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The Reporter August 2013
Crescent Park pier 1890.
The famous Eddie Zack Hayloft Jamboree in 1965.
Crescent Park's, Silver Streak, the ride of tomorrow!
Did you ever win a doll on the midway?
The lawsuit was a grass-roots effort by 5 Riverside residents to “save Crescent Park”. A large auction was held in March of 1979. The Carousel was doomed to be torn down with the rest of the park. But local residents, Gail Durfee, Jobel (Tracy) Aguiar, Richard Lund, Linda McEntee, & Robin Peacock fought back. While most of Crescent Park was auctioned off in 1979, a fire destroyed much of the midway in 1980. And in 1984 the vacant shore dinner hall burned down. Arson was suspected. The “Save our Carousel Committee” led by the “Crescent Park Five” concentrated on an effort to at least save and preserve the Looff Carousel. Many proposals were floated to city leaders and several did not include keeping the carousel. Contacted for this story, Gail Durfee did not want to say much. “I’ve pretty much been taken out of the loop these days,” she said. Durfee did have a few comments however. “Our goal was to save the carousel and some prime waterfront land for the public. That was our goal,” she said. After a long legal battle, in which former state Attorney General, Arlene Violet represented the group, a compromise was reached in Superior Court. The carousel was saved and the city was given about 7 acres of bay front land for open space and almost 4 acres around the carousel itself. In turn, developer Kelly & Picerne got to build Section 8 housing for the elderly and handicapped near the carousel in a complex now called Crescent Park Manor. Individual homes and more upscale condos were built on the Bullocks Point avenue side of the road. The developer bought the land from the city for about $825,000. Former city manager, Earl Sandquist and city Mayor Ed Langton were opposed to keeping the carousel or any of Crescent Park open, according to Durfee. And thus, the historic Crescent Park Looff Carousel was saved and now thrives. The Crescent Park Five, as they been called, were recently inducted into the EPHS Hall of Fame for their efforts to save the Looff Carousel. And since the carousel reopened in July of 1984, the newly formed carousel commission has counted on Ed Serowik and others to keep its’ 118 year old merry-go-round working safely. “We got a $1 million grant from (former) Representative Patrick Kennedy. We replaced the foundation under the carousel and also added a sprinkler system and new electric. Three years ago we replaced the 115 year old gears. We’re keeping it going,” said a proud Serowik as he went to speak to a mom who was planning a child’s birthday party at the carousel. This year the city will be making exterior repairs and repainting the building. “Since the budget commission has left we seem to be moving again, getting things done. They (budget commission) had stopped us from doing a lot here,” Serowik noted. Serowik’s son, Edward, Jr. is now the carousel manager, following in his father’s footsteps. Two other amusement parks dotted Riverside’s waterfront. Vanity Fair and Boyden Heights. Trying to build upon the success of Crescent Park, George Boyden built Boyden Heights on the water at the end of what is now Boyden Blvd. across from Bay View Academy. Boyden Heights was similar to Crescent Park in its piecemeal design, but it was also a typical park with many of the same rides and events as Vanity Fair. Boyden Heights was even more doomed than Vanity Fair. Although it was a typical park, it never caught on. George Boyden, after being forced out of Crescent Park, made a try near Squantum Point. He constructed “boardwalks and a pier, a shore dinner hall, rides, and a dance hall, but by December of 1902 he was bankrupt.” The park is now a residential area, but at one time had a scenic railway, a dance hall, and even diving horses! It had only survived a year. Now the park is gone and all that remains is a house that was converted from the bandstand. Vanity Fair developers had big ideas. It sat about where the Silver Spring golf course is now. ‘Vanity Fair is the most ambitious, grandiose amusement park north of Coney Island’, shouted out ads for the new park. The park opened in 1907. It had all the rides including a Chute the Chute, roller coaster, and carousel. It boasted a hotel, boardwalk, dinner hall, Wild West Show, dance hall, circus, an Indian congress, and wild animal area. It had sideshows like the