28 OCTOBER 18, 2018 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
Continuing our ride into the history of Forest Park
BY THE OLD TIMER
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
Picking up where we left off last
week, the second part of our look
at Forest Park’s history focuses on
the timeless Forest Park Carousel and
other important cultural and athletic
venues. We’ll also take a look at the
construction of a roadway that not
only dissected the park itself, but also
had grave implications on a nearby
cemetery and future commuters.
In 1918, the Forest Park Carousel
was built by William H. Dentzel of
Philadelphia in the plant started
by his father, Gustave, in 1868. The
horses, lions and simulated leather
saddles were hand carved by Daniel
Muller, one of the greatest of the
master carousel carvers.
If you sat on one of the outside
horses, you could reach for the metal
ring that was held by a wooden arm.
If you were lucky enough to get the
brass ring, you were entitled to a
free ride.
“Tony” was considered the best
mount. It was a black horse that
moved up and down and had a canteen
and pistol. The other horses
that moved up and down were
also desirable, while the stationary
horses were not highly regarded
by the children. The swan cart was
used only by grandmothers holding
infants.
A fire destroyed the original
Forest Park Carousel in 1966. It was
replaced in the 1970s with a Muller
merry-go-round formerly used at
the defunct Lakeview amusement
park in Dracut, Mass. It is one of only
two Muller carousels still operating
in the U.S.; the other is located at
Cedar Point Amusement Park in
Sandusky, Ohio.
The carousel operated continuously
until 2008, save for a brief
period during the late 1980s when it
was closed for renovation. In 2008,
the Parks Department shut the ride
down aft er it failed to reach an agreement
with its previous operator.
The beloved ride would remain
closed for four years until the city
Parks Department selected a new
operator. To the delight of children
of all ages, the Forest Park Carousel
began spinning again in 2012, with
New York Carousel Entertainment
operating the ride on the Parks Department’s
behalf.
It figures that generations of
children will get to enjoy the Forest
Park Carousel for decades to come,
as the city Landmarks Preservation
Commission granted it landmark
status in 2013.
A PLACE TO PLAY &
REMEMBER
In 1924, the city of New York acquired
by condemnation two acres
and a house located on the south side
of Myrtle Avenue and 80th Street.
Eventually, the third and second
stories were removed and the sides
were cement coated. This became
the comfort station for Dry Harbor
Playground.
According to the city’s Parks Department,
Dry Harbor Playground
opened in 1934 and included swings,
seesaws, a wavy slide, a fl ag pole and a
Ridgewood Times archives
schoolyard gymnasium. Renovations
in the years that followed brought new
amenities including basketball courts,
a sprinkler area, a shuffl eboard court
and a baseball fi eld.
In recent years, Dry Harbor Playground
took on a greater signifi cance,
as it is the location of a memorial garden
dedicated to local victims of the
Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the
World Trade Center.
The American Day Parade Committee
— which organized a memorial
march through Glendale in 2002 for
the fi rst anniversary of the attacks
An aerial view of Forest Park; Victory Field can be seen in the foreground still being developed.
A fi refi ghter lays a fl ower at the Glendale 9/11 memorial in Dry Harbor
Playground
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