Roscoe Village, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Demolished 1967

My suggestion for places that no longer exist is Riverview Amusement Park in Chicago which, at the time, housed the largest downhill roller coaster in the world. I grew up in South Bend, Indiana, and we visited it yearly when I was a child, and it probably was the high point of my existence back then. Sheila H.

Riverview Park was an amusement park in the Roscoe Village neighborhood of Chicago, which opened in 1904. It was owned by George Schmidt, who owned the car dealership opposite. His son George Schmidt Jr. was famous for his Li’l Stinker, a white Sunbeam Alpine convertible decorated with painted skunks. “Big Bill” Haywood, the leader of the Industrial Workers of the World, gave an address to a crowd of almost 80,000 people at Riverview. All of the over 120 rides, including its famous wooden Bob’s rollercoaster were demolished when the park closed in 1967, with the exception of the Riverview Carousel which continues to operate at Six Flags Over Georgia. The site is now home to Riverview Plaza Shopping Center, the Belmont District Police Station, De Vry University and Richard Clark Park.