After Eighty Nine Years, Rye Playland Is Still Open

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For nearly a century, Rye Playland has been one of New York’s most beloved amusement parks. With its historic rides, waterfront boardwalk, and classic Art Deco architecture, Playland has entertained generations of families while earning its place as one of the country’s most unique amusement parks. Located in Rye, New York, it remains the only county-owned amusement park in the United States.

Photo: By ChangChienFu at English Wikipedia, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

While most people in the New York metropolitan area are well aware of amusement parks such as Six Flags Great Adventure and Long Island’s Splish Splash water park, there is an entire generation of New Yorkers under 40 who may never have heard of Rye Playland. Of course, if you are a Westchester County resident, you are probably aware of the park. However, many Long Islanders, northern New Yorkers, and New York City residents are simply unaware of the park’s existence. That’s a shame because the park will soon celebrate its 90th anniversary. Yes, that’s right, it’s still open!

Rye Playland Amusement Park is located in Rye Beach, New York. The park officially opened on May 26, 1928. Amusement parks flourished in New York during the early to mid-twentieth century. Starting in 1902 with Rockaway’s Playland and in 1903 with Luna Park in Coney Island, the metropolitan area became home to famous amusement parks such as Palisades Amusement Park, Astroland, and the short-lived Freedomland U.S.A., along with many others.

Rye Playland Amusement Park is a fun-filled theme park that is rich in history. With the Hudson River on one side and the Long Island Sound on the other, there’s a beach and boardwalk, as well as rides that have remained much the same as they have been for decades. Just about everyone’s favorite ride is the Dragon Coaster, which has remained the park’s most popular attraction over the years and is part of the logo on Playland advertisements.

The Dragon Coaster is quite tame by today’s ride standards and totally antiquated compared to Six Flags or other more modern amusement giants, where the rides seem to defy the laws of physics. The Dragon Coaster opened in 1929, less than a year after Playland officially opened in 1928. The coaster is wooden, so it makes a familiar clickety-clack sound when the train starts climbing the first hill. Then comes a gentle turn, and just when you think, “This isn’t so bad,” you plunge straight down into the dark mouth of the dragon at what was then considered terrifying speed. Then, if you kept your lunch down, you could go ride the steel Monster Mouse roller coaster or opt for a ride on the Derby Racer instead.

The Derby Racer is one of Playland’s most unique rides. It’s an action-packed version of a merry-go-round. You choose your horse and then compete with other riders to be the winner.

Laff in the Dark is a brilliantly insane fun-house ride that folks go on again and again, even though they know the spooky ride by heart. You can still float along in a boat on the Ye Old Mill ride where the scariest thing you can see is a goofy gnome standing on a log. Ye Old Mill and the Mind Scrambler, two of Playland’s classic rides, would become the source of controversy and heartbreak in later years, but for almost eighty years before that, the rides operated without tragedy.

One reason the park has not changed much over the years is that it is government-owned. Rye Playland is the only amusement park in the United States owned by a county parks and recreation department. During the mid-1920s, the suburbs surrounding New York City were booming. People were clamoring for entertainment, so amusement park designer Frank Darling was hired to coordinate plans for an exciting use of county-owned parkland. The architectural firm Walker & Gillette was hired to execute Darling’s vision, and Rye Playland opened with a flourish of publicity. The county owned most of the rides, while others were operated by outside vendors. Admission was free at the time, and visitors purchased coupon books to enjoy the rides and games.

Not everyone was happy about Rye Playland. Although the amusement park provided seasonal work for many county residents, complaints about noise, vandalism, and traffic were brought to the attention of the county government for decades. They could hardly dismiss the complaints because they owned the property and operated the park. That remained a sticking point for several reasons.

Throughout the years, the park began losing money. Because it is essentially taxpayer-funded, residents accused the Rye Parks and Recreation Department of misusing funds. For a while, it looked like Playland was going to go the way of Freedomland in the Bronx, which was torn down to build Co-op City. One big difference is that Freedomland was simply a temporary project, while Rye Playland was always intended to remain part of the county’s park system. The county held its ground, and in 1987, Playland was designated a National Historic Landmark.

Rye Playland’s boardwalk gives the park a carnivalesque atmosphere, both whimsical and a bit mysterious. In 1988, Playland’s boardwalk was used as the location for the creepy fortune teller Zoltar, who grants Josh, played by Tom Hanks, his wish in the blockbuster movie Big. Penny Marshall directed the film, and as a native New Yorker she was a huge fan of everything New York, making Playland the perfect filming location.

The previous year, in 1987, the Dragon Coaster was featured in Fatal Attraction during the famous scene in which Glenn Close, portraying Alex Forrest, kidnaps Dan Gallagher’s daughter and takes her on the coaster.

In 1995, Mariah Carey showcased both her talent and Rye Playland in the iconic music video for her hit song “Fantasy.” The beautifully filmed video captures the unmistakable feel of New York as Mariah roller skates along the boardwalk, tours the park, and races down the Dragon Coaster with her hair flying and a huge smile on her face. Carey grew up near Rye, making Playland a natural choice for the video.

The park has, unfortunately, also experienced tragedy. Between 2004 and 2007, three fatalities occurred at Playland. The first came in 2004 when a seven-year-old girl unbuckled her restraint to wave to someone and fell from the Mind Scrambler. In 2005, a young boy boarded Ye Old Mill alone. He stood up in the boat, somehow fell, and was killed by the conveyor belt. The Mind Scrambler claimed another victim in 2007 when an employee was still securing guests as the ride started.

These deaths led to lawsuits, negative publicity, and criticism of county management. One television program, Richard French Live, produced a special report entitled “Ride at Your Own Risk.” The program argued that government managers were not equipped to operate an amusement park and suggested that Rye Playland should be sold or turned over to private management. County officials and park managers responded by explaining the extensive safety improvements that had been made, while noting that the accidents resulted from human error rather than mechanical failure.

The Ye Old Mill now has a cover over the conveyor belt, additional warning signs were installed, security cameras monitor riders, and the Mind Scrambler, owned by S & L Amusements, was removed. Critics questioned where the ride went and whether it continued operating elsewhere. Of course, virtually every major amusement park, including Disney and Six Flags, has experienced accidents during its history. The point critics continued to emphasize was that the county owned and operated Rye Playland.

In 2016, Westchester County entered into a 30-year agreement with Standard Amusements to operate Rye Playland. The county retained ownership while planning to invest $32 million to improve the park. Standard Amusements agreed to contribute an additional $30 million in private investment. Rye Playland showed no signs of closing and appeared ready to continue welcoming visitors for many years to come.