The Rollercoaster on top of the Hill: Puritas Spring Park

Growing up, my go-to places for summertime amusement were Cedar Point, Geauga Lake, Sea World Ohio (before they closed), and Memphis Kiddie Park. Those were the only parks I knew of, but later, I learned Ohio had more amusement parks in my area. One of these parks has faded into obscurity, with only small homage reminders near the once-occupied lot. Throughout the years of driving through Puritas Road up from the Rocky River Reservation, I never realized that there was once an amusement park. Now occupied by condos and townhomes, Puritas Spring Park was a small amusement park that overlooked the hillside of the reservation. 

When the park opened in 1900, there weren’t amusement park rides; instead, there was a dance hall and picnic areas. It was common for late 19th-century and early 20th-century amusement parks to have mainly dance halls and picnic areas. It would not be until 1922 after John Gooding had taken over the park, that rides would be added.

The roller coaster, the Cyclone, would eventually be added in 1927. On YouTube, someone recreated the Cyclone coaster to give people an idea of the layout. A couple of comments in the section mention one section of the track being a little off, so take it with a grain of salt. The coaster would take advantage of the natural land and the coaster hill would drop 87 feet down the ravine. So far, this is the closest recreation we have of what the roller coaster ride was like. It allegedly gained infamous notoriety for causing some injury to a few riders who rode it. 

In 1958, the park was forced to close its doors due to financial difficulty. Less than a year later after it closed, a fire broke out. It dashed any chances of the park reopening again. The source of the fire remains unknown, whether it was an accident or arson. 

Today, there are small reminders of the park that was once there. The townhouse development is called Puritas Park, after the site’s former occupant with the old amusement park gate logo. 

Cyclone is listed on the Smithsonian Institution's of Great Lost Rollercoasters. Over the years, there were also some tracks from Cyclone decaying in the wooded hillside.  I attempted to find the remaining tracks but needed help finding them during my visit. I did see one wood, though, with a couple of long screws sticking out. I am curious to know if it is part of the roller coaster. There are plans for me to go back there and look again. If I find something, I will write a follow-up article on this. 

Link: 

Cyclone Recreation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD2PV6z5ADo