It became a resort area after the Civil War. The arrival of the railroads and streetcars made it easier for people to get there, bringing hotels, the establishment of public and private beaches and amusement parks. It wasn't long before Coney Island was attracting large numbers of city dwellers who wanted to escape the heat of summer.
(By the way, if you're in the habit of watching the hot dog-eating contest from Nathan's Famous hot dogs on ESPN on July 4, the original Nathan's hot dog stand was established on Coney Island more than 90 years ago.)
After the last of the major amusement parks on Coney Island closed in the mid-1960s, Coney Island began its journey through a variety of development schemes that never really panned out. Some subsidized apartments for low-income families have been built on Coney Island, but mostly the property has changed hands as one development plan after another failed.
At various times in the last 40 years, someone has thought of restoring the area to its former glory, re-establishing the old-fashioned amusement parks and concessions that were the lifeblood of Coney Island in its heyday.
There was even a time when property on Coney Island sold for high prices in anticipation of the legalization of gambling in the area — after which, the properties would be developed into casinos and be worth even more than had been paid for them. But gambling was never legalized for Coney Island, which wound up with a bunch of vacant lots.
In the last 40 years, only one of the original amusement parks, Astroland, has attempted a revival. That attempt is ending this weekend.
The owner of Coney Island's Astroland said Thursday she is calling it quits and the historic amusement park will close for good on Sunday.
Carol Albert, whose family has owned the Brooklyn amusement park for nearly a half-century, said she gave up on negotiating a two-year lease with Thor Equities after the developer missed [Wednesday's] deadline to reply.
Associated Press
Oddly, not all of New York's newspapers found this event worthy of staff attention.
Sewell Chan's article in the New York Times reminded readers that this conflict over the lease was actually a continuation of a showdown that began in the summer of 2007.
"Fans of Coney Island," wrote Chan in the lead paragraph on Thursday, "here we go again."
But, on the actual last day of operation for Astroland, the Times is more preoccupied with the closing, after a 12-year run, of the musical "Rent."
The New York Post somberly proclaimed on Thursday, "Astroland is dead," then followed that announcement with a flippant article about an "Astro-'Not' Park Sale" today.
"Want to buy a 275-foot-high space tower? It's only $99,000," wrote the Post's Rich Calder. "How about a water ride for $199,000?"
If nothing else, Calder underscored how difficult it is to operate an amusement park in today's economy — even if a space age-themed amusement park seems more retro than futuristic in the 21st century.
The most recent entry about the amusement park in the New York Daily News came in the form of a letter to the editor on Thursday, running under the headline "Astroland memories," which was a response to an article on Labor Day weekend that reported that Astroland's lease appeared to be running out for the last time.
Long Island's Newsday apparently could not spare a staff writer to lend a personal touch to the end of Astroland.
A search of Newsday's website found only Associated Press articles on the demise of Astroland.
I grew up in the South. I've never visited Coney Island. But I've heard about it all my life. It's had a cultural impact that few can match.
"Coney Island" used to be slang for a chili hot dog. Even as a child in the 1960s, I heard hot dogs referred to as "Coney Islands."
O. Henry's stories often mentioned Coney Island, and it plays a role in "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
As a movie buff, I remember the confrontational scene in "Paper Moon," in which Addie (Tatum O'Neal) has demanded her $200 from Mose (Ryan O'Neal), who tells her, "Eat your Coney Island and drink your Nehi!"
A few years later, New Yorker Woody Allen paid homage, in "Annie Hall," to the amusement parks of Coney Island by making the lead character's childhood home a house underneath a Coney Island roller coaster. The house would shake violently whenever the roller coaster ran overhead.
Coney Island also figured in the plotlines of movies like "Sophie's Choice," "Brighton Beach Memories," "9 1/2 Weeks" and "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence."
On TV, fans of "Seinfeld," "The Simpsons," "Soap," "Ugly Betty," and the soap opera "General Hospital" heard references to Coney Island.
And Coney Island is where the lead characters from "The Jeffersons," George and Louise, got engaged.
What happened to respect for historic sites?
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