Greater Boston has partnered with the Boston Globe to bring you a weekly feature called "From the Archives." Each Wednesday on Greater Boston, we will show one to two photos from the
newspaper's archives. This weekly feature offers a glimpse into Boston's past.
This week, we look at … summers of yesteryear.
Revere Beach was established as the country's first public beach in 1896. In this photo taken July 8, 1968, the Cyclone, then one of the largest roller coasters in the U.S., can be seen in the background. Built in 1925 by Harry Travers for $125,000, its cars traveled at a speed of 50 mph and its climb reached a 100 feet. Leo Hurley, whose father and uncle started the amusement era on Revere Beach in 1898 and who ran the last rides before the amusement park closed in 1978, said Revere Beach was "the Coney Island of Massachusetts, the playground of New England."
Photo courtesy of the Boston Globe. Click to see the full gallery.
Boston Globe archivists talk about the photo.
