Rockaways' Playland

Rockaways’ Playland was an amusement park that operated from 1902 to 1987 on Beach 98th Street in Rockaway Beach in the Borough of Queens, New York City, at Beach 98 Street between Rockaway Beach Boulevard and the beachfront.

It was opened in 1902 by William Wainwright and originally extended to the beachfront boardwalk.the

Playland’s roller coaster, known as the “Atom Smasher”, was prominently featured in the movie This is Cinerama.

Playland’s area was greatly truncated in the late-1930s by the construction of the Shore Front Parkway at the behest of Robert Moses.

It was closed after insurance premiums went from $50,000 in 1985 to $408,000 in 1986. A housing development now occupies Playland’s site.