Great Grandpa Roy was a Partner in the Concourse Amusement Company

According to an article in the February 27, 1925 issue of the Sandusky Register, my Great Great Grandpa Leroy J. Parker was one of the partners in the Concourse Amusement Company. The company was incorporated on February 25, 1925, for $100,000 by J.B. Sutton, David R. Steinemann, Gust Ebert, George A. Singler, and Leroy J. Parker. The purpose of the company was to be: the operation of amusement devices at resorts. To the best of my knowledge, the only resort with which the Concourse Amusement Company was associated was Cedar Point. From 1925 to 1955 the Concourse Amusement Company operated such attractions as Noah's Ark, the Cyclone, the Rockets, and the Caterpillar. Until the U.S. Government bought out Grandma and Grandpa's farm in Perkins Township in 1941, they would work on the farm, making sure to get the crops in, and the animals fed, but then they would go on over to Cedar Point to work at the attractions. The main ride that my mom spoke of was Noah's Ark. It was a fun house,with an uneven floor, and the back ends of the animals were moving, while their heads peeked out of the Ark. Grandma Ada often sold tickets outside Noah's Ark. I've been told that Grandpa Roy and his friends often played cards in a room in the lower level of Noah's Ark.

All the Parker grandchildren went to Cedar Point to have fun on the rides and the beach, and then at night they got to spend the night at Grandma and Grandpa's cottage. Many of the concessionaires had modest cottages on the Cedar Point peninsula at that time. There were plenty of trees and picnic grounds close by the cottages. The G.A. Boeckling steamer, named for the president of the Cedar Point Pleasure Company, picked the grandchildren up in downtown Sandusky. Besides having fun at Cedar Point, a ride on the Boeckling was a wonderful treat, and it helped to beat the heat on a hot summer day.

Pictured below are some snapshots of several members of the extended Parker family in 1954, towards the end of the existence of the Concourse Amusement Company. When relatives came to visit during the summer months, going to Cedar Point was a high point!

Note: This post was written for the 120th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, hosted by Creative Gene. Some of the information and images have appeared in previous blog posts at the Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay.