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Oaks Park is a small amusement park located south of downtown Portland, Oregon, U.S., near the Sellwood Bridge. Known as the "Coney Island of the Northwest" after its opening in May 1905, it is one of the oldest operating amusement parks in the country. The park includes midway games, about two dozen rides that operate seasonally, a skating rink that is open all-year, and picnic grounds. It is also home to the Herschell–Spillman Noah's Ark Carousel, a historic wooden carousel constructed in 1912. ==History== The park, conceived as an attraction timed to accompany the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition, was built by the Oregon Water Power and Railway Company and opened on May 30, 1905,〔() 〕 during a period when trolley parks were often constructed along streetcar lines. It attracted 300,000 visitors during its first season, and continued to attract about that many patrons throughout its first decade of existence.〔〔 This streetcar / trolley park had to be sold in 1925 due to change in laws preventing utility companies from owning entities not connected with their major product. In this case, the streetcar / trolley park was built to increase ridership of the Oregon City, Bellrose and Estacada trolley lines. John Cordray did purchase "The Oaks Resort" operating company (not the land) early in 1925 shortly before he passed away. Edward Bollinger purchased it from Mr Cordray's widow. Via a gentlemen's agreement, Edward and Robert Bollinger purchased the land in 1943; however, only Edward's name was on the transaction. Edward amended his Will to honor their "gentleman's agreement" with his son. This Will was not honored as Edward re-married without updating it. Robert purchased the portion that was awarded to Edward's widow. The last payment was made in 1951.〕 In the early 1920s, the park was sold to John Cordray, one of its managers. After Cordray died in 1925, Edward Bollinger, Oaks Park's superintendent, bought all but the land from Cordray's widow; Bollinger acquired the land in 1943.〔 Some of the park's earliest rides included Chute the Chutes, a chute ride that whisked the riders down a steep incline plunging into a small man-made lake; the Barrel of Fun, a funhouse which included screaming skeletons, mazes of mirrors, and dark dead-end hallways; and the Mystic River Ride, a boat ride that traveled through darkened tunnels. The park also featured a floating bathhouse anchored along the river at the south end of the park, as well as a dance pavilion, which attracted famous acts from around the world, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the John Philip Sousa Marching Band, and Patrick Conway and his World Famous Band. In 1948, the Vanport flood submerged Oaks Park for thirty days, killing a third of the bluff's oak trees, warping most of the rides, and resulting in damage to the rink that took five months to repair; the next year, Bollinger's son Robert took over after his father's death.〔 The damage prompted the owners to rebuild the rink floor on airtight iron barrels, which would float in the event of another flood; the floats worked as planned during the area's Christmas flood of 1964 and the Willamette Valley Flood of 1996.〔〔Pictures and videos are available for the 1948, 1964 on rbollinger.com. Pictures of the 1958 flood and 1962 Columbus Day Storm can be found on rbollinger.com as well.〕 For many years, three steam locomotives were kept at the park, on static display. These included Southern Pacific 4449, from 1958 to 1974; Spokane, Portland and Seattle 700, from 1958 to 1986; and Oregon Railroad & Navigation Co. 197, from 1958 to 1996. Although no longer at Oaks Park, the three locomotives all remain in Portland, and since 2012 they are residing at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center.〔 The fourth locomotive stored with these three was the No. 418 Finnish War Hero steam locomotive, from cira 1957 to 1980.〕 Two years after the Jantzen Beach Amusement Park closed in 1970, the ''Oregon Journal'' reported Oaks Park "may be on the verge of a renaissance"; three years later Sellwood's local newspaper, ''The Bee'' reported "30,000 people a month still come during the summer."〔 In 1985, the park was donated to Oaks Park Association, a not-for-profit corporation created by Robert Bollinger. The park celebrated 100 years of continuous operation in 2005, making it among the oldest in the US. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Oaks Amusement Park」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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