the two earliest surveys I could find of the Darlington estate in my book, but I also wanted to share a survey dated May 9, 1879, so readers can see the footprint of the entire Darlington estate around the time of Idlewild’s creation. The survey description reads:

Surveyed the above described tract of land in Ligonier Township, Westmoreland County, PA at the instance and request of Wm. M. Darlington of the city of Pittsburg, Pa. Containing three hundred and thirty acres and one hundred and thirty-eight perches strict measure be the same more or less.   

[image error] Mary Darlington, Deed, March 21, 1866, Box 26, Folder 14, Darlington Family Papers, 1753-1921, DAR.1925.01, Darlington Collection, Special Collections Department, University of Pittsburgh

In Idlewild: History and Memories of Pennsylvania’s Oldest Amusement Park,  I trace the history of the land that would eventually become Idlewild Park, back to when the Pennsylvania Land Office opened in 1769, before Westmoreland County was created and before the United States of America was even established. But one fact I like to continuously stress is that, at the time the Ligonier Valley Rail Road was vying for use of the land, it was legally owned by Mary Carson O’Hara Darlington, NOT her husband, despite the fact that William describes it as “my land” in his May 1 letter. In short, Mary and her two siblings inherited an extensive amount of land in Westmoreland and Allegheny counties that their grandfather, James O’Hara (an important name in western Pennsylvania history), had amassed, including the future Idlewild property.

[image error] Portrait of Mary O’Hara Darlington, circa 1885-1888, Darlington Family Papers, Darlington Digital Library, University of Pittsburgh.

I have to speculate that Mary Darlington had a strong voice in the decision to allow the Ligonier Valley Rail Road to use her land for its picnic grove, based on a December 24, 1844 trust agreement between the couple and James O’Hara. The deed “recites that a marriage is to solemnized between William M. Darlington and Mary C. O’Hara, and that said William M. Darlington is desirous that all the estate belonging to the said Mary O’Hara shall be secured for her separate use during her marriage free from any control on his part.” Both Darlingtons were passionate about preserving and promoting art and local history, particularly of Western Pennsylvania, and I like to imagine they were more equal partners in marriage than the 19th century norm.

[image error] Courtesy of the Pennsylvania Room, Ligonier Valley Library.

Today is a momentous day in Idlewild history. The railroad company now had the “right and privilege” to proceed with setting up and promoting picnic grounds along the line. Within the next several years, a covered depot, shelters, creek bridge, swings and sports would be added to the park, with more extensive improvements towards the turn of the century and beyond. The Ligonier Valley Rail Road would partner with the Pennsylvania Railroad to promote group excursions to Idlewild, which soon became a chief source of revenue for the LVRR as its inbound passenger count would steadily increase each year, with more and more people flocking to the picturesque mountain retreat.