Nunley's Happyland
Encyclopedia
Nunley's Happyland was an amusement park
in the hamlet of Bethpage
on Long Island
, New York
, located at the intersection of Hempstead Turnpike (Route 24) and Hicksville Road
(Route 107). It operated from 1951 through 1977 or 1978.
Happyland was established by William Nunley, a third-generation amusement park entrepreneur, who already operated facilities in Baldwin
, Rockaway Beach
, Yonkers, and Broad Channel
, N.Y. The new park would be larger than Nunley's other locations, and unlike its predecessors, was designed from the start for year-round operation, with a heated indoor ride area. Two walls of the pavilion were designed with large movable glass panels which could be opened in warm weather or closed when it was cold. (The glass doors used were salvaged from the French pavilion at the 1939-40 New York World's Fair
.)
When Nunley announced plans for the new park, some colleagues in the amusement business questioned the wisdom of building an expensive facility at a site that seemed too far from population centers to be successful, calling the location "virtually deserted." However, the postwar suburban construction boom soon proved such doubts unfounded, as the area around Happyland was rapidly developed for housing. The park proved popular with young families who moved into surrounding communities such as Bethpage
, Levittown
, Massapequa, and Farmingdale
, and attendance in the first years of operation surpassed expectations. In a further departure from tradition, Happyland was not located near a railroad or trolley line, but was set up to cater to the motoring public, with a parking lot that initially held 400 cars.
William Nunley never got the chance to see Happyland in operation: he died in April 1951, six months before the park opened on October 12, 1951. His wife Miriam took over management of Happyland and the other family properties and remained involved in their operation, with partner Norman Russell, for years to come.
Adjacent to the main Happyland building and connected to it by a glass-walled passageway was a fast food
-style restaurant called the Jolly Roger (alternatively "Jolly Roger's"). This was built by Max Lander and owned by 2 partners (Robert Rubin and ?). Over time, confusion arose between the park and restaurant names, and it was (and remains) common to hear the entire facility referred to by Long Islanders as "Jolly Roger's Amusement Park."
The Smiley's Happyland Park was owned by Mildred Tarnow (later by her husband John Tarnow after she passed away) and the Giddens family. John Tarnow ran the park as well as kept the carousel and other rides in good mechanical shape. The Jolly Roger restaurant (which had never been known as Nunley's) changed its name to "Robin Hood" in 1974. While the name of the restaurant changed, in the restaurant, everything else was the same. The restaurant (as Robin Hood) closed in 1976, and the park followed in 1978. (Some sources say 1977.)
The site is now occupied by a strip mall.
, Schiff roller coaster
, Hodges hand cars, and a miniature train
. Inside were a Herschel "Sky Fighter," Pinto fire engine, Schiff boat ride, Pinto pony ride, and a 48-horse carousel
. (This carousel should not be confused with the one from Nunley's Baldwin facility
, which is preserved at Nassau County's "Museum Row.") Along the walls were more than one hundred items of arcade equipment: small coin-operated rides, pinball
machines, skee-ball games, and hand-cranked mutoscope
-style movie viewers.
Of particular note was an antique German mechanical organ
with elaborately carved animated musician figures who moved in time with the music. According to Mechanical Music Digest Archives, the organ was built by A. Ruth & Sohn of Waldkirch
, Germany in 1910, and was the only one of its kind. It was installed in Nunley's Rockaway facility for many years before he moved it to the Bethpage site. The organ was rebuilt in 1948 and the 78-key book music system was replaced with a Wurlitzer
-style 165 double-roll system. After Happyland closed, a collector named Gavin McDonough acquired the organ and restored it after several years' work.
Additional rides and attractions were added as the years passed, most notably a Wild Mouse-type
roller coaster and a bumper car
pavilion.
A miniature golf
course and batting cages were located directly across Hicksville Road from the main Happyland site. These remain in operation as of 2010, but it is unknown if they ever had any actual corporate connection to the park.
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
in the hamlet of Bethpage
Bethpage
*Bethphage - was a place in ancient Israel, mentioned as the place from which Jesus sent the disciples to find a donkey and a colt with her upon which he would ride into Jerusalem...
on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, located at the intersection of Hempstead Turnpike (Route 24) and Hicksville Road
New York State Route 107
New York State Route 107 is a state highway located entirely within Nassau County, New York, in the United States. It runs from Merrick Road in Massapequa to Mill Street and Brewster Avenue in the city of Glen Cove near City Hall...
(Route 107). It operated from 1951 through 1977 or 1978.
Happyland was established by William Nunley, a third-generation amusement park entrepreneur, who already operated facilities in Baldwin
Baldwin, Nassau County, New York
Baldwin is a hamlet located in the town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 24,033 at the 2010 census.Baldwin is also a station on the Babylon Branch of the Long Island Rail Road....
, Rockaway Beach
Rockaway Beach, Queens
Rockaway Beach is a neighborhood on the Rockaway Peninsula in the New York City borough of Queens. It is located on the South Shore of Long Island. The neighborhood is bounded by Arverne to the east and Rockaway Park to the west...
, Yonkers, and Broad Channel
Broad Channel, Queens
Broad Channel is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It occupies the southern portion of Rulers Bar Hassock , which is the only inhabited island in Jamaica Bay. The neighborhood stands on Big Egg Marsh, an area of fill approximately 20 blocks long and 4 blocks wide...
, N.Y. The new park would be larger than Nunley's other locations, and unlike its predecessors, was designed from the start for year-round operation, with a heated indoor ride area. Two walls of the pavilion were designed with large movable glass panels which could be opened in warm weather or closed when it was cold. (The glass doors used were salvaged from the French pavilion at the 1939-40 New York World's Fair
1939 New York World's Fair
The 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
.)
When Nunley announced plans for the new park, some colleagues in the amusement business questioned the wisdom of building an expensive facility at a site that seemed too far from population centers to be successful, calling the location "virtually deserted." However, the postwar suburban construction boom soon proved such doubts unfounded, as the area around Happyland was rapidly developed for housing. The park proved popular with young families who moved into surrounding communities such as Bethpage
Bethpage
*Bethphage - was a place in ancient Israel, mentioned as the place from which Jesus sent the disciples to find a donkey and a colt with her upon which he would ride into Jerusalem...
, Levittown
Levittown, New York
Levittown is a hamlet in the Town of Hempstead located on Long Island in Nassau County, New York. Levittown is midway between the villages of Hempstead and Farmingdale. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a total population of 51,881....
, Massapequa, and Farmingdale
Farmingdale, New York
The Village of Farmingdale is an incorporated village on Long Island within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York in the United States...
, and attendance in the first years of operation surpassed expectations. In a further departure from tradition, Happyland was not located near a railroad or trolley line, but was set up to cater to the motoring public, with a parking lot that initially held 400 cars.
William Nunley never got the chance to see Happyland in operation: he died in April 1951, six months before the park opened on October 12, 1951. His wife Miriam took over management of Happyland and the other family properties and remained involved in their operation, with partner Norman Russell, for years to come.
Adjacent to the main Happyland building and connected to it by a glass-walled passageway was a fast food
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
-style restaurant called the Jolly Roger (alternatively "Jolly Roger's"). This was built by Max Lander and owned by 2 partners (Robert Rubin and ?). Over time, confusion arose between the park and restaurant names, and it was (and remains) common to hear the entire facility referred to by Long Islanders as "Jolly Roger's Amusement Park."
The Smiley's Happyland Park was owned by Mildred Tarnow (later by her husband John Tarnow after she passed away) and the Giddens family. John Tarnow ran the park as well as kept the carousel and other rides in good mechanical shape. The Jolly Roger restaurant (which had never been known as Nunley's) changed its name to "Robin Hood" in 1974. While the name of the restaurant changed, in the restaurant, everything else was the same. The restaurant (as Robin Hood) closed in 1976, and the park followed in 1978. (Some sources say 1977.)
The site is now occupied by a strip mall.
Attractions
When Happyland opened in 1951, it had a mix of outdoor and indoor rides. Outdoors were a Schiff Ferris wheelFerris wheel
A Ferris wheel is a nonbuilding structure consisting of a rotating upright wheel with passenger cars attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, the cars are kept upright, usually by gravity.Some of the largest and most modern Ferris wheels have cars mounted on...
, Schiff roller coaster
Roller coaster
The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...
, Hodges hand cars, and a miniature train
Train ride
A train ride in an amusement park, or a municipal park setting, is a small ride consisting of a miniature train, often running on a permanent or portable track, but sometimes without any track whatsoever. In the latter case, the "trains" are simulated by connecting railroad-like cars behind an...
. Inside were a Herschel "Sky Fighter," Pinto fire engine, Schiff boat ride, Pinto pony ride, and a 48-horse carousel
Carousel
A carousel , or merry-go-round, is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders...
. (This carousel should not be confused with the one from Nunley's Baldwin facility
Nunley's
Nunley's was an amusement park located on 850 Sunrise Highway, Baldwin, Long Island, New York which operated from 1939 to 1995.-History:Nunley's Amusement Park was located on Sunrise Highway in Baldwin, NY, on the border with Freeport, New York, and operated from 1939 to 1995...
, which is preserved at Nassau County's "Museum Row.") Along the walls were more than one hundred items of arcade equipment: small coin-operated rides, pinball
Pinball
Pinball is a type of arcade game, usually coin-operated, where a player attempts to score points by manipulating one or more metal balls on a playfield inside a glass-covered case called a pinball machine. The primary objective of the game is to score as many points as possible...
machines, skee-ball games, and hand-cranked mutoscope
Mutoscope
frame|right|An 1899 trade advertisementThe Mutoscope was an early motion picture device, patented by Herman Casler on November 21, 1894. Like Thomas Edison's Kinetoscope it did not project on a screen, and provided viewing to only one person at a time...
-style movie viewers.
Of particular note was an antique German mechanical organ
Mechanical organ
A mechanical organ is an organ that is self playing, rather than played by a musician.Usually, mechanical organs are pipe organs although some instruments were built using reeds similar to those found in a harmonium. Since the 1950s, some instruments have been built using electronics to generate...
with elaborately carved animated musician figures who moved in time with the music. According to Mechanical Music Digest Archives, the organ was built by A. Ruth & Sohn of Waldkirch
Waldkirch
Waldkirch is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is known as "the place of mechanical organs", where fairground organs are manufactured and played on the streets from well-known manufacturers, such as A. Ruth and Sohn, Bruder and Carl Frei .-Sights:* The Catholic Church St...
, Germany in 1910, and was the only one of its kind. It was installed in Nunley's Rockaway facility for many years before he moved it to the Bethpage site. The organ was rebuilt in 1948 and the 78-key book music system was replaced with a Wurlitzer
Wurlitzer
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to simply as Wurlitzer, was an American company that produced stringed instruments, woodwinds, brass instruments, theatre organs, band organs, orchestrions, electronic organs, electric pianos and jukeboxes....
-style 165 double-roll system. After Happyland closed, a collector named Gavin McDonough acquired the organ and restored it after several years' work.
Additional rides and attractions were added as the years passed, most notably a Wild Mouse-type
Wild Mouse roller coaster
A Wild Mouse roller coaster is a type of roller coaster characterized by small cars that seat four people or fewer and ride on top of the track, taking tight, flat turns at modest speeds, yet producing high lateral G-forces...
roller coaster and a bumper car
Bumper car
Bumper car is the generic name for a type of flat ride consisting of several small electric cars which draw power from the floor and/or ceiling, and which are turned on and off remotely by an operator...
pavilion.
A miniature golf
Miniature golf
Miniature golf, or minigolf, is a miniature version of the sport of golf. While the international sports organization World Minigolf Sport Federation prefers to use the name "minigolf", the general public in different countries has also many other names for the game: miniature golf, mini-golf,...
course and batting cages were located directly across Hicksville Road from the main Happyland site. These remain in operation as of 2010, but it is unknown if they ever had any actual corporate connection to the park.