Video: Take A Trip To Chicago's Long Lost Greatest Amusement Park

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 23, 2017 5:26PM

I make jokes about how old I am, but even I don't remember the fabled land known as Riverview Amusement Park.

Opened in 1904, Riverview was located at the intersection of Belmont and Western and was, at the time, the world's largest amusement park. I wasn't really aware it existed until I was leafing through an antique shop as a kid, and came across a poster-sized map of the Riverview grounds. Once I saw the address I was stunned to see it existed well within Chicago city limits at one point.

In the video above, Tony Lossano—in all his VHS glory—takes you on a tour of the park's history, including a visit with Ed Fruh, who has been rebuilding the rides and attractions at Riverview as miniature models in his home. Don't worry, there's plenty of footage of the actual park as well. It's an amazing "return to Riverview" and makes us really pine for an experience we never had a chance to have.

While Riverview closed in 1967, one piece of it still lives. You can still ride The Riverview Carousel, which was introduced to Six Flags over Georgia in 1972.

[h/t Coudal]