Playland Amusement Park

About this property

Playland (often called Rye Playland and also known as Playland Amusement Park) is an amusement park located along the Long Island Sound in Rye, New York, United States. Built in 1928, the 280-acre (110 ha) park is owned by the Westchester County government. The land upon which Playland was built was originally stewarded by Indigenous peoples who were attracted to the location by its waterfront along the Long Island Sound. Historic sources cite early campgrounds and a "burying hill." The association with Native Americans was so well known that it was used in original promotions for the venue and the county connected the naming of the park to its association with "prehistoric red men" who also used it as a playground. In 1928 and again in 1929, the Westchester County Parks Commission hosted and advertised a pageant depicting "Indian life in the county before the coming of the white man." The extravaganzas acknowledged that the amusement park was built upon land that was once the home and hunting ground of the Siwanoy tribe, a division of the Mohegan nation. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, that same waterfront area in Westchester County attracted a growing collection of recreational developments, including hotels, resorts, and "amusement areas". Local residents concerned about "unsavory crowds" petitioned the Westchester County Park Association to purchase two existing theme parks, Rye Beach Pleasure Park and Paradise Park, and replace them with a local-government-sponsored amusement park. The well-known NYC architectural firm Walker & Gillette and landscape architect Gilmore David Clarke were commissioned to produce a comprehensive design of both buildings and grounds, making Playland the first planned amusement park in the country. Frank W. Darling, a veteran amusement park builder with experience at Coney Island and the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley, was secured first to lead construction of the park and then hired to run it. Construction commenced in September 1927, and was completed in six months. The two previous amusement parks at Rye Beach and "a haphazard collection of flimsy structures, were operated or rented by the Park Commission while a policy and plans for the development of Playland were being formulated. The wrecking of these old buildings began on the morning after Labor Day, 1927, and the resulting debris was piled up and burned." The park began operation on May 26, 1928. Rides that were operating on Playland's opening day included the Grand Carousel, Derby Racers, The "Original" Whip (there is a historic sign referencing its 1928 creation) and the Dragon Coaster. The Airplane Coaster was added in 1928 while the Casino opened in 1929.

Location

Categories

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

More in Westchester County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Westchester County.

More historic places in New York

Browse all historic places in New York.

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

New York history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.