Luna Park was an
amusement park
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...
that was in operation in
Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, from 1907 to 1911. Located on the plot of a former picnic grove at the corner of 51st and Halsted Streets, it was owned by an investment group led by
boxing promoter
A promoter works with event production and entertainment industries to promote their productions, including in music and sports. Promoters are individuals or organizations engaged in the business of marketing and promoting live, or pay-per-view ...
James "Big Jim" O'Leary (son of
Mrs. O'Leary of
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...
fame).
[Jazz Age Chicago - Urban Leisure from 1893 to 1945: Smaller Amusement Parks](_blank)
/ref>[Laren Rabinovitz, ''For the Love of Pleasure: Women, Movies, and Culture in Turn-of-the-Century Chicago'' (Rutgers University Press 1998) ] A trolley park
In the United States, trolley parks, which started in the 19th century, were picnic and recreation areas along or at the ends of streetcar lines in most of the larger cities. These were precursors to amusement parks. Trolley parks were often cre ...
occupying only ten acres, Luna Park was smaller than most of the other Chicago amusement parks of the era (most notably Riverview Park and White City; in fact, Riverview Park was the largest amusement park in existence at that time).[Perry Duis, ''Challenging Chicago: Coping With Everyday Life, 1837-1920'' (University of Illinois Press, 1998) ]
Attractions included a midway, a ballroom
A ballroom or ballhall is a large room inside a building, the primary purpose of which is holding large formal parties called ''balls''. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions and palaces, especially histori ...
, a roller coaster
A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...
, a roller skating
Roller skating is the act of travelling on surfaces with roller skates. It is a recreation, recreational activity, a sport, and a form of transportation. Roller rinks and skate parks are built for roller skating, though it also takes place on s ...
rink, concession
Concession may refer to:
General
* Concession (contract) (sometimes called a concession agreement), a contractual right to carry on a certain kind of business or activity in an area, such as to explore or develop its natural resources or to opera ...
s, live entertainment (including vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
and boxing
Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...
), and a restaurant.
- Harvard Press, 1913: Ruling of an appeal of a case involving Luna Park, Chicago, and a concessionaire who declared bankruptcy in 1908. Case was filed in 1909, ruled and appealed in 1910, with the ruling of the appeal in 1912... the year after Luna Park itself was shut down.
Initially popular (averaging 5000 patrons a day in its peak), attendance declined in light of the increasing competition from other Chicago-area amusement parks. In 1910, management temporarily closed the park in response to flagging attendance. The park was reopened in 1911 as O'Leary attempted to find new ownership to no avail.
In 1912, most of the attractions were removed; the remaining structures were converted into a large
food market hall.
In 1916, the grounds were sold to
real estate developer James H. Milligan for the building of single-family houses.
References
Defunct amusement parks in Illinois
History of Chicago
1911 disestablishments in Illinois
1907 establishments in Illinois
Amusement parks opened in 1907
Amusement parks closed in 1911
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