Olentangy Park, from Alex Campbell
Transportation expert and collector Alex Campbell sent along some Olentangy Park pictures. Though you may or may not have already seen these pictures, Alex’ knowledge is invaluable. From Alex:
This is the streetcar and pedestrian entrance to Olentangy Park. Olentangy Park was purchased by the Columbus Railway & Light Co. in 1897 as a way to generate business. The high Street line ended at Arcadia. The North High Streetcar house was on the northeast corner of Arcadia and High Streets and directly across the street this park entrance. The Clintonville–Worthington streetcar line terminated at Arcadia as well hence the need for the pedestrian walkway.
Glenn Echo ravine runs east-west along the north side of the ravine. Crossing under the bridge is a north-south ravine that paralleled high Street. More on the north-south ravine on Wednesday.
The single track branches into two tracks, perhaps a loop. There is a loading platform beyond the arch. The single track into the park is going to be unsatisfactory as you will see on Wednesday.
In 1907 the streetcar entrance to Olentangy Park was rebuilt. The ravine paralleling High Street was filled in eliminating the bridge. The inbound and outbound cars no longer had to share a single track. The Clintonville-Worthington visitors still had to walk in using the gravel path to the left of the entrance. (The CR&L Co was wide gauge and the Worthington line standard gauge.)
In 1899 the CR&L Co. sold the park to the Dusenbury brothers who transitioned it from a nature park to an amusement park. The brothers also built a 2248 seat theater.
When the theater let out the surge of streetcar customers must have required tens of streetcars. If they packed the cars with 60 riders each they would need 37 streetcars. That may be the reason the company made the improvements to the park streetcar loop and terminal.
At 5 cents a ride they would have collected $112, good money since they paid so little to their employees.
Alex also put together a super helpful Olentangy Park Chronology as an aid in dating all the Park photos that have shown up in the last few years. (Ohiomemory.org has a number of good Park photos.) Many of the chronology dates came from websites–so they are susceptible to error. Still it does give a sense of the life cycle of the park.
[ca1900 photo from the Christopher Trumbull Collection, by way of Alex Campbell. Postcard postmarked 1909 from the Alex Campbell Collection. Chronology courtesy of Alex Campbell]
Tags: Olentangy Park