11 interesting facts about Coney Island

Фото: Depositphotos

Sigmund Freud allegedly once said: "The only thing that interests me in America is Coney Island."

Tough, but take a look at the evidence: there are many kilometers of sandy beaches, a promenade for walks, rides in abundance, a parade of topless mermaids and a television contest that is entirely devoted to eating hot dogs. Whether you agree with Mr. Freud or not, it is impossible to dispute the fact that Coney Island, which, by the way, is actually a peninsula, and not an island, is seriously competing with other areas.

Event cartel I found little-known facts about this “Playground of America”.

Miracle wheel has become a wedding gift
In 1948, a Greek immigrant, Dénos Wurderis, presented to his future wife, Lula, what every woman wants to get on her wedding day: a ferris wheel high in 150 feet in Coney Island. Well, as presented ... Rather promised that if she marries him, he will buy it as soon as he can. Starting as a hot dog vendor, Wurderis kept his word and eventually bought the ride, which, having first opened in 1920, earned again decades later in 1983. The tradition is still alive, and the attraction, which is now in charge of his son Steve, is still popular as a place where you can make a marriage proposal.

On the streets once showed premature babies for money
Although Coney Island's quay is dotted with shops and food decks, at the beginning of the 1900s, it was a little different. If you had strolled around the lunapark back in those days, you would most likely have stumbled upon glass incubators with tiny, premature babies. The idea belonged to Dr. Martin Coney, who organized a small demonstration to which parents brought premature babies to help them survive. Although he did not ask for money for help, he turned to patrons for a fee of 25 cents per view. Of course, this is a completely strange approach, but of the 8000 premature babies who donated to Coney, roughly 6500 survived.

The giant hotel in the form of an elephant, turned into a brothel, was once called the house Coney Island
Long at the corner of Surf Ave and West 12th St stood a seven-story elephant-like house that hid many secrets. Inside the elephant, which was erected in 1885, was a concert hall, a museum, a tobacco shop, spiral staircases (legs) leading to rooms, and telescopes (eyes). His creator, James Lafferty, even called him "the eighth wonder of the world." But as they say, nothing lasts forever, and what started out as a hotel on the 31 room eventually turned into a brothel with prostitutes. Everything burned out in September 1896, but there is no doubt that he lived a legendary life, still existed.

If Coney Island did not exist, there would be no frozen custard.
It was the summer of 1919, the ice cream vendors panicked about how quickly it melted. While two siblings, Archie and Elton Khorov, did not come up with a brilliant idea. They mixed egg yolks into ice cream, which not only stopped melting, but also accidentally turned into the world's first silky-smooth frozen custard. Rumor has it, the brothers sold more than 18000 servings just for the first weekend.

First roller coaster in the world appeared in Coney Island
No, we are not talking about the famous Cyclone. Before the rickety wooden attraction that appeared in the 1927 year, which we know and love, there was a railway length of 600 feet. Opened in June, the 1884 guy named LaMarcus Thompson, an attraction that stood where the Cyclone is now, traveled at a speed of 6 miles per hour at a distance of 50 feet above the ground. For comparison, the height of the Cyclone is 85 feet, and the highest slide in North America is about 456 feet. Oh, and it cost just 5 cents per trip (today the Cyclone costs $ 10).

Coney Island is also responsible for many other new products.
You can also thank this creative area for the first bike lanes in the country. Designed by Frederick Low Olmsted and Calvert Vox and built in 1894 to connect Coney Island and Prospect Park, the route that stretches five miles along Ocean Parkway is still popular among racers (although it doesn’t get to Prospect Park). In the past, cyclists could only ride at 12 miles an hour along this bike path to avoid a race — any speed is now allowed.

Cary Grant owes Coney Island some of his "star"
Before the nifty Hollywood actor won the hearts of viewers on a movie screen in films like North Through Northwest and His Girlfriend Friday, he gathered crowds as an entertainer in Coney Island, balancing on 6-foot stilts. Grant was hired by Steeplechase Park founder George Tilyu at the beginning of 1920, and his costume consisted of a bright green coat, jockey cap, and black pants.

The beaches were not always accessible to the public.
Believe it or not, Coney Island was rather closed in the early days. Now, on three miles of sandy beaches, crowds of people from all walks of life can be accommodated for free, this has not always been the case. People had to pay 10 cents for the dressing room in order to gain access to an exclusive beach, or to go sunbathing in another place. This was the case until 1923, when the city’s public embankments were built and grounds were opened for everyone.

Before the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island, there was a Mardi Gras Parade.
The Mermaid Parade was not the first performance to move to the streets. For fifty years, from 1903 to 1954, Coney Island hosted a week-long extravaganza that became known as the Coney Island Mardi Gras Parade, complete with floats, music and thousands of cheering spectators. Unlike its fishtail-and-body-paint counterpart, which coincides with the summer solstice, this parade was held on Labor Day. There was a lot of good that came out of this bash - in fact, the whole party was organized to raise money to rebuild and save a shelter for fallen women that had been destroyed in a fire.

Creepy yellow submarine in the town Creek in Coney Island has nothing to do with the song Beatles, but ...
... and she has a rather curious story: years after SS Andrea Doria, an ocean liner, sank off the coast of Nantucket in 1956, a thought was born in the head of the shipyard welder Jerry Bianco. He decided to build a submarine to extract valuable ship remains. Although the ship turned over on its very first voyage, it was later damaged and washed away by the storm, Bianco’s idea proved viable.

Nathan's first hot dog cost 5 cents
Hot dogs can now cost 4 dollars apiece, but Nathan Handverker sold them for 5 cents in 1916 a year. As the story goes, he did so to compete with his former employer, Charles Feltman (who, according to some, invented a hot dog), who sold them at 10 cents. Not everything has changed, though ... the secret recipe is the same as that of the original version of 100 years ago, and you can still buy it at the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues.

Read also on ForumDaily:

Emigrant Diary: Europe VS San Francisco

How to get to the museums of New York for free

Personal Experience: Love and Hate for San Francisco

Go to the page ForumDaily on Facebook to keep abreast of the latest news and comment material.