In 1893 the Broadhead family, local industrialists who owned the Jamestown Street Railway, Chautauqua Traction Company, and Jamestown, Westfield and Northwestern Railroad, purchased a parcel of swampland in Celoron, the southern point of Chautauqua Lake. Their goal was to establish an amusement park for the citizens of Jamestown and the surrounding area.
The amusement park was a great success and patrons could travel to the park via the Jamestown Street Railway, the Chautauqua Traction Company, and numerous steamships that plied the lake. The Town of Busti web site describes Celoron Park below:
“The rides included the Phoenix Wheel, acquired from the Atlanta Exposition, which was as high as a five-story building, run by electric motors, and could carry 200 persons. In addition, visitors could ride the merry-go-round and roller coaster, and find all manner of amusement at the penny arcade. The zoological garden contained all kinds of wild and domestic birds and animals. Baseball fans rooted for their favorite teams at the ball park. Babe Ruth once visited the park and proceeded to hit balls into the lake.
A fountain, lit by colored lights, stood in the center of the park, flanked by benches and an open air band shell where the Celoron Gold Bank and others played Sousa marches and other audience favorites.
Indoor entertainment was available in the large theater built over the water where high-class vaudeville acts, theater companies, and light opera companies, music companies played to standing-room-only audiences. In 1924, the ornate theater was converted to a dance hall, the first of the two Pier Ballrooms. The structure burned in June 1930, but was immediately rebuilt and gained a national reputation during the big band era when crowds from all over came to see such artists as Rudy Vallee, Cab Calloway, Stan Kenton, the Dorsey Brothers, Guy Lombardo, and Vincent Lopez.
The auditorium with its two Moorish towers served as a convention hall in the summer and as an ice-skating rink in the winter, attracting hundreds of skaters every winter. In 1896, an estimated 8,000 persons thronged the auditorium and the park to hear the “Silver-Tongued Orator,” William Jennings Bryan, deliver a Presidential campaign speech in his unique and well-known style.
Outdoor movies became a popular attraction in the 1920s. The small projection booth was in the center of the park, and the projectionist got a round of applause from the audience when he climbed into it.
The Celoron Park season opened on Memorial Day, and, if the weather was good, several thousand persons enjoyed the first picnic and rides of the summer. The 4th of July always featured special acts and fireworks, and some years drew record-breaking crowds of 20,000 to 25,000 persons.”
Cover Photo: A line of Chautauqua Traction interurbans wait at Celoron Park, NY. ebay.com