White Swan Amusement Park - Pittsburgh, PA
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- Опубліковано 22 гру 2024
- I found old 8mm film I shot in 1970 of one of the Pittsburgh areas amusement parks. I tired to restore as much as possible to Hi-Def. This was a summertime "must" for kids and families in the area. It was the smallest of 3 parks in the area, the others being Kennywood, that areas largest (still there today) and West View Park, the areas medium sized amusement park. As a kid, I had a re-occurring dream that "The Mouse" ride was in my back yard- all to myself. Great memories - I hope you enjoy the "summertime" walk down memory lane.
My uncle Bill always showed up for all of his nephews' and nieces' birthdays. But in May of 1969 he was out of town when I had my tenth birthday. About a month later, shortly after summer vacation started, he showed up in the middle of the week. He came to apologize for not making it for my birthday. He asked me if it was okay if he took me to White Swan Park. Of course, she thought that it was great. So, Uncle Bill took me to White Swan Park. About a half hour after we got there, we ran into a childhood friend of his that he hadn't seen since they were teens. The friend was there with his son who was about eight. He and I rode the rides together while his father and my uncle caught up. Years later as an adult I got to tell my uncle that it was one of my favorite childhood memories. He told me that running into his friend after all of nearly thirty years was a great day for him as well. White Swan Park always makes me smile when I think of it.
Lord, it was such a different, such a better world then... Thanks so much for sharing ❤️
Thanks for this ❤
My dad was a policeman in Robinson township and we had picnics there too. Definitely simpler times. Our appreciation seemed greater for things for sure. Our concentration a little less pulled in a million ways. Summers seemed long.
I really miss this park. Thank you for uploading all of these memories. 😁✌️👍
I loved this, thank you! I'm only 28 and just moved here lol, very close to this location. Was doing some digging and found there use to be a theme park near by, this was the only photos I could find.
My dad was a policemen and I remember the FoP yearly family picnics they used to have at White Swan Park. I loved the mad mouse as a child! When the park closed the FoP changed the picnic venue to Kennywood....but the memories of White Swan are still with me
Patty Burkey SAME HERE ! MY DAD WAS A HOMICIDE COP. I LOVED THE MAD MOUSE TOO. I ALSO LOVED THE TRAIN MY BROTHER AND I WOULD JUMP ON AND OFF OF IT WHILE IT WAS RIDING WE WERE BAD LOL. I REMEMBER THE KEILBASI SANDWICH AND ICE CREAM THEY HANDED OUT. ALL OF THE GAMEAS...IT WAS SO FUN. I MISS IT.
My dad was a cop, I was 3 the last year the park was in operation and he made me terrified of coasters because of Mad Mouse, saying we were going to crash the whole ride. Took me until I was 11-12 to ride another one.
Worked at the park the next to last Summer, right before my last year of high school. Was a fun place to work, put some money in your pocket and ride the rides for free when it was slow.
WOW 😳 memories! Very little at the time. Wasn't there a Hilton on top of the Hill somewhere around that location too?
I really miss this place.. my teachers father owned this place..
We need something like this back
I remember it well. Thanks for the memories?
Thank you so much for this effort. This was a business owned and operated by my late Aunts and Uncles. I even worked a few summers there about the time your film was exposed. We truly don't know what we have until it's gone.
Used to work the bumber cars and slide was there the day guy lost his leg jumping off train.
Great video!...There was also similarly-sized Rainbow Gardens, circa 1948-1968, In White Oaks, PA. Ironically, its demise was also due to a proposed, and eventually abandoned, PennDOT highway project, for Route 48....USSteel, Vandergrift works, used to hold an annual day there. To us country-living folk, the place might as well have been DisneyWorld!
Thank you for this.
I remember going to the Duquesne Light picnics with my grandfather at this park.
Wow thank you for posting this footage. I was never at the park but remember going to the old airport and seeing this park in the distance. We would beg our parents to take us there but we never went. They would just say Kennywood was better. In the old days you had observation points in the airport to watch planes take off. One of these had a great far away view of the park.
Wild1995 Kennywood didn't have the same charm. It has charm but in a different way.
I can barely remember going there once or twice in the '50's, probably not long after it first opened. Used to pass by it all the time when we drove to and from the airport.
My dad was a homicide cop they had a day there once a year, what good memories. Thank you for this upload it's nostalgia.
I lived in Bridgeport Ohio near Wheeling WVa. Me dad worked at Wheeling Steel ant they would have picknicks there ann l rode that rollercoaster 100 times l think.
Dads work picnic wow what memories
Thanks for the work you put into this. Aside from your video there's VERY little media relating to this awesome bit of PGH history.
Actually having fun without cell phones and social media.
Stupid Airport!!!! I miss this park. Lots of childhood memories.
my grade school would go for the last day of school
Does anyone remember the lake there that had rental boats? No one has pictures of it. This was my favorite ride at White Swan!
I saw an arial picture of the park with the lake in it. No cool real photos though sadly.
I was a kid who lived nearby White Swan Park in the 1950’s. My older sister had a job there running the merry go round for a few summers when they first opened. I remember walking to the park in the wintertime to ice skate on the lake, which wasn’t actually open for skating and it wasn’t like an ice rink. But it was ice, and we had nowhere else to ice skate. 🤣
I helped remove the pavilion from this park and relocate and rebuild it. It's still standing today about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh.
Our parish held the altar boy picnics here.
I remember going there before I was 5 and my dad taking me on the Mad Mouse saying we were going to fly off the tracks. It took me until I was 12-13 to ride another coaster. I still hate him for that.
I remember every report card if had A that would get rewarded with so many free ride tickets!