Historic Houston Amusement Parks & Places

[4PROP]

Looking for pictures of the Super Slide that was located on Telophone Rd. and Almeda Genoa Rd.

Went there as a kid. Slid down on burlap sacks. It was a ruin for many years and I wished I had taken pictures of it.

Thanks for any help!!!!!!!!!?????????????

Here's one like it. (Mi-Tee-Slide) Not sure where this one was.

[NenaE]

Cool picture of the slide, groovy side panels, reminds me of the Laugh-In show.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-for-sale-giant-slide-at-state-fairgrounds-20110622,0,5315982.story

Here's a short article of the inventor of the giant slide. says there were 42 of them, at one time.

Edited September 9, 2011 by NenaE

[plumber2]

I remember it! It was off of 290 near Windfern I believe...I was just talking about it the other day!

Wee Wild West was at the corner of Westheimer and Yorktown. It later became a Putt Putt Golf.

[sinister1]

Boy Downtown has changed some!!!

And it's going to change again if they go ahead and go through with the expansion of 45. : (

[Alex Rigsby]

Does anyone have or able to provide access to photographs of old amusement parks in Texas? I love amusement parks and roller coasters and travel each year to visit parks. This past July, I travelled to Germany for two weeks to do such and do other sightseeing, as well.

Within Houston, I know there were

1. AstroWorld (of course)
   
2. Playland Park (near the old AstroWorld site, though I don't know exactly where)
   
3. Hanna Barbera Land (became Splashtown in Spring)
   
4. Oak Park (near the intersection of Washington and Houston Avenue)
   
5. Peppermint Park (apparently there were several, with one near the old Gulfgate Mall)
   
6. KiddieLand (where Kroger is now at Kirby and S. Main)
   
7. Electric Park (I think this was at what is now White Oak Park off Houston Avenue, just north of I-10. This was one of the trolley parks that opened at the turn of the 20th century. I remember reading that the park would not hire union labor and that, supposedly, some union members set of dynamite on trolleys in retaliation. I can find the article on the internet again if anyone would like to read about it. Information about this park has been extremely difficult to come by.)
   

Elsewhere in Texas there was:

1. A park purportedly in Corpus Christi
   
2. Electric Park in Galveston
   
3. Some other park in Galveston
   
4. Exposition Park in San Antonio
   
5. Lake Worth Park in San Antonio
   
6. Lake Side Park in Wichita Falls
   
7. Playland Park in San Antonio (their old wooden rollercoaster called "The Rocket" was moved an opened at Knoebel's Amusement Park in 1985)
   
8. Pleasure Pier in Port Arthur
   

This last latter is referenced (but not in detail) at http://defunctparks..../TX/indexTX.htm

I would also love to find photos or video of Ponchartrain Beach in New Orleans (which I visited in 1982) and the not-so-well-known Lincoln Park in New Orleans which was built to cater to the black community during segregation.

I know some people have commented on such in other posts, but many date back several years. If you have footage of your own on, say, 8mm, I may be willing to help pay for the conversion. If any of you have questions, about these or other parks, I'll be delighted to answer to the best of my ability. And, in case you don't know, Landry's is turning the pier that the old Flagship Inn was on into the "Galveston Pleasure Pier" with amusement rides and restaurant(s). That is tentatively expected to open in May, 2012, and there is lots of local news coverage and articles on it.

Thanks!

Alex

[devonhart]

I'm assuming you've searched the internet and Youtube for these?

[Alex Rigsby]

Yes. I've found a few links and photos. I'm trying to find everything I can.

[blue92]

As a kid growing up in southwest Houston in the 50s and 60s I went to sleep in the spring and summer months listening to the screams of the people on the roller coaster at Playland. We lived within walking distance to the park, that was across the street from Gaido's Seafood restaurant. On Saturday nights I could hear the race cars roaring around the track. When I was 8 years old my dad would take me to watch the races. They raced there up into the early 60s then moved the racing to Meyer's Speedway out on S.Main past the South Main Drive In. I watch A.J.Foyt more or less start his racing career at those 2 tracks. Here's an overhead shot of Playland park from 1953.

Edited December 25, 2011 by blue92

[NenaE]

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/2540-old-houston-amusement-places/page__hl__%20amusement%20%20parks

...have u seen the other links to amusement park subjects on HAIF...I think it's one of the favorite things to discuss in the Historic Houston topic. I believe I posted a pic of Kiddie Land on Main St. somewhere in there.

Also try just searching "amusement park" within HAIF's search function. Might help. So much info. is in this website. I was amazed when I first started reading HAIF.

In fact, a general internet search for Peppermint Park led me to HAIF.

[Highway6]

I guess these are more akin to Showbiz Pizza rather than amusement parks....

but you left out Fame City and Fame City Waterworks.

There was also Games People Play somewhere down in the Bellaire area as well.

Also.. somewhere on LongPoint in the mid 80s there was a small kiddie amusement park ( a few permanent carnival size rides).. it was called Sunshine something.

As far as photos... if you look up Houston: Then and Now, the cover clearly shows a roller coaster smack down in the middle. I don't know if this is either your Oak Park or Electric Park because it appears to be located just east of Houston ave and just south of the Bayou.

I can't find the roller coaster in any of Google Earth's historic imagery.

also found reference to a Coombs Park and Natorium in the Heights..

http://houstorian.wordpress.com/2007/11/02/coombs-park-and-heights-natatorium/

Edited December 27, 2011 by Highway6

[Alex Rigsby]

Thank you all for the info. I'd never seen an aerial photo of Playland. Much appreciated. I have the Houston: Then and Now book, which is where I saw the first photo of Oak Park.

[Highway6]

Good find on remembering the name Luna Park... I knew that photo wasn't showing the stated location of Oak or Electric Park.

The roller coaster there was called the Skyrocket and apparently it was the biggest in the US at the time.

After Luna Park was shut down, the roller coaster was moved to Playland Park. It can be seen clearly in the google earth historic imagery from 1944 and 1953 (above) at Main and Murworth, a few blocks west of current Reliant stadium.

This might be a photo of the Skyrocket in its Playland location from 1943

http://www.loc.gov/p...i2001029931/PP/

Edited December 27, 2011 by Highway6

[Alex Rigsby]

I've seen the Houstorian website before. The roller coaster shown in the Luna Park photo may be the same one moved to Playland, but if it is then the coaster was heavily reprofiled. In Galveston, on the Seawall, there is a restaurant called The Spot that has an aerial photo of ab old wooden roller coaster that was there. PBS had a show a few years ago where an elderly woman reminisced about growing up in a house located within the middle of the structure. Understandably, she said that the noise was so great that you couldn't stand to be in the house when the coaster was running.

[blue92]

For your other amusement parts around Texas there's Landa Park in New Braunfels probably the oldest in Texas dating back to the late 1800s here's their web site

[NenaE]

http://digital.lib.uh.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/p15195coll1&CISOPTR=200&REC=3 Scene in Highland Park. ...from the University of Houston On-Line Archives Collection The Magnolia City (1904) (Part 3) Click on Pg.5

Drag the bar inside the page down for the caption.

Edited January 12, 2012 by NenaE

[Tana]

Alex Rigsby: I have a few photos at my website: www.tanasreminisce.com and I always include references when I can. Those might give you a place to find more links, etc.

tana

[IronTiger]

Wasn't at one time Main was completely different, with only Old Main Street Loop Road being the only remnant today? I thought I read something on HAIF about that...

[cspwal]

Here's a site with a bunch of old street and road maps of Houston on it.

 

https://houstorian.wordpress.com/old-houston-maps/

 

It even shows some of why Westheimer turns (1937 street map)

[Subdude]

Wasn't at one time Main was completely different, with only Old Main Street Loop Road being the only remnant today? I thought I read something on HAIF about that...

 

I think that originally Main Street didn't extend beyond Braes Bayou, and that Old Main Street Loop Road was the route southwest.  

[montrosepatriot]

On ‎7‎/‎28‎/‎2015 at 5:23 PM, Subdude said:

 

I think that originally Main Street didn't extend beyond Braes Bayou, and that Old Main Street Loop Road was the route southwest.  

A section of Old Main Street Loop still exist (where Stella Link terminates) - the rest was abandoned since the 1980s (part of the route was paved over by the Central Houston Nissan dealership but the stub outs still remain; another chunk north of the South Loop faded out since the 1960s when the Astrodome was built and a small section NE of Reliant Center is still there)

[CaptainJilliams]

I wasn't sure which thread this would fit best under, but a fantastic video by Kevin Purjurer on the history of Astroworld.

 

Check it out below:

 

[NenaE]

On 7/28/2015 at 4:09 PM, IronTiger said:

Wasn't at one time Main was completely different, with only Old Main Street Loop Road being the only remnant today? I thought I read something on HAIF about that...

 

I had no idea there was an old South Main... I've been tracing it tonight, using GoogleEarth - old (1940's-50's) views along with the new maps... you can still detect the road's path. Parts are overgrown or completely covered by new development. There are road blocks that hint at where the old path crosses over other newer roads. And what's up with those loop roads? One is over by Holmes Rd.

 

You can see where the Old Main St. takes a somewhat sharp turn around Knight and Fannin, forks off right after crossing Old Spanish Trail (Alt 90) and passes behind the Astrodome.

[JLWM8609]

1 hour ago, NenaE said:

 

I had no idea there was an old South Main... I've been tracing it tonight, using GoogleEarth - old (1940's-50's) views along with the new maps... you can still detect the road's path. Parts are overgrown or completely covered by new development. There are road blocks that hint at where the old path crosses over other newer roads. And what's up with those loop roads? One is over by Holmes Rd.

 

You can see where the Old Main St. takes a somewhat sharp turn around Knight and Fannin, forks off right after crossing Old Spanish Trail (Alt 90) and passes behind the Astrodome.

According to an old topographic map from the early 20s, Old Main was the original route before the current route was built. Main St. ended at current day Holcombe. Main Street Road intersected with Main St. near its terminus. That part of Main Street Road still exists in the Medical Center as a small stub called Old Main St. between Main and Fannin. Main Street Road then followed current day Fannin and Knight Rd before jogging to the SW and crossing the tracks to join the route parallel to the tracks (currently US90A). The maps don't say what the road parallel to the tracks was called back then, but it was probably known as Holmes Rd.

Edited September 22, 2018 by JLWM8609

[IronTiger]

The section between modern-day Buffalo Speedway and 610 was completely removed between 1978 and 1989 with a "stub road" at both ends. Yet when Advenir apartments were built, a section of their parking lot was built directly on the right of way (likely due to the way land was split), and THAT was marked as Old Main Street Loop Road on Google Maps!

 

 

[ggmsmolly]

On 6/20/2005 at 1:57 PM, belmontdrew said:

Does anyone remember these old amusement places in Houston? what they were called? where there may be pictures of them?

The ski slope at the intersection of 610 West Loop and Southwest Freeway which later became...

The waterslide at the intersection of 610 West Loop and Southwest Freeway which finally became...

Lone Star Amphitheatre at the intersection of 610 West Loop and Southwest Freeway

OR HOW ABOUT...

Malibu go-cart raceway and arcade at the Southwest Freeway

Games-People-Play...I believe it was on Fondren....big 80's hangout with arcade, waterslides and go carts..

The little go cart place off westpark (Southwest Freeway ran in front of it)..the track was lined with red and white tires...

Peppermint Park was another one on South Main in the 40s to 70s.

 

[ernie5823]

15 hours ago, ggmsmolly said:

Peppermint Park was another one on South Main in the 40s to 70s.

 

Playland Park was the one on South Main. Peppermint Park was initially in Pasadena & later between Gulf Freeway & Reveille (before I 610 built). It was a kiddie park. I worked there, running the rides, in 1960, 61 & 62 as a teenager.

[ggmsmolly]

8 hours ago, ernie5823 said:

Playland Park was the one on South Main. Peppermint Park was initially in Pasadena & later between Gulf Freeway & Reveille (before I 610 built). It was a kiddie park. I worked there, running the rides, in 1960, 61 & 62 as a teenager.

Thank you so much for the clarification.

[ScottyO]

On 1/10/2006 at 10:46 PM, sprintcar said:

Actually Billy Wade was the best at Meyer Speedway.Another Billy, Billy Griswold was pretty much unbeatable at Playland. The car owner was Johnny Reiff I worked for Johnny & often drove the car when the races were moved to Meyer after Blackie Lothringer's crash which sent him into the spectator stands at Playland.

I grew up across the street from Big Johnny, his wife Sara and Daughter Patty baby sat me as a child, I remember the Impala Sara drove and the 240zx Patty drove and the big garage he had in his back yard, remember going to his shop but was to young to remember where it was.