 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||
Columbia Gardens, Butte, MT
Roller Coaster
Council Crest, Portland, OR
Scenic Railway
Fun Forest, Seattle, WA
Galaxy and Wild Mouse
Happyland, Vancouver, BC
Giant Dipper
Jantzen Beach, Portland, OR
Big Dipper
Luna Park, Seattle, WA
Figure 8
Nat Park, Spokane, WA
Scenic Railway & Jack Rabbit
Oaks Park, Portland, OR
Monster Mouse and Zip coaster
Playland, Coeur d' Alene, ID
Playland Pier amusement rides
Playland, Seattle, WA
Giant Dipper
Playland, Vancouver, BC
Super Big Gulp
White City, Bellingham, WA
Roller Coaster
White City, Seattle, WA
Roller Coaster
Figure 8 Coaster, Luna Park, Seattle, WA
 Luna Park |
 Onboard Figure 8 |
 Great Figure 8 Coaster |
 Luna Park along pier |
Above are four photos of the Great Figure 8 Coaster that operated at Luna Park in Seattle, Washington.
Luna park opened in 1905 and was built on the tide flats along Duwamish Head. Proudly hailed as "The Coney Island of The West," the park had promise as being "the greatest amusement park in the Northwest" for a growing metropolis in West Seattle.
Sadly though, Luna had a short life span and ended up closing its doors in 1913 due to some moral controversary amongst local conservatives towards the park's "wild" and "rowdy" presence. The park apparently had the "longest bar on the bay" which brought about scandal and muckraking that agitated the "morals squad" which consisted of prohibitionists called "The Forces of Decency". Once the rides were either taken down or destroyed, and Luna Park was no more, the park's memory faded.
According to HistoryLink.org, "Approximately once a decade, the tides of Elliott Bay fall back to their lowest levels. When they do, the tide flats are exposed and the rows of pilings that once supported Luna Park are brought to light, causing new generations and new residents of the Northwest to gaze and to ponder."
Amazingly, one of the rides that still exists and operates today is the Charles Looff 1906 Carousel. Initially intended to run in San Fransisco, the ride ended up at Luna due to the earthquake and fire. Now it has a permanent home at the Zeum in San Fransisco's Yerba Buena Gardens.
You can learn more about this ride and its history by visiting: The National Carousel Association-USA.org