Playland Park was an

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

located in

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, St. Joseph County, Indiana, on the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2020 United S ...

. It was bounded by the St. Joseph River, Ironwood Drive, and Lincolnway East.

History

Playland Park started as a

trolley park Trolley may refer to: Vehicles and components * Tram, or trolley or streetcar, a rail vehicle that runs on tramway tracks * Trolleybus, or trolley, an electric bus drawing power from overhead wires using trolley poles ** Trolleytruck, a trolleyb ...

in 1880, originally called Springbook Park. By 1912 it had a Casino, an exhibition hall and a

roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...

. In 1916 a race track was added. In 1924 Pete Redden became manager of the park. He held a contest and the park was renamed "Playland Park" and the roller coaster was renamed the "Jack Rabbit". Besides being an amusement park, the park also had a baseball field. The

South Bend Benders South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...

minor league teams and

South Bend Blue Sox The South Bend Blue Sox was a women's professional baseball team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. A founding member, the team represented South Bend, Indiana, and played their home games at Bendix Fi ...

of the

All-American Girls Professional Baseball League The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was a professional women's baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley which existed from 1943 to 1954. The AAGPBL is the forerunner of women's professional league sports in the Uni ...

played most of their games there. A NASCAR race was held on track July 20, 1952. The race was won by Tim Flock with Lee Petty second. Herb Thomas won the pole. The grandstand also had horse racing and fireworks. The park hosted the 4-H Fair for many years. The park had a dance hall that hosted many bands such as

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

and

Ozzie Nelson Oswald George Nelson (March 20, 1906 – June 3, 1975) was an American actor, director, producer, screenwriter, musician, composer, conductor and bandleader. He originated and starred in ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'', a radio and tel ...

drawing 2,000 to 3,000 people on the weekends. In 1961, Playland Park closed and was turned into a lighted par-3 golf course. That closed after 40 years. It is now student housing for

Indiana University South Bend Indiana University South Bend (IU South Bend) is a public university in South Bend, Indiana. It is the third largest and northernmost campus of Indiana University. History Indiana University began offering classes in South Bend in 1922 as an ...

. Only the concrete from the grandstands remains from the park.

External links

* * NASCAR Race July 20, 1952 inf

* NASCAR Race July 20, 2915 Top 10 * When NASCAR ran in South Bend from South Bend Tribun
Springbrook - Playland Park
at Bygone Places Of The Monon * {{Amusement parks in Indiana 1880 establishments in Indiana Amusement parks in Indiana Defunct amusement parks in the United States NASCAR tracks Sports venues in South Bend, Indiana 1961 disestablishments in Indiana