Conneaut Lake Park - pictures by Joel A. Rogers

Conneaut Lake Park
Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania

Opening in 1892 as Exposition Park, this small park on the shore of Conneaut Lake changed its name to Conneaut Lake Park in 1920. In 1992, the park owners announced they had decided to auction off most of the rides and change the park to a water park. In order to save the park, local businessmen purchased most of the rides at auction as well as the park property. They renovated the park and kept it open, but operating losses caused Conneaut to be closed for the entire 1995 season. The park was purchased by Gary Harris, but he gave the park to the Conneaut Lake community when he was convicted of tax evasion. The park, now operated as a public trust, struggled over several years as various Board Members either resigned or were kicked off the Board of Trustees overseeing the park. The park didn't have sufficient money to open in 2007 and 2008. In the next three years, the Dreamland Ballroom was destroyed by fire, the bowling alley collapsed, and the Kiddieland restrooms burned in an apparent arson attack. In 2013, a fire destroyed the dockside restaurant and the beach front building. On a positive note, the Blue Streak reopened at the end of the 2010 season after several years of dormancy. The park went bankrupt in 2014 and a number of rides were sold, but the park has recently rebounded slightly with the addition of a couple of new rides and the reopening of the water park. Despites many hardships and much drama, the park has been open for over 125 seasons!

Blue Streak

Little Dipper

Toboggan