Monday, June 5, 2017

The deserted Boblo Island Amusement Park of Ontario



For almost 100 years, Boblo Island Amusement Park was known as Michigan's Coney Island, even though it was built on Canadian land. The amusement park opened in 1898 in Ontario's Bois Blanc island, above the mouth of the Detroit River. Its name, Boblo, is an abbreviation of 'Bois Blanc'. 

The island was accessible by boats departing from from Amherstburg, Ontario as well as from Detroit. SS Ste. Clair and the SS Columbia excursion boats, two steamers known as Bob-Lo Boats, served the island for more than 85 years. 

On the island, the most popular attractions were The Nightmare, Falling Star, Wild Mouse, Sky Streak, and Screamer rides, a Ferris wheel, a zoo, and a carousel. Visitors would move between different rides via a railway that the park constructed. Henry Ford financed a dance hall which at the time was the second largest in the world, holding 5,000 dancers at full capacity. 

Boblo Island Amusement Park closed down in 1993 after 95 years of operation. Most of its old fashioned structures were torn down and the island was renovated for luxury homes. A few remains bring back memories from when Boblo was an island of joy. 



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