I'm so happy that I found this on you tube...my parents always took me to olympic park when i was very young, living in Newark it was very close to home...as I was watching this video tears were coming down my face remembering all the rides and fun there was in that park....MEMORIES !!!!!
Man, I've lived in Irvington practically all my life. I had no idea there used to be a park here. Man, too bad I didn't come along until decades after its closing.
This is an exceptional video. Thank you for the trip to a better time. I grew up in Millburn in the 30s, 40s and 50s O/P was very much a part of our lives. I remember going into Kings Supermarket to get coupons for the rides before going. We took the 70 bus to just a block or two away. The ice cream sandwiches were out of this world. What can you say about the enormous swimming pool? It was such an enjoyment. The R/C was called The Jack Rebbit. and then The Jet. Miss it so much.
Great video!! I went there all the time..I used to walk from the Ivy Hill Apartments down Boyden Ave. To Springfield/Chancellor Ave's...What great memories!!!
I lived in Union and would take the bus every Saturday to go roller skating there. We had the best time. Alot of wonderful memories there. So sad that that part of history is gone. This new generation will never know the thrill we had at Olympic Park. Thank you so much for this wonderful video. It truly brought back alot of memories.
i lived on 42nd st and went to that wonderful park almost every day. i was 13 when it closed. very sad. i looked down the street and always saw the olympic park entrance on chancellor ave every day when i went out of my house.
I lived in East Orange during the 50's and 60's. When we were old enough, my friends and I could take a bus from East Orange to Olympic Park. I believe the bus went all the way over Stuyvesant Ave in Irvington. I was 15 when the Olympic Park closed. Summer was never the same after that.
this made me sad to know i spent from 84 to 08 in Irvington and never imagined any of this existed. I always wondered what those huge vacant lots and places were once was now I know. I wish I grew up in this generation.
Thank you for posting this. My grandfather was the pyrotechnician there on the 4th of July. I used to roller skate there. We all enjoyed that wonderful park immensely. So sorry to have seen it go. Good memories of fun, family the rides, the pool my Grandfather.
Fantastic Video !!! I was born in Elizabeth in 1954 & raised in Roselle. My parents took me there often. I loved the pool & "The Rocket" roller Coaster !!! Thanks for letting me stroll down memory lane.
I used to go there as a kid when growing up in Cranford N.J. I remember many enjoyable hours in that pool and riding the roller coaster. Man, that was a long time ago, another life time. I'm now 63 years old and still dream of those days often. Thanks for the vid!!!
Thank you..Thank you... Swimming, lying on the concrete in little 2 piece suits. Loved the Carousel, knew it looked familiar when we were in Disney, I still have a brass ring. My most precious memories was roller skating every weekend. First kiss, first smoke, going steady with a boy from Newark. Time has gone by but memories live on forever. I watched this 10 times....show my kids and grandchildren. Being from NJ is not a bad thing !!
I have many good memories of Olympic Park.Thank you for sharing those photos and the 8 mm film. I miss my family, I miss the early sixties and the wholesome communities we were lucky to grow up in. So much is lost...
My aunts and uncles lived on 40th street. We could see the roller coaster from their 2nd floor porch. I loved going to the park. Have so many memories. So sad what has happened to the park.Thank you for posting this video.
my grandparents lived a block away on Leslie Pl (off 40th) I was only 6 when it closed down so I remember the sad dead images better than the live ones but Ill never forget that gigantic rollercoaster and those grand 40th st and Chancellor Ave gates!!!!! Thanks feeder7!!!!
Great video! I wasn't old enough to remeber when it was open but my dad told us stories about it! But I did play in the abandon park grounds! Now you can get killed walking in that nieghborhood ! What a shame it was the six flags of it's day! Thanks
I was born in Newark in 1941 and grew up in Union during the 40's, 50's and 60's. With my mom and dad, I made many visits to Olympic Park, spending time enjoying the rides and frolicking in the pool; there was no need to travel south to the "Jersey Shore", with the obvious exception of the ocean, Olympic Park had it all. Your video brings both joy and sadness; joy for the thought of days spent at the Park, and sadness at having witnessed its steady decline and demise. Thanks for the memories!
I grew up in Irvington. While I wasn't old enough to enjoy Olympic Park, it is one of the places my dad enjoyed. He immigrated from a poor area in Europe, and seeing this place was wondrous to him. Your video is lovely, and it makes me sad..not in a bad way, though. Lost youth, a time that will not return, Irvington when it was a beautiful place to be, I was told what happened to the park, not sure if my version is accurate, but a lost bygone era....Nostalgia.....thanks so much.......mimi
I lived a block away and went to the pool every day. Before i went home I took 2 rides on the Roller Coaster 25 cents a ride. Saw the Circus every Sunday Joe Basile conducted the band. My drum teacher Eddie Scherer played the shows. Boy do I miss those days.
Many thanks to all who have enjoyed a look back at the once great park. I am sorry for not answering all the many questions.It was a long time,and over due project. It was a time when America was the great country,and we held our heads high and proud to be Americans. We enjoyed our lives then. Today we fear for them. We should always smile on...the best of wishes to everyone. Enjoy life and God bless. feeder7
Grew up in Cranford and every birthday I was allowed to pick two friends and go to the park for the day. I just celebrated my grandsons ninth and I'm sending this video to show him where I celebrated my ninth. Thanks for the memories.
This is fantastic. Olympic Park is the first fun place I remember going to as a child in 1950 at age three. I was terrified by the mechanical music at the Carousel. After my dad explained it all to me, I would sit by it, proud I had so much nerve. It was surely due to that experience, my hobbies have since revolved around mechanics and electronics. When we go to Disney World I go to the Olympic Park carousel where my heart and soul fly back in time 60 years.The magic of Olympic Park lives still
Spent several summers there from 62 to 65. Learned to swim and dance at the juke box at the pool. Best times of my life. Would give anything to go back for a day.
As a kid growing up in Newark, my buddies and I who lived on 17th Street would go to "the park" about once a month. We would take the #25 Springfield/Maplewood bus all the way to the old Public Service bus depot in Maplewood and walk in to the park.
That was a wonderfully haunting music score. What's is the name of it?
Thanks again for a wonderful 9 minutes of walking down memory lane.
I shared this with my Mom who is 83. Our family lived in Paterson but made the trip to Olympic Park once a year with my Dad's parents. So great to look back in time..thanks!
Had my life saved by a man named Bobby Capete. IProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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0was swimming to the raft, I think I was ten or eleven, I ran out of breath and was sinking. Bobby jumped off the raft and saved me. A debt of gratitude I owe to him. Enjoyed many days at Olympic Park, lived in Newark, off South Orange Avenue. Took the 31 bus to Stuyvesant Avenue and then the 94 Stuyvesant to the pa
Had my life saved by a man named Bobby Capete. IProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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0was swimming to the raft, I think I was ten or eleven, I ran out of breath and was sinking. Bobby jumped off the raft and saved me. A debt of gratitude I owe to him. Enjoyed many days at Olympic Park, lived in Newark, off South Orange Avenue. Took the 31 bus to Stuyvesant Avenue and then the 94 Stuyvesant to the park. Great memories. %
I worked here briefly as a cashier for the pool in 1964. My brother was a lifeguard. I met and nearly married the greatest love of my life who was captain of the guards. This video brought tears to my eyes for so many reasons. It was magical; a respite from the summer heat, a place for families to have fun, filled with wonderful people. It was a safe and happy place. I cherish the memories and I grieve the loss.
Excellent job! I lived right around the corner from the park on Boyden Ave. It was so great just to be able to walk there. The day they took it down was as sad as the day they destroyed Penn Station in NYC. This movie made my heart ache. Thanks.
We'd walk to Roselle,from Linden,& got the bus to the end of the line.And there was that Magic place,Sorta-like Coney Island,but in N.J. Yup & there we'd spend the day.As a teenager (early60s) i was amazed that the merry-go -round was so fancy ,lots of cherubs & painted-pastoral-scenes(in-ovals).And gondolas that looked like something out of a Fairy-tale& all on one Carousal.That roller-coaster was the first-coaster(12 yrs-old) i was ever on.Thank you 4 putting all this together,so-sad its gone.
Olympic Park Swimming Pool was a big part of our lives while it was open. There was nothing like it then or now. Thank you for reminding me. A very positive event. I loved it then and now. Bringing it back would do so much for revitalizing Irvington.
Loved the video. We used to go there and, as a teenager, I worked around the corner at Tri-City Diner. on the corner of Mill Rd. and Styvesant Ave. All the gang would go there and then come to the diner. We had many good times there and many good memories. Thanks again.
Thanks for the wonderful memories, Born in Irv. graduated from IHS in 49. Dad a fireman in Irv. My Mom worked at the First Aid bldg. also. I grew up at the pool, circus, rides with so much happiness. Loved the concerts and have such fond memories of the Park .... Saw the video of the burning of the roller coaster and had tears in my eyes. My daughter lives in MW near Irv. border and I talk about the park to her a lot. Thanks for the memories.Tears streaming! phantomlady2@comcast.net
Thanks for the wonderful memories, Born in Irv. graduated from IHS in 49. Dad a fireman in Irv. My Mom worked at the First Aid bldg. also. I grew up at the pool, circus, rides with so much happiness. Loved the concerts and have such fond memories of the Park .... Saw the video of the burning of the roller coaster and had tears in my eyes. My daughter lives in Maplewood near Irv. border and I talk about the park to her a lot. Thanks for the wonderful memories!!! Tears running down my face!
This is great! I just viewed the one on NEWAR and loved it. I grew up in Maplewood, and moved to South Florida 37 years ago, but I am a NJite at heart. My parents owned Millman's Hot dogs for 50 years and that holds memories!!
Wonderful memories. I lived in Newark, attended Arts High School. Graduated in 1964. Have a cousin who lived on Chancellor Ave. near Olympic Park. My dad took us to the park every week. We loved the huge pool, the band, the roast beef sandwiches and the bumper cars. Dad always lost his paycheck playing the games. Wish those days remained.
Thank you for this, I forwarded it to my Dad, who grew up in Irvington a few blocks away from Olympic, and it brought back many happy memories of his childhood.
This is wonderful. I too spent many happy days at the Park. I also remember the Olympia Restaurant which was gorgeous and the Cafe Mozart--they were all near Olympic Park.
I was little, but i remember Olympic park! in the 60s, my mother worked there as a young woman , in the early 60s along with some other relatives , i was told. I went to Union ave school. Irvington was a wonderful place then. We walked everywhere, even late at night, when the traffic lights were blinking yellow, that was a big deal back then! i loved Valley fair and Irvington center was our life, basically. I walked through the park a few times in the 70s when it was all gone. So sad.
Your dad put a new Packard Hawk differential in my 59 Studebaker Lark after I blew it out, duee to the supercharged engine we dropped in it. I worked at Farmer's Auto Parts on Stuyvesant and used to deliver parts to Chancellor Texaco. Loved Olympic Park both as a kid and a teen; sadly watched it change and then go to weeds and dust. Thank goodness for memories like thiis video!
I lived in Irvington several years ago (needed something cheap and figured a place right on the Parkway couldn't be too bad) and it was awful. It breaks my heart to see that it was one such a lovely, happy place.
When I was a kid I lived in Newark and the Park was a big treat for me. Later, my family moved to Maplewood and I worked in the Pig Slide, Kiddie Land, Motor Boat ride and worked the first year the Wild Mouse was open. We used to go to the roller skating rink during the winter after the Park closed on Labor Day night for the winter. I am now retired and living in Arizona but the memory still lives! W
I use to go there all the time when I was growing up and lived in newark and east orange. Great 4th of july fireworks. My cousin Barbara use to take me there all the time. i saw the jugglers there. I use to pee in the pool all the time..LOL
I spent many of my childhood years at Olympic Park. My father's family ran rides and stands there. I remember taking skating lessons at the rink, and being the first to the new rides. Video was well done, and a wonderful memory, Thank you!
What a great video! I'm from East Orange, my uncle would take me to Olympic Park. I won a guppie at the ring toss. Lter I had 50 guppies. I moved from East Orange in '63.
I have so many fond memories of the Olympic Park. It was my second home during the mid to late 50's. I could walk there since I only lived a few blocks away, so I spent my winters at the skating rink and summers at the park. I remember the radio station broadcasting from there with Rock & Roll music, dancing and being loads of fun! Pizza and those hot pretzels with mustard, they were the best!!
I am last Miss Olympic Park 1965! My friends still call me Miss Olympic Park and we still enjoy the great memories. There is a group that meets occasionally and there is a wonderful book written by Alan Siegel documenting the history. My aunt recently passed away at 94 and loved to tell us about taking the trolly from downtown Newark with .25 cents in her pocket for a full day of fun...then she would walk all the way home to Down Neck....great times!
I live in Chicago and this just brings back so many good memories for me. My grandma lived in Newark and we would spend the summers there. Olympic park was a large part of my childhood. The kewpie doll soldier and the pipe cleaner animals especially. Long live our memories. This is great!
I live in Chicago and this just brings back so many good memories for me. My grandma lived in Newark and we would spend the summers there. Olympic park was a large part of my childhood. The kepie doll soldier and the pipe cleaner animals especially. Long live our memories. This is great!
This film brought so many memories back. We were so lucky to have this park. It kept everyone out of trouble. And the roller rink was wonderful. Thanks again for bringing the memories back.
What a great tribute and memory. I recall picking up the bus on Chestnut St in Roselle Park with friends and being at the pool at the opening hour and staying all day until the pool closed. We watched a friends dad clown dive off the high dive and then swim the width of the pool underwater. I'll never forget some little kid exclaim " Look at that old man go!" Then we head to the roller coaster, the bumper cars, and a host of other things to due until it was time to head back home. Thanks
We went to Olmpic Park the day my boyfriend graduated Weequahic. I fell asleep on my stomach in the sun and was so sunburned i had to stand all the way home on the bus. I had no ticket to the graduation so I went to the school and with the help of the robed choir, climbed in the music room window. they gave me a robe. The music teacher,Mr. Holtzman, said,"What are you doing here?"
I explained my problem and he found me a seat. Thanks for the video!
Does anyone remember after school going to the Park and the radio station broadcast from there with Rock & Roll music. We could dance and sometimes be interviewed. This would be about 1958-59. So much fun and good clean memories were made-nothing compares to that today. French fries in the white paper cones-the special discount long strips you could use to get in and on the rides cheaper. Always crowds. We had relatives come down from Rhode Island just to see OLYMPIC PARK. Was there roller
What a great place this was. I have some old admission tickets, pool tickets, bumper sticker and small poster. Some of the rides are still used today. In adedition to the MErry Go Round, the motor boat ride and the wild mouse are in Knoebels amusement park in PA and the fire engine ride is still a kiddie ride in Ocean city NJ
Loved going back in time to remember happy days and nights at Olympic Park! We had a free pass to the park since we lived closeby, so we were frequent visitors. I also remember the sounds of the roller coaster and the screams of the riders coming in my window in the summer. Entering the park, I would ride the green turnstiles to get in, then enjoy the crazy mirrors in the park and the German band on Sunday afternoons in the beer garden. Loved the circus and roller skating with organ music.
Does anybody remember the baseball toss where you threw the ball and if you either hit the target or it went through the hole a pig would slide down a chute? That was in the 50's and my sister would come home laughing because her boyfriend was a pitcher for the Kansas City A's! The booth owner would load them up with prizes just to get them to go somewhere else!
I went there many times as a child. Lived in Vailsburg. My dad knew John Basile, the bandleader and we often went to listen to the concerts. As a teen, went to the pool; Birthdays frequently meant going to Olympic Park; it was a big occasion. Late 60's saw what was left of most of the rides; most of the roller coaster was still standing. Some of the old crazy mirrors near the refreshment stands by the entrance off Chancellor Avenue and 40th Street were still largely intact.
Many of the pictures in this video were taken by me in 1967 after the park closed. I also photographed the fire in the park from my bedroom of my Menzel Ave house in Maplewood. I lived on both the Irvington and Maplewood side of the park growing up and it was a great place. I missed the real great days of the park but heard of them from my parents. It is still the best pool I was ever in.
WOW my friend sent this video to me and it just blew me away. In 63 and 64 I worked at the park. I drove the train in Kiddieland. To this day I can close me eyes and see and hear all that there was at the park. Every day it was an adventure. The circus, pool,midway and of course all the rides. During my breaks I would go and watch the live pig stand game. You thru a ball at a target and if you hit the target, I siren sounded and the pig came out of a cage and slide down a slide. thank you !!!!!
I lived in Irvington during the 50-60's, I went to swim there with my friend everyday during the summers. Back then you could give your kid a $1 and send them on their way, no worries. Thanks for the film.
We lived on Stuyvesant Avenue and could walk to the park. What a wonderful place. I enjoyed the band concerts, the circus, roller skating and the swimming pool. The memories fade at times, but this video brought it all back. Gus's, Kless's diner and shopping on Springfield Avenue. Irvington was a great place to live. Thanks for the many memories.
I lived in walking distance of the park also. Learned to swim at the pool, though I spent many summers in the beginner's class before I did! Loved the circus, and all the rest.
From NJ.com: The site held the largest carousel ever made. Built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. in 1918, the five-row merry-go-round was illuminated by 3,000 lights. It had a 60-foot plat form, 80 wooden horses, four chariots and seated 99 passengers. After the park closed in 1965, the carousel was shipped to California to be refurbished. It now operates in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
My parents owned a restaurant called "Randee's Restaurant" on the corner of Springfield Ave & Boyden Ave. We lived in Fair Lawn when they opened it. Two years later in February 1964, we moved to the apartments across from Columbia. I was moved into Fielding School mid year and had a hard time making friends. To make matters worse, my Mom picked me up after school every day, and I had to sit in the booth coloring quietly for hours until they closed. Completely miserable, my father one day to
Thanks for the memories! My grandparents lived on Stuyvesant Ave in the 60's and my brothers and I could walk to Olympic Park I used to love the slide with the Burlap bags and the Carousel. My mom used to talk about going there when she was a teenager to rollerskate. She also said when she was in High School as she graduated from Irvington High, there was a classmate killed by standing up on the roller coaster.That would have been in the late 40's I can remember her telling me about it.Thanks.
Grew up going to Olympic Park almost every summer. These local amusement parks were originally called "Trolley Parks" and were usually at the end of the line of a local trolley line. They were built specifically to give the locals a place to go to on the trolley car. Spent many a glorious evening there back in the late 50's and early 60'. Was a great place to go hang out as a teenager. Used to love the rides and the food! Palisades Park was bigger and better, but too far away!
I lived several blocks from the park and can still hear its sounds as they drifted through the warm summer night's air. The rumble of the roller coaster rushing down that first long drop and the screams of excitement of its riders. It had the greatest pool a kid could imagine! A refuge from the summer heat. To finally make the long swim out to the raft. The wonderful sounds of the merry-go-round with its marvelous band organ. Pure magic. Great memories of a great place! SMILE !
My grandfather worked at Olympic Park for many summers until it closed. He worked at both the basketball shoot and the ice cream waffle stand. It was a perfect job for him because he owned a small candy store on Stuyvesant Ave and did not have A/C. It was Mrs. Evans Homemade Candies...great! I really enjoyed this video. Thanks so much!
Wow!!! Brought tears to my eyes... Could have cried if I let myself... don't remember the circus but I sure do remember the swimming pool, where I learned to swim. Great memories & so sad that it was demolished. We'll always have such wonderful memories...
you did a great job!!! I only remember the sign still being there at the 43rd St. entrance when I was a kid but I heard all the stories about Olympic Park my whole life! This is a beautiful tribute and I got to see parts of it I never saw before! Thank you.
EXCELLENT VIDEO....IT'S AMAZING THAT THE WAR ZONE THAT IS NOW IRVINGTON, USED TO BE A BEAUTIFUL CITY CROWNED BY THE JEWEL THAT WAS OLYMPIC PARK
lindacholita 1 day ago
OMG! Thanks so much for posting this. We used to go there in the 50s and 60s when we lived in Elizabeth, Wow, what memories!
stadalberts 2 months ago
I'm so happy that I found this on you tube...my parents always took me to olympic park when i was very young, living in Newark it was very close to home...as I was watching this video tears were coming down my face remembering all the rides and fun there was in that park....MEMORIES !!!!!
BigBen732 5 months ago
Man, I've lived in Irvington practically all my life. I had no idea there used to be a park here. Man, too bad I didn't come along until decades after its closing.
cologneprince 5 months ago
This is an exceptional video. Thank you for the trip to a better time. I grew up in Millburn in the 30s, 40s and 50s O/P was very much a part of our lives. I remember going into Kings Supermarket to get coupons for the rides before going. We took the 70 bus to just a block or two away. The ice cream sandwiches were out of this world. What can you say about the enormous swimming pool? It was such an enjoyment. The R/C was called The Jack Rebbit. and then The Jet. Miss it so much.
US51351142 5 months ago
Who did the music you used?
Steelstrings 6 months ago
Great video!! I went there all the time..I used to walk from the Ivy Hill Apartments down Boyden Ave. To Springfield/Chancellor Ave's...What great memories!!!
Steelstrings 6 months ago
I lived in Union and would take the bus every Saturday to go roller skating there. We had the best time. Alot of wonderful memories there. So sad that that part of history is gone. This new generation will never know the thrill we had at Olympic Park. Thank you so much for this wonderful video. It truly brought back alot of memories.
1djkuehn 6 months ago
i lived on 42nd st and went to that wonderful park almost every day. i was 13 when it closed. very sad. i looked down the street and always saw the olympic park entrance on chancellor ave every day when i went out of my house.
tbear1256 7 months ago
I lived in East Orange during the 50's and 60's. When we were old enough, my friends and I could take a bus from East Orange to Olympic Park. I believe the bus went all the way over Stuyvesant Ave in Irvington. I was 15 when the Olympic Park closed. Summer was never the same after that.
Deserie212 7 months ago
this made me sad to know i spent from 84 to 08 in Irvington and never imagined any of this existed. I always wondered what those huge vacant lots and places were once was now I know. I wish I grew up in this generation.
Matucks 7 months ago
Thank you for posting this. My grandfather was the pyrotechnician there on the 4th of July. I used to roller skate there. We all enjoyed that wonderful park immensely. So sorry to have seen it go. Good memories of fun, family the rides, the pool my Grandfather.
Rustydymon 7 months ago
Wonderful video. Great to look back at this place for fun. Enjoyed watching. Thank you Steve for this great share*******
lilianmajbritt 7 months ago
Fantastic Video !!! I was born in Elizabeth in 1954 & raised in Roselle. My parents took me there often. I loved the pool & "The Rocket" roller Coaster !!! Thanks for letting me stroll down memory lane.
Steve:)
stevemularz 7 months ago
I used to go there as a kid when growing up in Cranford N.J. I remember many enjoyable hours in that pool and riding the roller coaster. Man, that was a long time ago, another life time. I'm now 63 years old and still dream of those days often. Thanks for the vid!!!
huskytom5r 7 months ago
Thank you..Thank you... Swimming, lying on the concrete in little 2 piece suits. Loved the Carousel, knew it looked familiar when we were in Disney, I still have a brass ring. My most precious memories was roller skating every weekend. First kiss, first smoke, going steady with a boy from Newark. Time has gone by but memories live on forever. I watched this 10 times....show my kids and grandchildren. Being from NJ is not a bad thing !!
Gayle048 7 months ago
loved it..miss it and the people....Steve O'....lifeguard 1965
siennastrat 7 months ago
I have many good memories of Olympic Park.Thank you for sharing those photos and the 8 mm film. I miss my family, I miss the early sixties and the wholesome communities we were lucky to grow up in. So much is lost...
Sollijuno 7 months ago
My aunts and uncles lived on 40th street. We could see the roller coaster from their 2nd floor porch. I loved going to the park. Have so many memories. So sad what has happened to the park.Thank you for posting this video.
berthamillard 8 months ago
my grandparents lived a block away on Leslie Pl (off 40th) I was only 6 when it closed down so I remember the sad dead images better than the live ones but Ill never forget that gigantic rollercoaster and those grand 40th st and Chancellor Ave gates!!!!! Thanks feeder7!!!!
decemberschild1217 8 months ago
I lived for the pool and the roller coaster...and the ice cream sandwiches!
US51351142 8 months ago
Great video! I wasn't old enough to remeber when it was open but my dad told us stories about it! But I did play in the abandon park grounds! Now you can get killed walking in that nieghborhood ! What a shame it was the six flags of it's day! Thanks
Bdonjr8 8 months ago
I was born in Newark in 1941 and grew up in Union during the 40's, 50's and 60's. With my mom and dad, I made many visits to Olympic Park, spending time enjoying the rides and frolicking in the pool; there was no need to travel south to the "Jersey Shore", with the obvious exception of the ocean, Olympic Park had it all. Your video brings both joy and sadness; joy for the thought of days spent at the Park, and sadness at having witnessed its steady decline and demise. Thanks for the memories!
curtisfwatts 8 months ago
I grew up in Irvington. While I wasn't old enough to enjoy Olympic Park, it is one of the places my dad enjoyed. He immigrated from a poor area in Europe, and seeing this place was wondrous to him. Your video is lovely, and it makes me sad..not in a bad way, though. Lost youth, a time that will not return, Irvington when it was a beautiful place to be, I was told what happened to the park, not sure if my version is accurate, but a lost bygone era....Nostalgia.....thanks so much.......mimi
mtenkate 8 months ago
My Dad ran the Bingo Game at the park before it became Illegal.
rexydad 9 months ago
I lived a block away and went to the pool every day. Before i went home I took 2 rides on the Roller Coaster 25 cents a ride. Saw the Circus every Sunday Joe Basile conducted the band. My drum teacher Eddie Scherer played the shows. Boy do I miss those days.
rexydad 9 months ago
feeder7, your perceptions are accurate and honest; and you are too cool!
FredBertini 9 months ago
Many thanks to all who have enjoyed a look back at the once great park. I am sorry for not answering all the many questions.It was a long time,and over due project. It was a time when America was the great country,and we held our heads high and proud to be Americans. We enjoyed our lives then. Today we fear for them. We should always smile on...the best of wishes to everyone. Enjoy life and God bless. feeder7
feeder7 10 months ago
Grew up in Cranford and every birthday I was allowed to pick two friends and go to the park for the day. I just celebrated my grandsons ninth and I'm sending this video to show him where I celebrated my ninth. Thanks for the memories.
phillyim123 10 months ago
This is fantastic. Olympic Park is the first fun place I remember going to as a child in 1950 at age three. I was terrified by the mechanical music at the Carousel. After my dad explained it all to me, I would sit by it, proud I had so much nerve. It was surely due to that experience, my hobbies have since revolved around mechanics and electronics. When we go to Disney World I go to the Olympic Park carousel where my heart and soul fly back in time 60 years.The magic of Olympic Park lives still
FredBertini 10 months ago
Spent several summers there from 62 to 65. Learned to swim and dance at the juke box at the pool. Best times of my life. Would give anything to go back for a day.
tomephil 10 months ago
feeder...
this was wonderful to see.
As a kid growing up in Newark, my buddies and I who lived on 17th Street would go to "the park" about once a month. We would take the #25 Springfield/Maplewood bus all the way to the old Public Service bus depot in Maplewood and walk in to the park.
That was a wonderfully haunting music score. What's is the name of it?
Thanks again for a wonderful 9 minutes of walking down memory lane.
It's great to look back, once in a while...
Alan
JoaquinTall 11 months ago
I shared this with my Mom who is 83. Our family lived in Paterson but made the trip to Olympic Park once a year with my Dad's parents. So great to look back in time..thanks!
starshyne7 11 months ago
Thank you for reminding us of the simpler times of life...........
PZ612 1 year ago
Had my life saved by a man named Bobby Capete. IProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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0was swimming to the raft, I think I was ten or eleven, I ran out of breath and was sinking. Bobby jumped off the raft and saved me. A debt of gratitude I owe to him. Enjoyed many days at Olympic Park, lived in Newark, off South Orange Avenue. Took the 31 bus to Stuyvesant Avenue and then the 94 Stuyvesant to the pa
wigwamskater 1 year ago
Had my life saved by a man named Bobby Capete. IProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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0was swimming to the raft, I think I was ten or eleven, I ran out of breath and was sinking. Bobby jumped off the raft and saved me. A debt of gratitude I owe to him. Enjoyed many days at Olympic Park, lived in Newark, off South Orange Avenue. Took the 31 bus to Stuyvesant Avenue and then the 94 Stuyvesant to the park. Great memories. %
wigwamskater 1 year ago
I worked here briefly as a cashier for the pool in 1964. My brother was a lifeguard. I met and nearly married the greatest love of my life who was captain of the guards. This video brought tears to my eyes for so many reasons. It was magical; a respite from the summer heat, a place for families to have fun, filled with wonderful people. It was a safe and happy place. I cherish the memories and I grieve the loss.
mykytyn 1 year ago
@mykytyn Dave was Capt in '65 who was it in '64?
siennastrat 7 months ago
Excellent job! I lived right around the corner from the park on Boyden Ave. It was so great just to be able to walk there. The day they took it down was as sad as the day they destroyed Penn Station in NYC. This movie made my heart ache. Thanks.
tvguy3 1 year ago
We'd walk to Roselle,from Linden,& got the bus to the end of the line.And there was that Magic place,Sorta-like Coney Island,but in N.J. Yup & there we'd spend the day.As a teenager (early60s) i was amazed that the merry-go -round was so fancy ,lots of cherubs & painted-pastoral-scenes(in-ovals).And gondolas that looked like something out of a Fairy-tale& all on one Carousal.That roller-coaster was the first-coaster(12 yrs-old) i was ever on.Thank you 4 putting all this together,so-sad its gone.
tlaniganschmidt 1 year ago
Olympic Park Swimming Pool was a big part of our lives while it was open. There was nothing like it then or now. Thank you for reminding me. A very positive event. I loved it then and now. Bringing it back would do so much for revitalizing Irvington.
evacfreeman 1 year ago
Loved the video. We used to go there and, as a teenager, I worked around the corner at Tri-City Diner. on the corner of Mill Rd. and Styvesant Ave. All the gang would go there and then come to the diner. We had many good times there and many good memories. Thanks again.
carolg163 1 year ago
Thanks for the wonderful memories, Born in Irv. graduated from IHS in 49. Dad a fireman in Irv. My Mom worked at the First Aid bldg. also. I grew up at the pool, circus, rides with so much happiness. Loved the concerts and have such fond memories of the Park .... Saw the video of the burning of the roller coaster and had tears in my eyes. My daughter lives in MW near Irv. border and I talk about the park to her a lot. Thanks for the memories.Tears streaming! phantomlady2@comcast.net
phantomlady1931 1 year ago
Thanks for the wonderful memories, Born in Irv. graduated from IHS in 49. Dad a fireman in Irv. My Mom worked at the First Aid bldg. also. I grew up at the pool, circus, rides with so much happiness. Loved the concerts and have such fond memories of the Park .... Saw the video of the burning of the roller coaster and had tears in my eyes. My daughter lives in Maplewood near Irv. border and I talk about the park to her a lot. Thanks for the wonderful memories!!! Tears running down my face!
phantomlady1931 1 year ago
This is great! I just viewed the one on NEWAR and loved it. I grew up in Maplewood, and moved to South Florida 37 years ago, but I am a NJite at heart. My parents owned Millman's Hot dogs for 50 years and that holds memories!!
hotdog179181 1 year ago
Wonderful memories. I lived in Newark, attended Arts High School. Graduated in 1964. Have a cousin who lived on Chancellor Ave. near Olympic Park. My dad took us to the park every week. We loved the huge pool, the band, the roast beef sandwiches and the bumper cars. Dad always lost his paycheck playing the games. Wish those days remained.
64postcard 1 year ago
Thank you for this, I forwarded it to my Dad, who grew up in Irvington a few blocks away from Olympic, and it brought back many happy memories of his childhood.
dbkmak 1 year ago
This is wonderful. I too spent many happy days at the Park. I also remember the Olympia Restaurant which was gorgeous and the Cafe Mozart--they were all near Olympic Park.
Brought tears to my eyes.
Jersey gal
Pattilapeep 1 year ago
thank you for bringing back a flood of great memories
DaffynBetty 1 year ago
I was little, but i remember Olympic park! in the 60s, my mother worked there as a young woman , in the early 60s along with some other relatives , i was told. I went to Union ave school. Irvington was a wonderful place then. We walked everywhere, even late at night, when the traffic lights were blinking yellow, that was a big deal back then! i loved Valley fair and Irvington center was our life, basically. I walked through the park a few times in the 70s when it was all gone. So sad.
showz83 1 year ago
We were lucky to spend our youth there
blazehok 1 year ago
I LIVED IN MAPLEWOOD MY WHOLE LIFE.MY FATHER OWNED CHANCELLOR
TEXACO RIGHT NEXT TO OLYMPIC PARK.THE PARK WAS MY HOME AWAY
FROM HOME.I LEARNED HOW TO SWIM AT THE PARK.MY FAVORITE RIDE WAS
THE WILD MOUSE.I ENJOYED THE SNOW CONES.I WENT TO SCHOOL IN
MAPLEWOOD WITH THE GUNTHER BOY HIS PARENTS OWNED THE PARK.
THOSE WERE THE GOOD OLD DAYS. 53 JERSEY BOY
53JERSEYBOY 1 year ago
@53JERSEYBOY
Your dad put a new Packard Hawk differential in my 59 Studebaker Lark after I blew it out, duee to the supercharged engine we dropped in it. I worked at Farmer's Auto Parts on Stuyvesant and used to deliver parts to Chancellor Texaco. Loved Olympic Park both as a kid and a teen; sadly watched it change and then go to weeds and dust. Thank goodness for memories like thiis video!
TheCALPI 9 months ago
Beautiful video! How and WHY did Irvington go sooo wrong. Used to be a nice place to live. What a shame what it has become :-(
Liserdd 1 year ago
@Liserdd the riots in the 60's. I lived there my whole life and I remember. It was a damn shame; beautiful place to live until I started high school.
tempmntllady1 6 months ago
@Liserdd Yea, it all started during the Lyndon Johnson presidencey. { just as a point of reference}
stadalberts 2 months ago
I lived in Irvington several years ago (needed something cheap and figured a place right on the Parkway couldn't be too bad) and it was awful. It breaks my heart to see that it was one such a lovely, happy place.
NicoletteFajardo 1 year ago
When I was a kid I lived in Newark and the Park was a big treat for me. Later, my family moved to Maplewood and I worked in the Pig Slide, Kiddie Land, Motor Boat ride and worked the first year the Wild Mouse was open. We used to go to the roller skating rink during the winter after the Park closed on Labor Day night for the winter. I am now retired and living in Arizona but the memory still lives! W
259bobby 1 year ago
I use to go there all the time when I was growing up and lived in newark and east orange. Great 4th of july fireworks. My cousin Barbara use to take me there all the time. i saw the jugglers there. I use to pee in the pool all the time..LOL
pydyszewski 1 year ago
I spent many of my childhood years at Olympic Park. My father's family ran rides and stands there. I remember taking skating lessons at the rink, and being the first to the new rides. Video was well done, and a wonderful memory, Thank you!
babyrn13 1 year ago
What a great video! I'm from East Orange, my uncle would take me to Olympic Park. I won a guppie at the ring toss. Lter I had 50 guppies. I moved from East Orange in '63.
41maddi 1 year ago
I have so many fond memories of the Olympic Park. It was my second home during the mid to late 50's. I could walk there since I only lived a few blocks away, so I spent my winters at the skating rink and summers at the park. I remember the radio station broadcasting from there with Rock & Roll music, dancing and being loads of fun! Pizza and those hot pretzels with mustard, they were the best!!
cookie1964irv 1 year ago
I am last Miss Olympic Park 1965! My friends still call me Miss Olympic Park and we still enjoy the great memories. There is a group that meets occasionally and there is a wonderful book written by Alan Siegel documenting the history. My aunt recently passed away at 94 and loved to tell us about taking the trolly from downtown Newark with .25 cents in her pocket for a full day of fun...then she would walk all the way home to Down Neck....great times!
valentine2147 1 year ago 3
thank you feeder7
A2MIDR 1 year ago
I live in Chicago and this just brings back so many good memories for me. My grandma lived in Newark and we would spend the summers there. Olympic park was a large part of my childhood. The kewpie doll soldier and the pipe cleaner animals especially. Long live our memories. This is great!
soller1100 1 year ago
I live in Chicago and this just brings back so many good memories for me. My grandma lived in Newark and we would spend the summers there. Olympic park was a large part of my childhood. The kepie doll soldier and the pipe cleaner animals especially. Long live our memories. This is great!
soller1100 1 year ago
This film brought so many memories back. We were so lucky to have this park. It kept everyone out of trouble. And the roller rink was wonderful. Thanks again for bringing the memories back.
dkrug22@aol.com
Venomn1 1 year ago
What a great tribute and memory. I recall picking up the bus on Chestnut St in Roselle Park with friends and being at the pool at the opening hour and staying all day until the pool closed. We watched a friends dad clown dive off the high dive and then swim the width of the pool underwater. I'll never forget some little kid exclaim " Look at that old man go!" Then we head to the roller coaster, the bumper cars, and a host of other things to due until it was time to head back home. Thanks
skisw 1 year ago
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513barbara 1 year ago
I remember seeing a short film with a detective following a tramp around the park. Has anyone else seen it also?
jamespdelia 1 year ago
Why did this place ever close down????
krazikate75 1 year ago
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bomboi163319 1 year ago
513barbara
513barbara 1 year ago
We went to Olmpic Park the day my boyfriend graduated Weequahic. I fell asleep on my stomach in the sun and was so sunburned i had to stand all the way home on the bus. I had no ticket to the graduation so I went to the school and with the help of the robed choir, climbed in the music room window. they gave me a robe. The music teacher,Mr. Holtzman, said,"What are you doing here?"
I explained my problem and he found me a seat. Thanks for the video!
513barbara 1 year ago
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MrVincent810 1 year ago
Does anyone remember after school going to the Park and the radio station broadcast from there with Rock & Roll music. We could dance and sometimes be interviewed. This would be about 1958-59. So much fun and good clean memories were made-nothing compares to that today. French fries in the white paper cones-the special discount long strips you could use to get in and on the rides cheaper. Always crowds. We had relatives come down from Rhode Island just to see OLYMPIC PARK. Was there roller
MrVincent810 1 year ago
What a great place this was. I have some old admission tickets, pool tickets, bumper sticker and small poster. Some of the rides are still used today. In adedition to the MErry Go Round, the motor boat ride and the wild mouse are in Knoebels amusement park in PA and the fire engine ride is still a kiddie ride in Ocean city NJ
sfdbuff 1 year ago
Loved going back in time to remember happy days and nights at Olympic Park! We had a free pass to the park since we lived closeby, so we were frequent visitors. I also remember the sounds of the roller coaster and the screams of the riders coming in my window in the summer. Entering the park, I would ride the green turnstiles to get in, then enjoy the crazy mirrors in the park and the German band on Sunday afternoons in the beer garden. Loved the circus and roller skating with organ music.
gypsybev2 1 year ago
Does anybody remember the baseball toss where you threw the ball and if you either hit the target or it went through the hole a pig would slide down a chute? That was in the 50's and my sister would come home laughing because her boyfriend was a pitcher for the Kansas City A's! The booth owner would load them up with prizes just to get them to go somewhere else!
TheCALPI 1 year ago
I went there many times as a child. Lived in Vailsburg. My dad knew John Basile, the bandleader and we often went to listen to the concerts. As a teen, went to the pool; Birthdays frequently meant going to Olympic Park; it was a big occasion. Late 60's saw what was left of most of the rides; most of the roller coaster was still standing. Some of the old crazy mirrors near the refreshment stands by the entrance off Chancellor Avenue and 40th Street were still largely intact.
TheCALPI 1 year ago
Many of the pictures in this video were taken by me in 1967 after the park closed. I also photographed the fire in the park from my bedroom of my Menzel Ave house in Maplewood. I lived on both the Irvington and Maplewood side of the park growing up and it was a great place. I missed the real great days of the park but heard of them from my parents. It is still the best pool I was ever in.
powderskier2011 1 year ago
WOW my friend sent this video to me and it just blew me away. In 63 and 64 I worked at the park. I drove the train in Kiddieland. To this day I can close me eyes and see and hear all that there was at the park. Every day it was an adventure. The circus, pool,midway and of course all the rides. During my breaks I would go and watch the live pig stand game. You thru a ball at a target and if you hit the target, I siren sounded and the pig came out of a cage and slide down a slide. thank you !!!!!
limey62 1 year ago 2
I lived in Irvington during the 50-60's, I went to swim there with my friend everyday during the summers. Back then you could give your kid a $1 and send them on their way, no worries. Thanks for the film.
dmarcus48 1 year ago
We lived on Stuyvesant Avenue and could walk to the park. What a wonderful place. I enjoyed the band concerts, the circus, roller skating and the swimming pool. The memories fade at times, but this video brought it all back. Gus's, Kless's diner and shopping on Springfield Avenue. Irvington was a great place to live. Thanks for the many memories.
MrBillyBoy99 1 year ago
I lived in walking distance of the park also. Learned to swim at the pool, though I spent many summers in the beginner's class before I did! Loved the circus, and all the rest.
artbylt 1 year ago
From NJ.com: The site held the largest carousel ever made. Built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. in 1918, the five-row merry-go-round was illuminated by 3,000 lights. It had a 60-foot plat form, 80 wooden horses, four chariots and seated 99 passengers. After the park closed in 1965, the carousel was shipped to California to be refurbished. It now operates in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
thorndenstreet 1 year ago
My parents owned a restaurant called "Randee's Restaurant" on the corner of Springfield Ave & Boyden Ave. We lived in Fair Lawn when they opened it. Two years later in February 1964, we moved to the apartments across from Columbia. I was moved into Fielding School mid year and had a hard time making friends. To make matters worse, my Mom picked me up after school every day, and I had to sit in the booth coloring quietly for hours until they closed. Completely miserable, my father one day to
10alexkane 1 year ago
@10alexkane
Was Randee's Restaurant later called the "Little House" diner? That was on the corner of Springfield and Boyden too.
powderskier2011 1 year ago
wow, never realized how awesome it was. I grew up in Irvington in the 80s. the music fits; something beautiful was there once, and now it is gone.
amoonday 1 year ago
The photos bring back lots of memories, but you should have chosen happier music. Thanks for your efforts.
raybetterbid 1 year ago
Thanks for the memories! My grandparents lived on Stuyvesant Ave in the 60's and my brothers and I could walk to Olympic Park I used to love the slide with the Burlap bags and the Carousel. My mom used to talk about going there when she was a teenager to rollerskate. She also said when she was in High School as she graduated from Irvington High, there was a classmate killed by standing up on the roller coaster.That would have been in the late 40's I can remember her telling me about it.Thanks.
MsScgator 1 year ago
What a great place to grow up!! Thanks for this...it brought back wonderful memories! How lucky we were!
wildflwr43 1 year ago
Grew up going to Olympic Park almost every summer. These local amusement parks were originally called "Trolley Parks" and were usually at the end of the line of a local trolley line. They were built specifically to give the locals a place to go to on the trolley car. Spent many a glorious evening there back in the late 50's and early 60'. Was a great place to go hang out as a teenager. Used to love the rides and the food! Palisades Park was bigger and better, but too far away!
yosarian649 1 year ago
I lived several blocks from the park and can still hear its sounds as they drifted through the warm summer night's air. The rumble of the roller coaster rushing down that first long drop and the screams of excitement of its riders. It had the greatest pool a kid could imagine! A refuge from the summer heat. To finally make the long swim out to the raft. The wonderful sounds of the merry-go-round with its marvelous band organ. Pure magic. Great memories of a great place! SMILE !
Thank You!
slminion 1 year ago
My grandfather worked at Olympic Park for many summers until it closed. He worked at both the basketball shoot and the ice cream waffle stand. It was a perfect job for him because he owned a small candy store on Stuyvesant Ave and did not have A/C. It was Mrs. Evans Homemade Candies...great! I really enjoyed this video. Thanks so much!
mhkcdk 1 year ago
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JaniceJEC 1 year ago
Wow!!! Brought tears to my eyes... Could have cried if I let myself... don't remember the circus but I sure do remember the swimming pool, where I learned to swim. Great memories & so sad that it was demolished. We'll always have such wonderful memories...
JaniceJEC 1 year ago
you did a great job!!! I only remember the sign still being there at the 43rd St. entrance when I was a kid but I heard all the stories about Olympic Park my whole life! This is a beautiful tribute and I got to see parts of it I never saw before! Thank you.
maryscarey 1 year ago
Youth's fleeting memories. Damn we were lucky to have this place.
blazehok 1 year ago