Norumbega Park
Encyclopedia
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
located in "Auburndale-on-the-Charles
Auburndale, Massachusetts
Auburndale is one of the 13 villages of Newton, Massachusetts. It lies at the western end of Newton near the intersection of interstate highways 90 and 95, and is bisected by the Massachusetts Turnpike. Auburndale is surrounded by three other Newton villages as well as the city of Waltham and the...
" near Boston, Massachusetts. The associated Totem Pole Ballroom became a well-known dancing and entertainment venue for big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
s touring during the 1940s.
The park offered canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
ing and pedal boating
Pedalo
A paddle boat or "pedalo" is a form of waterborne transport, primarily for recreational use, powered through the use of pedals....
on the Charles River
Charles River
The Charles River is an long river that flows in an overall northeasterly direction in eastern Massachusetts, USA. From its source in Hopkinton, the river travels through 22 cities and towns until reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Boston...
, a theater, gardens, restaurants and food vendors, a penny arcade, picnic
Picnic
In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors , ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance,...
areas, a zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
and amusement ride
Amusement ride
Amusement rides are large mechanical devices that move people to create enjoyment. They are frequently found at amusement parks, traveling carnivals, and funfairs.-Notable types:*Afterburner*Ali Baba*Balloon Race*Booster...
s. Norumbega Park closed on Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
1963. The Totem Pole Ballroom closed a few months later, on February 8, 1964.
History
Norumbega Tower
The Norumbega Tower is a stone tower erected by Eben Norton Horsford in 1889 to mark the supposed location of Fort Norumbega, a Norse fort and city. It is located in Weston, Massachusetts at the confluence of Stony Brook and the Charles River.-References:...
, a stone tower that Eben Norton Horsford
Eben Norton Horsford
Eben Norton Horsford was an American scientist who is best known for his reformulation of baking powder, his interest in Viking settlements in America, and the monuments he built to Leif Erikson.-Life and work:...
had built across the river in Weston
Weston, Massachusetts
Weston is a suburb of Boston located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States in the Boston metro area. The population of Weston, according to the 2010 U.S. Census, is 11,261....
to mark the supposed Norse
Norsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
settlement of Norumbega
Norumbega
Norumbega was a legendary settlement in northeastern North America, inextricably connected with attempts to demonstrate Viking incursions in New England...
.
The park’s "Pavilion Restaurant" was managed by Joseph Lee, a skilled chef and former slave from South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. Lee had owned and operated the exclusive Woodland Park Hotel in Auburndale before taking over the restaurant at Norumbega Park.
Norumbega Park attracted hundreds of thousands of patrons each season. Its location on the Charles River meant that the park was accessible by water as well as via steam train, electric trolley, and (more so as the decades went on) automobile. Like other so-called "trolley park
Trolley park
In the United States, trolley parks, which started in the 19th century, were picnic and recreation areas along or at the ends of streetcar lines in most of the larger cities. These were precursors to amusement parks. These trolley parks were created by the streetcar companies to give people a...
s" of its era, Norumbega Park became popular with the increasingly urbanized
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
, middle class
American middle class
The American middle class is a social class in the United States. While the concept is typically ambiguous in popular opinion and common language use, contemporary social scientists have put forward several, more or less congruent, theories on the American middle class...
population who sought affordable recreation outside the city environment.
By the 1905 season, the outdoor theater at Norumbega Park was replaced by a luxurious enclosed facility called the Great Steel Theater. The new venue featured vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
acts, plays (dramas, comedies, and musicals) as well as moving pictures shown on a novel device called a "Komograph
Kinetoscope
The Kinetoscope is an early motion picture exhibition device. Though not a movie projector—it was designed for films to be viewed individually through the window of a cabinet housing its components—the Kinetoscope introduced the basic approach that would become the standard for all cinematic...
". The Great Steel Theater was the largest theater in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, and the park’s zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
was the largest in New England.
Carousel
A carousel , or merry-go-round, is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders...
, new attractions were added including bumper cars and a huge Ferris wheel
Ferris wheel
A Ferris wheel is a nonbuilding structure consisting of a rotating upright wheel with passenger cars attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, the cars are kept upright, usually by gravity.Some of the largest and most modern Ferris wheels have cars mounted on...
.
Riverside Recreation Grounds
In the early 1900s, the "Lakes District" of the Charles was the most heavily canoed stretch of water on earth. More than 5000 canoes were berthed along its 5.8 miles (9.3 km) length. Norumbega Park, along with Riverside Recreation Grounds in Weston and more than a dozen other local recreational facilities in NewtonNewton, Massachusetts
Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
and Waltham
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, was an early center for the labor movement, and major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning,...
, made the Lakes District locally famous for recreation, athletic competition and fun.
Totem Pole Ballroom
In 1930, as buses replaced the trolleys that ran along "Comm AveCommonwealth Avenue, Boston
Commonwealth Avenue is a major street in the cities of Boston and Newton, Massachusetts. It begins at the western edge of the Public Garden, and continues west through the neighborhoods of the Back Bay, Kenmore Square, Allston, Brighton and Chestnut Hill...
", the Great Steel Theater was converted into the Totem Pole Ballroom. Although more than a hundred ballrooms were advertising in the Boston newspapers, the Totem Pole was a premier facility. Over the course of three decades, the Totem Pole Ballroom featured the most celebrated entertainers in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, particularly during the swing
Swing (genre)
Swing music, also known as swing jazz or simply swing, is a form of jazz music that developed in the early 1930s and became a distinctive style by 1935 in the United States...
era. Music from the ballroom was nationally broadcast over the ABC, CBS
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
radio networks. Famous acts that appeared at the Totem Pole Ballroom include:
|
The Four Lads The Four Lads is a popular Canadian male singing quartet. In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the group earned many gold singles and albums. Its million-selling signature tunes include "Moments to Remember," "Standin' on the Corner," "No, Not Much," "Who Needs You," and "Istanbul."The Four Lads makes... Frankie Laine Frankie Laine, born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio , was a successful American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005... Frank Sinatra Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the... Harry James Henry Haag “Harry” James was a trumpeter who led a jazz swing band during the Big Band Era of the 1930s and 1940s. He was especially known among musicians for his astonishing technical proficiency as well as his superior tone.-Biography:He was born in Albany, Georgia, the son of a bandleader of a... |
Lester Lanin Lester Lanin was an American jazz and pop music bandleader.... Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk was an American musician, accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted The Lawrence Welk Show from 1955 to 1982... Ozzie Nelson Oswald George "Ozzie" Nelson was an American entertainer and band leader who originated and starred in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet radio and television series with his wife and two sons.-Early life:... Maria von Trapp Maria Augusta von Trapp , also known as Baroness Maria von Trapp, was the stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers... |
World War II era
During World War II, a US Army OrdnanceOrdnance Corps
The United States Army Ordnance Corps is a Sustainment branch of the United States Army, headquartered at Fort Lee, Virginia.-Mission Statement:The U.S...
company was stationed at Norumbega Park's restaurant. then-owner Roy Gill organized war bond
War bond
War bonds are debt securities issued by a government for the purpose of financing military operations during times of war. War bonds generate capital for the government and make civilians feel involved in their national militaries...
promotions, scrap metal
Scrap Metal
Scrap Metal were a band from Broome, Western Australia who played rock music with elements of country and reggae. The members had Aboriginal, Irish, Filipino, French, Chinese, Scottish, Indonesian and Japanese heritage. The band toured nationally as part of the Bran Nue Dae musical and with...
drives and charity events. The park’s ballfield became home to a women’s professional softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
team, the Totem Pole Belles.
Decline
The popularity of Norumbega Park and the Totem Pole Ballroom declined after the war years.Millions of automobiles, along with new and better roads, signaled the end of many local amusement parks. The Charles River became polluted
Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light...
and ill-suited for swimming or even small-craft boating.
Area residents were increasingly attracted to the mountains or the seashore on summer weekends. Nantasket Beach
Nantasket Beach
Nantasket Beach is a beach in Hull, Massachusetts. The shore has fine, light gray sand and is one of the busiest beaches in Greater Boston. At low tide, there are acres of tide pools.-Name:...
and Paragon Park
Paragon Park
Paragon Park was an amusement park located on Nantasket Beach in Hull, Massachusetts. It closed in 1984.-Rides:Among the amusement rides in operation during Paragon Park's history was a traditional-style Philadelphia Toboggan Company carousel with hand-crafted horses, a bumper cars ride known as...
replaced Norumbega Park as the most popular Boston-area location for swimming and amusement rides.
As mentioned, the park and ballroom closed in 1963 and 1964, respectively.
Reuse of site
Today the area is the site of a large Marriott hotelMarriott International
Marriott International, Inc. is a worldwide operator and franchisor of a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Founded by J. Willard Marriott, the company is now led by son J.W. Marriott, Jr...
. East of the hotel parking lot is an area of approximately ten acres known as the Norumbega Park Conservation Land. It is owned by the City of Newton and is a popular jogging
Jogging
Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running.-Definition:...
and dog-walking site with hills, meadows, woods, and access to the river.