Why Coney Island is Totally Corrupt

Step into the twisted past of Coney Island, New York, as we uncover the shocking corruption and fascinating tales that have plagued this legendary amusement hub for centuries. From its early beginnings under Native American control to its rise as a playground for thrill-seekers, this video delves deep into the dark underbelly of Coney Island's history.

Chapters:
00:00 - Introducing Coney Island, New York
00:31 - Coney Island under Native American control
00:51 - The early development of Coney Island
03:11 - Coney Island’s corrupt Politician (John 'Boss' McKane)
05:37 - Sea Lion Park
06:58 - Paul Boyton’s Water Chutes
05:15 - Coney Island’s Insanely corrupt property laws
06:28 - The Downfall John 'Boss' McKane
07:13 - The Rise of Coney Island Rollercoasters | The Fearless Frogman
08:34 - Paul Boyton’s Water Chutes | Coney Island’s First amusement park
09:05 - The Flip-Flap Railway - The First Looping Rollercoaster
10:07 - The Grand opening of Paul Boyton’s Water Chutes
12:02 - Steeple Chase Amusement Park
13:19 - Why Coney Island is not an island
13:40 - How Steeple Chase Park transformed the amusement park industry
14:23 - Luna Park (formerly Astroland)
15:06 - Why Coney Island amusement parks don’t last
15:47 - When Astro Tower almost collapsed
17:11 - Coney Island during the global shutdown
18:12 - Coney Island in the modern day

IT’S HISTORY - Weekly Tales of American Urban Decay as presented by your host Ryan Socash.

» CONTACT

» DISCLAIMER

» CREDIT
Scriptwriter - Neve Brown, Bex Weinstein, Imana Schoch, Gregory Back,,
Editor - Piotr Kubiak, Karolina Szwata, Kamil Krawiec, Sebastian Ripoll, Patrycja Klimczuk, Karolina Pleskot, Oliwia Tracz,
Host - Ryan Socash

» NOTICE
Some images may be used for illustrative purposes only - always reflecting the accurate time frame and content. Events of factual error / mispronounced word/spelling mistakes - retractions will be published in this section.

[ericdudley]

My mom got stuck on the parachute jump ride at Coney Island in the late 50s as a kid. She kept the newspaper article and loved to break it out and show us. I still love seeing it and Coney Island to this day, having been born and raised in Brooklyn!

[gregkamer]

I grew up in Brooklyn, NY. I remember visiting Coney Island in the late '50's, early 60's. To my young eyes, it was an absolute fantasy world. Think of downtown Las Vegas, with all the casino lights and sounds.... This was Coney Island back then. Since reaching adulthood I've gone back a few times, but it has lost all it's shine and glitter. Except of course for the original Nathan's Hot Dog Stand. Though their prices are considerably higher then in my youth, their dogs are still the best in the world.

[albertowen]

THANK YOU FOR THIS UPLOAD! I remember my late grandfather telling about landing his first job at the old Luna Park back in the early 1920s. He said he saw many changes over the years...he got into shipbuilding by 1930 and held his sane job until 1976 when he retired at age 72. He died in 1985 at age 81. His stories were so grand. Thank you, Ryan. You brought back some great memories to me.

[steves]

This is very nostalgic for me. I grew up a few blocks from Coney in Brighton Beach in the 50’s & 60’s. Steeplechase Park was great. You didn’t mention the Parachute jump whose skeleton still stands today as a monument to the great old days. I had many friends who lived in the gated community at the western tip, Sea Gate. But other things that attract people are Nathan’s Famous and the Brooklyn Cyclones baseball team. And obviously the beautiful beach, ocean and boardwalk that are unique to NYC. I think your title is a little clickbait, as Coney Island hasn’t had that corruption for 90 years. But great video.

[bobd]

Coney island was home base for the fictional Warriors gang in the 1979 movie "The Warriors" The final scenes were shot on the beach. The best line of the whole movie was after a night of intense combat to get home the gang leader said "We fought all night to get back to this?" Perfect irony. Good job on the video. What started out as an isolated retreat from the city is now crowded by high rises.

[beefyz]

I think Coney as i remembered it, Steeplechase Park, closed in 1964. Steeplechase was my "reward" for getting a good report card at the end of each school year. We only we into Steeplechase. I got the usual smiley face disc of 12 rides. Afterwards, Nathan's right outside the park, and alongside them was the ice cream concession & next to them, watermelon slices on ice. We would leave for the park from Richmond Hill Queens around 2pm or so and stay until dusk. I remember one particular thing about that, at 72, still burned into my mind as if it happened yesterday. Upon leaving the peninsula, we'd get on the Belt heading back towards Queens and this particular early night I looked back towards Coney and saw the entire Amusement area right after they put on all the flashing & night lights. It was something a youngster of 8 or so would long remember. Coney didn't die out because of corruption. It died because of the change of neighborhood, a lack of adequate parking, and the failure of investment for a sustainable future.

[vincenthprice]

Born in Manhattan raised in Brooklyn it was a tradition for me and my family to go to Coney Island each summer season even to fish off the pier had so much fun there as skid and young adult

[valmarsiglia]

02:45 That illustration of the burning elephant hotel needs to be on a heavy metal album cover.

[williamsanphy]

I grew up going to Coney Island, I lived a few miles away in Marine Park. When I was a kid the old Astroland was still open but you could see how old it was, I was excited when they opened the new Luna Park. Coney Island seems to be getting better from what I remembered when I lived there but I left New York 3 years ago

[donaldleider]

I’m 67 years old. Born and raised on Neptune avenue. Coney Island was always a dump but for young kids who had the run of the whole place it was incredible!

[dragonslayer]

what a great video that hits home. i grew up going to coney island frequently to visit my rooski grandparents. warm feelings abound, not to mention how great it was to learn all this.

[Hannah.Simpson]

The image you show of the “Elephant Hotel” Postcard says Atlantic City and Margate, NJ. This is actually the Colossus’s predecessor, since nicknamed, “Lucy the Elephant.” Lucy was built in 1881, also by James Lafferty. Quite remarkably, unlike her bigger (in size I mean) little brother Colossus at Coney Island, she is still standing today and can be toured by the public. I have been and highly recommend it.

[brooklynbred]

Grew up in Brooklyn. The 80s was so fun. The Himalaya ride on Friday nights was like an outdoor night club. The DJ playing hip hop as we danced and partied.

[honiideslysses]

Hey man! The Warriors had to bop their way all the way back from Pelham Park to their home turf! Warriors...come out to

[michaelmichniak]

I can't believe you did not mention the parachute drop ride or the Wonder Wheel!!

[OlliePete]

This channel has quickly become my favourite. And the algorithm knows it.

The best thing is, because I only discovered it last week, there's so much interesting content for me to catch up on.

This is when I like the algorithm. It recognises quickly that I enjoyed this channel, so everytime I refresh my feed it suggests a different video from Its History right at the top.

Am I the only one baffled at the low view counts on this channel.

[jamesstephens]

Thanks for sharing this video on coney island. I am baby boomer and my generation in NYC grew up in the later heyday of coney island.

[icookthat]

Your narration is perfect 💯. This is definitely one of my favorite channels 👏

[clareomarfran]

I love Coney Island. I lived in Brooklyn and we used to go swimming, drop some change in the batting cages, and ride the Wonder Wheel which scared me. Also rode the Cyclone, once. And later out to see the Cyclones (Class A, Mets farm team) play baseball in that great little park by the beach.

Part of Astroland's appeal was its tackiness, almost like the old fairs. And that boardwalk from Brighton Beach was great for running.

[katherinekinnaird]

I'm 65 years young now but my 8th grade history teacher presented and taught class just about the same way that you present on this channel .I love this Channel and I got an A in that class each semester. Keep up the good work ❤😊