Palace Amusements
Previously known as Palace Merry-Go-Round | |
![]() Palace Amusements in 1997 | |
Location | Asbury Park, NJ |
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Status | Defunct |
Opened | August 17, 1888 (1888-08-17) |
Closed | November 27, 1988 (1988-11-27) |
Owner | Ernest Schnitzler (1888–1920) August Williams (1920–1939) Edward Lange & Zimel Resnick (1939–1986) Sam & Henry Vaccaro (1986–1988) |
Theme | Indoor amusement park |
Area | 0.9 acres (0.36 ha) |
Attractions | |
Total | 12 |
Roller coasters | 1 |
Water rides | 1 |
40°13′4″N 74°0′12.76″W / 40.21778°N 74.0035444°W / 40.21778; -74.0035444 | |
Built | June 1888 (1888-06) |
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Built by | Ernest Schnitzler |
Architect | Ernest Schnitzler William B. Stout |
Architectural style | Late Victorian |
Demolished | May 26, 2004 (2004-05-26) |
NRHP reference No. | 00001406[1] |
NJRHP No. | 3705[2] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | November 22, 2000 (2000-11-22) |
Designated NJRHP | October 12, 2000 (2000-10-12) |
Palace Amusements was a historical indoor amusement park in Asbury Park, New Jersey. It was built in 1888 and expanded several times over its history; but after a worsening economic situation in both Asbury and the country in the mid-1980s, it went out of business in 1988.
Several efforts were made to save the structure, including its hand-carved carousel, murals and decorations, but in 2004, after an independent structural inspection, the building was deemed unsafe (it had already been damaged in several areas) and was ordered demolished. A local grassroots organization was able to save several pieces from the building, including the famed Tillie mural.[3][4]
Bruce Springsteen
The Palace is mentioned in 1974 Bruce Springsteen hit "Born to Run" in the lines "Beyond the Palace, hemi-powered drones / Scream down the boulevard".[5][6]
See also
References
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form" (PDF). National Park Service. Department of the Interior. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
- ^ "Palace Amusements Building (ID#3705)" (PDF). New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Monmouth County. NJ DEP Historic Preservation Office. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
- ^ Karen DeMasters (April 2, 2004). "Asbury Park Building Will Vanish, but Its Grin Will Remain". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
- ^ "Weird NJ remembers forgotten faces of Palace Amusements, Asbury Park". Asbury Park Press. March 9, 2014.
- ^ "'Springsteen' Park Said Historic". Associated Press. October 19, 2000. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
- ^ Jordan, Chris. "Palace Amusements and Tillie rise from the grave". Asbury Park Press. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
External links
Media related to Palace Amusements at Wikimedia Commons
- Palace Amusements Museum
- Photos of the now-demolished Palace Amusements
- Save Tillie
- v
- t
- e
- Asbury Lanes
- Empress Hotel
- Georgies
- Metropolitan Hotel (demolished)
- Mrs. Jay's
- Paradise
- The Saint
- The Stone Pony
- Arburtus Cottage
- Asbury Park Convention Hall
- Palace Amusements (demolished)
- Paramount Theatre
- Steinbach–Cookman Building
- Trinity Church
- Winsor Building
- Asbury Park Press (headquartered in Neptune)