Farewell To Kiddieland

This weekend, the famous and beloved amusement park Kiddieland will close for good. After 80 years in business, a family rift has finally caused the unthinkable demise of the establishment.

A product of the Great Depression era, Kiddieland was originally a small venture started by Arthur Fritz in 1929. He purchased six ponies and offered rides for parents and kids suffering through hard times and in need of an escape.

Throughout the decades, the park expanded and added the carousel, train, Roto Whip, ferris wheel, the Little Dipper coaster, bumper cars, log flume, and a swinging pirate ship.

And while the neighborhood surrounding the park became dilapidated and undesirable, Kiddieland remained an unwavering strong attraction; a diamond in the rough.

It wasn't until recent years that the amusement park first saw signs of trouble that threatened its existence. While other local parks of the past disappeared due to suburban development, and competition from larger parks, Kiddieland was threatened from within by the very family that owned it.

One part of the family owns the park itself, and the other side owns the land on which it sits. Those that claim ownership of the land, wanted to close the park and redevelop the site for other use and profit heavily from that, while those that owned the park obviously only desired to keep it open and operating for the public's enjoyment.

One side sued the other, numerous court battles ensued, and eventually one side was left with no choice; the park would have to close and the attractions would either have to be sold off or destroyed.

Since it was announced earlier in the year that Kiddieland would close for good at the end of this season, attendance has skyrocketed due to all those wishing to visit the park one last time for nostalgia's sake, or bring their children to share in the one-of-a-kind experience.

Normally, the park receives about 1,000 visitors a day after the Labor Day weekend, but due to the eminent closure, the park has received an overwhelming average of 5,000 visitors almost daily.

Now, I obviously haven't been to Kiddieland in almost 15 years, and what memories I have of my visits there remain somewhat vague. I do, however, specifically still remember that my aunt would take me and my sister there a lot and my favorite attraction of all was the train that took you on a ride around the perimeter of the park.

I always liked all things trains when I was younger, from model sets to the real deal, and to ride on that thing at Kiddieland must have felt like a dream come true back then.

But we all grow up and sadly let things fall out of favor. It's not until something like that from your childhood disappears do you really start to look back and smile at the simpler, happy times and long to experience it once more. Kiddieland will always have a place in my heart and will be missed, rightfully so.

And I hope that the bitter, greedy side of the family that owns and wants to redevelop the land, for probably commercial use, has an extremely difficult time in doing so and loses plenty of money during the process.

With this current economy, I'm sure granting that last wish won't be too hard.