Luna Park, Houston
| Location | Houston, Texas, USA |
|---|---|
| Opened | 1924 |
| Closed | 1934 |
Houston's Luna Park, was an amusement park that was operated from 1924 until about 1934. The 36-acre (150,000 m2) "Coney Island of Texas" was built at a cost of $325,000 and featured a carousel, picnic areas, live entertainment (including diving horses), a dance hall with spring-supported floors, and various mechanical rides, including the Giant Skyrocket roller coaster. At night the park (located near 2200 Houston Avenue) was bathed in the light emitted from 50,000 light bulbs. While it was a trolley park, Houston's Luna Park was one of the first amusement parks to offer free automobile parking to its patrons.
Located on the banks of White Oak Bayou, Luna Park opened to the public for the first time 26 June 1924. Contemporary press coverage (printed 27 July 1924) stated that the park had “… virtually every variety of amusement device known in the world of showdom.” Houston’s first roller coaster, the 100-foot (30 m)-tall Skyrocket featured a 84-foot (26 m) drop and was billed (with a length of more than 1.25 miles) as the "largest" and "highest" roller coaster in the United States at that time. The popularity of the Skyrocket was immense as it carried between 2500 and 3000 passengers daily. In addition, "a monstrous seaplane swing also has been installed in the park, as has a caterpillar, a merry-go-round, dodgem, baby airplane swing, junior Ferris wheel, miniature railway and other devices." The scenic railway was reported to be two feet taller than that of Coney Island's. The pavilion was also advertised as the largest in the American South; live entertainment was offered in the form of aerobatics, little people (billed as Williamson's Midget City), and shows entitled "See America First" and "The Mysterious Sensation."
...
Wikipedia