Comments on: The Ghost Town at Pleasure Beach

By: Nilma

Nilma — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 14:21:33 +0000

Kyle, That is what a ghost town is.

By: Emma

Emma — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 23:08:35 +0000

I remember driving home from a family members house with my parents when i was younger and riding on I-95 and remember seeing the amusement park lit up!!! i would always sit on the side in which we were driving so i could see it as we would drive by.
How a small memory can come back from such a site!!!

By: Alison

Alison — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 21:11:58 +0000

I went there last year with my friend. There are a few buildings left standing, and there’s things everywhere. I found the greater part of a wedding plate. It’s eerily quite, so when the wind blew open a door, we got spooked and ran. Also, someone had trashed the demolishing vehicles (though I don’t blame them).

By: Robin Keohane

Robin Keohane — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:24:58 +0000

Wow I stumbled on this site and it solved a family mystery. My wonderful grandmother who bless her was 102yrs when she passed, loved to talk about Pleasure beach. Now I have a glimpse of what she loved. Why did we let such a wonderful venue for families slip through the cracks. Bring back the old days!

By: Carol Gironda

Carol Gironda — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 17:21:18 +0000

I never got to go to Pleasure Beach, because I grew up in Brooklyn NY, but I saw the same kind of decay and neglect happen to Coney Island, which now, thankfully, is being retored to some of it’s former glory. In these hard financial times, the state of Connecticut could benefit from tourism dollars that could potentially be spent at a place like Pleasure Beach. It would take a lot of money but it has the potential to could become a smaller “Coney Island”.Instead of letting the Department of Environmental Conservation or to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have this island, the people of Connecticut should be able to enjoy this treasure! Stratford and Bridgeport should consider a “partnership” towards the development of this “forgotten, abandoned treasure”! Selling the idea to perhaps a company who could build a casino, seaside hotel and amusement park, could bring millions of tourism dollars to Connecticut, that would otherwise be spent somewhere else. Ideas to rebuild could include a “lottery ticket” designated to rebuild Pleasure Island. Long-term leases on the land to pontential companies that would build concessions, rides, etc, could help off-set the costs of rebuilding. Connecticut attraches many out-of-state tourists to our shoreline towns and casinos. Wouldn’t this make financial sense to invest in an attraction that would appeal to the family-oriented tourism sector? Connecticut needs to compete with other sourrounding states to draw the tourism dollar here! And just like what is happening at Coney Island now, a whole new generation could come and build new memories here! Contact your state representatives and let them know that Connecticut’s residents should decide the fate of Pleasure Island…not the state!

By: Donald Brelsford

Donald Brelsford — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 15:02:13 +0000

I am 54 years old and remember going on a ride that was like a “whip” with my mother. It must have been the early 60′s and I was probably about 5 or 6 years old.

By: David D. Reed

David D. Reed — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 05:07:27 +0000

This is addressed to David and his welcome comments regarding the Polka-Dot Playhouse. You got it all right, David regarding the shameful transaction of United Peoples Bank in selling the building housing the new Playhouse (now known as ‘The Playhouse on the Green’) to Forstone Capital. My name is also David, David D. Reed and I am the founder of the Polka-Dot Playhouse way back in 1954 in Stratford,Ct.I am still alive at 83 and I would hope to welcome you to join an already organized effort to ‘Take back the Playhouse’! If anyone thinks that I, as the founder of the Playhouse, intend to allow this irresponsible action of Peoples Bank to ignore the issue of the millions of Connecticut taxpayer dollars being passed on to the interest of a real estate investment group in such a disgraceful acquisition as the sale of the building housing the new Playhouse on the Green,(which was intended to be a permanent home for the Playhouse,) without my leading a campaign to oppose it, they had better be prepared to get up a lot earlier in the morning than I do, if you take my meaning! Please, everyone who reads this and cares about the survival of the Playhouse and the Arts in Bridgeport, contact me by my email, especially you, David, and help us ‘Take Back The Playhouse’! We can and we will do it, but we need everybody’s help! Join the cause! DON’T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT!

By: Anna

Anna — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:17:51 +0000

It is just so sad to see what was once such a beautiful park go into shambles. I remember walking with my parents and siblings to pleasure beach when I was younger and being able to enjoy the rest of the day at the park without any worries what-so-ever. I was always nervous when going over the bridge, but it was exciting at the same time. I do miss those days and wish that the park was still open for my new family to visit sometime. It will definately bring back lots of good memories!! Hopefully, someday it will be rebuilt back to what it used to be!

By: Charlene

Charlene — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 20:21:42 +0000

Wow : I have to try and dig up some old pics of pleasure beach. It was beautiful. I loved the carousel It was so much fun. I went there in the 50′s,60′ I remember when the old wooden bridge was there. I use to be so afraid to go over it in the car. Also remember as it started to go down hill. The dance hall, carousel all of it. The little cottages. My older sisters use to tell me that they use to go there all the time when they were young too. Plus my grandmother who passed in 1978 at the age of 84 use to tell me about all the dances and different bands that would come in there. Talk about being haunted I bet their are a few ghost out that way. I do not know when it was build but it has been around for a very long time. I would be curious to know when the 1st cottage and who built it and when the amusment park 1 st open.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 02:03:15 +0000

I grew up in the fifties in the East Side. Spent a lot of time at Pleasure Beach. My friend’s family had a cottage there. Great snapper blue fishing in August and September. Bridgeport has always been the home of incompetent politicians and corruption. Mayor McLevy once said that God put it there and he will take it away when asked by a reporter from the Bridgeport Post why the roads were not being plowed. Made spending money collecting “numbers” and paying the local cops every Friday at the Savoy Hotel. Millions of federal “urban renewal” dollars have disappeared in Bridgeport. Enough to build a bride of gold to Pleasure Beach. There is a great novel there, fact and fiction. How about we stage a demonstration one weekend. Bet we could round up thousands of folks that grew up there and enjoyed the beach, cottages, fishing pier and amusement park. The old rickety wooden roller coaster was a hoot. The operator would just let you keep riding as long as there were extra seats. The local bureaucrat are the ones creating the haunted nonsense. They stand to get very rich when the state or feds buys the property. Do not go there after dark. Some very unsavory folks are paid to scare folks away, vandalize, and make it an unpleasant place to visit.