Freedomland opened on June 19, 1960, in the Baychester section of the Bronx, New York. Historically themed attractions and costumed cast members were located throughout the seven sections. Designed by Marco Engineering of Los Angeles for International Recreation Corporation, it was the third and largest innovative theme park built across America to mimic Disneyland. Constructed in the shape of the United States and presenting 200 years of American history, Freedomland was intended to be both exciting and educational. In addition, Freedomland offered national and local stars, big bands, and daily entertainment events. Professional character actors also worked throughout the park. Through photographs, Freedomland: 1960-1964 takes a tour of all seven sections of Freedomland and more. Although it was open for just five seasons, the park's guests and cast members were fortunate to have their very own "Disneyland of the East."

The Story of America's Park After being fired by Walt Disney, the flamboyant C.V. Wood brought his hard-won experience as the self-titled "master builder of Disneyland" east, to a marsh in the Bronx, where in 1960 he unveiled his greatest project, a doomed theme park to tell the history of America: Freedomland. Wood's efforts to build his "Disneyland of the East," a themed collection of lands that presented epic moments in American history as thrill rides, shows, and live action, were plagued from the start by politics, cost overruns, and financial chicanery. Despite these obstacles, the park prospered--until its big-money backers (as they had planned from the start) pulled the plug and cleared the land for lucrative urban development. Through a well-researched narrative, personal and newspaper accounts, interviews, and exclusive photos, journalist and author Michael R. Virgintino presents the definitive history of Freedomland, from the people behind its creation, and the executives, entertainers, and sponsors who kept it running, to in-depth looks at each of its historically themed lands, and an analysis of the park's inevitable bankruptcy in 1964. Unlike Disneyland, the story of Freedomland does not have a happily ever after, but theme park fans will not want to miss this captivating but cautionary tale of America's park.

In Freedomland, Annemarie H. Sammartino tells Co-op City's story from the perspectives of those who built it and of the ordinary people who made their homes in this monument to imperfect liberal ideals of economic and social justice. Located on the grounds of the former Freedomland amusement park on the northeastern edge of the Bronx, Co-op City's 35 towers and 236 townhouses have been home to hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and is an icon visible to all traveling on the east coast corridor. In 1965, Co-op City was planned as the largest middle-class housing development in the United States. It was intended as a solution to the problem of affordable housing in America's largest city. While Co-op City first appeared to be a huge success story for integrated, middle-class housing, tensions would lead its residents to organize the largest rent strike in American history. In 1975, a coalition of shareholders took on New York State and, against all odds, secured resident control. Much to the dismay of many denizens of the complex, even this achievement did not halt either rising costs or white flight. Nevertheless, after the challenges of the 1970s and 1980s, the cooperative achieved a hard-won stability as the twentieth century came to a close. Freedomland chronicles the tumultuous first quarter century of Co-op City's existence. Sammartino's narrative connects planning, economic, and political history and the history of race in America. The result is a new perspective on twentieth-century New York City.

In Freedomland, Annemarie H. Sammartino tells Co-op City's story from the perspectives of those who built it and of the ordinary people who made their homes in this monument to imperfect liberal ideals of economic and social justice. Located on the grounds of the former Freedomland amusement park on the northeastern edge of the Bronx, Co-op City's 35 towers and 236 townhouses have been home to hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and is an icon visible to all traveling on the east coast corridor. In 1965, Co-op City was planned as the largest middle-class housing development in the United States. It was intended as a solution to the problem of affordable housing in America's largest city. While Co-op City first appeared to be a huge success story for integrated, middle-class housing, tensions would lead its residents to organize the largest rent strike in American history. In 1975, a coalition of shareholders took on New York State and, against all odds, secured resident control. Much to the dismay of many denizens of the complex, even this achievement did not halt either rising costs or white flight. Nevertheless, after the challenges of the 1970s and 1980s, the cooperative achieved a hard-won stability as the twentieth century came to a close. Freedomland chronicles the tumultuous first quarter century of Co-op City's existence. Sammartino's narrative connects planning, economic, and political history and the history of race in America. The result is a new perspective on twentieth-century New York City.

Billed as New York's answer to Disneyland, Freedomland opened on June 19, 1960. Designed by Marco Engineering of Los Angeles for the International Recreation Corporation, Freedomland transformed a former landfill, lowlands, and farms into an exciting theme park in the shape of the United States. Through photographs, Freedomland recalls boat rides on the Great Lakes, putting out a fire in Chicago, dancing under the stars at the Moon Bowl, or taking a train ride all the way to San Francisco. Entering Freedomland was like walking into a history book of America for both young and young at heart. Open for five seasons, Freedomland gave its guests and cast members memories that have lasted a lifetime.

"Owning a home is a cornerstone of the American Dream, the ultimate status symbol in the land of the free. But is the dream in crisis? Mass-marketed and endlessly multiplied, the suburban single-family house has become an instrument of global economic calamity and ongoing environmental catastrophe. Never before have we been so badly in need of a reassessment of our cultural values from an architectural perspective."--Back cover.

THE STORY: Ages ago, Noah and his wife took their kids to the amusement park Freedomland. After that trip, Noah's wife ran off and left him to raise the family. Now a retired professor of religion, Noah has married Claude, a sex therapist, and li

This book of essays by a noted historian of race relations is “a worthy contribution to the literature on the long struggle for racial justice” (Journal of African American History). The ongoing struggle for civil rights and social justice lies at the heart of America’s evolving identity. The pursuit of equal rights is often met with social and political trepidation, forcing citizens and leaders to grapple with controversial issues of race, class, and gender. Renowned scholar Harvard Sitkoff has devoted his life to the study of the civil rights movement, becoming a key figure in global human rights discussions and an authority on American liberalism. Toward Freedom Land assembles Sitkoff ‘s writings on twentieth-century race relations, representing some of the finest race-related historical research on record. Spanning thirty-five years of Sitkoff ‘s distingushed career, the collection features an in-depth examination of the Great Depression and its effects on African Americans, the intriguing story of the labor movement and its relationship to African American workers, and a discussion of the effects of World War II on the civil rights movement. His precise analysis illuminates multifaceted racial issues including the New Deal’s impact on race relations, the Detroit Riot of 1943, and connections between African Americans, Jews, and the Holocaust. “Over the past five decades, Harvard Sitkoff has established himself as one of the foremost voices on the black freedom struggle in the United States.” —Florida Historical Quarterly “Provides useful insight into an influential historian’s thinking on an important subject.” —Journal of Southern History “Each essay is a delight to read, with the lucid prose, careful research, and insightful analysis that make Sitkoff the excellent historian he is.” —The Historian

A Web of Disney. In this unique comparative history, newspaper journalist Chuck Schmidt traces the slender, often invisible strands that connect four monumental achievements in our pop culture: Disneyland, Freedomland, the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, and Walt Disney World.

Since the advent of the American toy industry, children’s cultural products have attempted to teach and sell ideas of American identity. By examining cultural products geared towards teaching children American history, Playing With History highlights the changes and constancies in depictions of the American story and ideals of citizenship over the last one hundred years. This book examines political and ideological messages sold to children throughout the twentieth century, tracing the messages conveyed by racist toy banks, early governmental interventions meant to protect the toy industry, influences and pressures surrounding Cold War stories of the western frontier, the fractures visible in the American story at a mid-century history themed amusement park. The study culminates in a look at the successes and limitations of the American Girl Company empire.