Please keep your arms & hands inside this ride down memory lane!
Lakeside Park: 1887-1917
Summit Beach Park: 1917-1958
Akron
This past fall, I spent a day exploring the former sites of four historic amusement parks in Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, and Kent, including some of the earliest parks in the region. As you can see from my photos and descriptions below, some of these places presently have more remaining historical elements than others, but I thoroughly enjoyed visiting each of them and learning about their pasts!
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Summit Beach Park was a noteworthy attraction in Akron for over 40 years, quickly growing to absorb the neighboring Lakeside Park. I have personally seen very few surviving Summit Beach relics, but I’m excited to share that I’ve acquired a very nice souvenir paperweight from the park! Essentially an oversized penny, one side is nearly identical to a similar one I own from Euclid Beach, other than the park’s name. However, the other side of this one is completely different, featuring an embossed image of a Native American.
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