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 ...

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

that operated from 1905 to 1909.Luna Park's luminary: Entrepreneur/roller coaster designer deserves his due
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'', 1 September 2008 Constructed and owned by Frederick Ingersoll, the park occupied a 16 acre hilly site bounded on the south by Atlantic Avenue (now Baum Boulevard) and on the west by Craig Street, and included many rides and amusements.

History

Pittsburgh's Luna Park was the first Ingersoll-owned park of the name, out of 44. The park cost $375,000 to construct. It was the first amusement park to be covered with electrical lighting (67,000 light bulbs).Jim Futrell, ''Amusement Parks of Pennsylvania'' (Flagpole Books, 2002) The Pittsburgh Luna Park, alongside its sister park, Luna Park Cleveland, were the beginnings of the world's first amusement park chain. By 1929, two years after Ingersoll's death, 44 parks of the Luna Park name were in operation around the world. Only a few of these parks still operate today, including one in

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, one in

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, and one in

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. Luna Park offered many different attractions, including

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 ...

s, picnic pavilions, a

carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

, a fun house, a

Ferris wheel A Ferris wheel (also called a big wheel, giant wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondola ...

, a

roller rink A roller rink is a hard surface usually consisting of hardwood or concrete, used for roller skating or inline skating. This includes roller hockey, speed skating, roller derby, and individual recreational skating. Roller rinks can be located in ...

, a shoot-the-chutes ride, bumper cars, a concert shell, a

dance hall Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for Dance, dancing, but usually refers to a specific type of twentieth-century venue, with dance clubs (nightclubs) becoming more popular towards the end of the century. The palais de danse was a term ap ...

, and a baby incubator exhibit. In its brief existence, the park featured regular performances of bands,

acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro d ...

ic acts, animal acts, horse riders, and aerial acts. On August 28, 1907, a 65-year-old woman died following a lion attack at Luna Park. Two lions escaped, one of whom mauled the woman near the Mystic River ride. She was badly injured and soon died of shock. Two policemen responded by killing the animal. A park attendant was also injured, and was later arrested and blamed for the incident. The cost of upgrading and maintaining his amusement parks proved to be too much for Ingersoll to handle, as he declared bankruptcy in 1908. Several of his parks were sold to others. Pittsburgh's Luna Park was closed in 1909 in the wake of the lion incident and in the face of competition from a second trolley park nearby, Kennywood Park. When Kennywood expanded its fairgrounds in 1995, its new Lost Kennywood section was inspired by its former competitor.History of Kennywood Park
It centered on a shoot-the-chutes ride. and featured a one-third-scale replica of the Luna Park entrance as a gateway to that section of the park, including an era-appropriate spelling of "Pittsburg". Aside from the aforementioned tribute at Kennywood, no other remnants of Pittsburgh's Luna Park exist, notably due to a lack of

historical markers A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, bearing text or an image in relief, or both, ...

. The site itself is currently a mixed-use property with both residential buildings and commercial businesses.

References

{{Authority control Event venues established in 1905 Buildings and structures in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania 1905 establishments in Pennsylvania 1909 disestablishments in Pennsylvania Amusement parks opened in 1905 Amusement parks closed in 1909 Defunct amusement parks in Pennsylvania History of Pittsburgh