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World’s Fair of 1893, Roller Coaster, too
In historical accounts of the World's Columbian Exposition, the story of the Ferris Wheel has almost eclipsed that of another unusual mechanical and quite successful Midway attraction: Thomas Rankin's Snow and Ice Railway. Essentially a roller coaster running on an ice paved track, it was among the earliest coasters constructed in the United States. It was built on a tract of land 60 by 400 feet upon the southern portion of the Midway Plaisance near Lexington (later renamed University) Avenue in Chicago and consisted of a loop with one high point of elevation. The ice was manufactured by machinery on site. There were two trains, each of which was made up of four connected bobsleds with six seats apiece. The trains would be drawn by a cable to the high point, then freed and allowed to slide down the inclines and around the loop. At the close of the Exposition, the Snow and Ice Railway was moved to Coney Island in Brooklyn but direct sunlight and insufficient refrigeration quickly closed the ride. Afterwards, the comment made was, "...It was not the first idea to be duplicated from Chicago at Coney Island. It would seem that if certain entrepreneurs had their way, the complete Midway Plaisance would have been moved to Brooklyn." This is but one example of the influence the 1893 Columbian Exposition had on future expositions, amusement parks and American cultural life, generally. |
http://www.zazzle.com/julier*
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