Hook & Ladder
           Restoration

The kiddie Hook and Ladder ride from Idora was manufactured in 1950 by Pinto Brothers of Coney Island, New York.

In January of 1949, Idora underwent a change in ownership. The first major change the new owners made was to close the salt water swimming pool. For the 1949 and 1950 seasons the pool was used as Motor Boat Lagoon. In the fall of 1950 the water was drained and the pool filled in. This was the first step in the most extensive renovation in Idora's history. By the spring of 1951, Kiddieland had risen on the site of the swimming pool. The Hook and Ladder ride was one of the first to be installed.

Following are pictures taken of the restoration process by the Idora Park Museum Committee. This process has been a labor of love and we hope to have it up and running for the 2001 season at Conneaut Lake Park.

Update March 9, 2001:  We have picked up the remaining trucks and two of them went back. We've got all but three trucks ready to run.

Update April 26, 2001:  All nine trucks are now finished! We will be taking the remaining seven up to Conneaut Lake Park May 11, 2001.

The Hook and Ladder ride was discovered in a warehouse in Erie PA and purchased by Conneaut Lake Park.

Five of the trucks were brought to our home in Ohio where we started the long task of refurbishing them.

We had to strip numerous layers of red paint. Sometimes it was like an archeological dig. If the paint came off just right, we would find numbers and even headlights painted on the fronts.

Most of the time, it took a lot more than stripping paint. Some of these trucks literally fell apart because of rotting wood.

The hoods and fenders are aluminum and are still useable. Most of the wood on the rest of the trucks has to replaced because of rot.

It was a very good feeling when we finally started putting them back together and painting. Each truck takes an average of three weeks of spare time to complete.

One little piece of Idora Park restored to its former glory!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the following people for their time, talents and energy. Without them, this would not have been possible:

Gary Poage

Frank Goetz

Tom Rumsey and CTM Integration

Dave Huffman of D&L Custom Vans

Dave Miller of Salem Heating and Air Conditioning

©2001-2002 Idora Park Museum Committee
All rights reserved
Background image courtesty of Bob Dyce

Please, do not use any images from this site without the express permission of IPMC.

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