1. Oral History Archive
  2. Oral History Archive

Oral History Archive

Connie Scacciaferro
Memories of going to Coney Island Beach as a child in the 1930's and a teenager in the '40s
Jewel Hough
Working at Coney Island's Deno's Wonder Wheel Park for 18 Years
Ahmed Hussain
Memories of a boyhood helping out in his family's store in Coney Island and learning to play pinball
Rob Weissbard
Milton Berger's nephew describes adventures at Steeplechase Park with Coney's great showman
Mr. Luong
Coney Island homeowner recalls fleeing Vietnam with his family in 1981 and settling in New York City
Ho Cheung Li
Mermaid Avenue pharmacist dispenses news and advice to new immigrants
Beth Allen
Beth Allen recounts her origins as an "incubator baby" in Dr. Martin Couney's sideshow
Gerard Thornton
A childhood watching boats in the Coney Island Channel led to the founding of a tugboat company
Delbert Prince
Author of two books about Coney Island basketball
Toby Deligdish
Girlhood memories of visiting Coney Island in the 1930s and '40s
Norman Finkel
Boyhood memories of visiting Coney Island in the 1930s and getting lost on the beach
Alexander Vindman
Retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel who emigrated from Ukraine to Brighton Beach as a child
Arthur Galka
Washington Baths pool and the scary movies at the Mermaid Theater
Joe Miller
"Best of the Best" slugger at the Coney Island Batting Range
Jeffrey Brettler
Working the Rides: From the streets of Coney Island to the war in Vietnam
Angbeen Saleem
A poet and roller coaster lover describes her weekly ritual of riding the Coney Island Cyclone
Josh Wolfe
Chairman of Coney Island Prep on growing up in Coney Island and the charter school's first 15 years
Betya Shenker
Memories of World War II in Ukraine and immigrating to Southern Brooklyn