City - NY - The Great Steeplechase 1903 Postcard

Colorized photo from 1903 Original Title: South end of Bowery, Coney Island, NY Location: Rockaway, LI This is the great steeplechase in the Summer of 1903. A fun, colorful place of interesting and unique rides, sticky candies, and all oddities. You could have your palm read, and even bathe publicly. The Steeplechase ride consisted of a row of horses, set on tracks. And people would sit on these horses and race against other people some how. It was like riding a carousel horse on a roller coaster. However no one foresaw that in just a few months time, this entire location would be burned to the ground. A fire started in a near by hotel, and due to the lack of water pressure and that the structures were all made of wood, the place was just ashes. It was rebuilt however by 1907, even better than before, and I believe it too was burned down, the park has a history of many fires. Today all that remains of this area is, well nothing at all. On the left stood a roller coaster that was torn down to make room for a vacant lot. And today, its still a vacant lot.