herr2ck: Idyll on the Olentangy

Photos of site/OV from March-April 2026.

Olentangy Park, the northern partner of the likewise-demolished Indianola Park, was a small amusement park in Clintonville. It was sited at the northern terminus of the Columbus Street Railroad Company’s North High Street line. The park has been gone for almost 90 years, but it is an interesting example of Clintonville’s early history.

Olentangy Park was located in the Clintonville neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. The site was bordered by Tulane Road to the north, North Street to the south, High Street to the east, and the Olentangy River to the west.

History

Picturesque view of the river circa 1910. (Wikimedia)

Olentangy Park’s site, now a developed residential neighborhood and commercial area, was an idyllic, forested site through the late 19th century. Visitors swam in the river and picnicked along its banks. In 1880, the site was purchased by Robert M. Turner, who built a more formal picnic grounds and swimming area that was completed in 1881. Turner then constructed a bar, which became known as either the “Olentangy Villa” or just “The Villa.” It operated for over a decade at that scale, with some small rides such as a carousel being added.

The well-known castle-like entrance to Olentangy Park, which streetcars traveled through. (Columbus Navigator)

In 1896, Turner’s park was purchased by the Columbus Street Railway Company, which sought to open an amusement park at the end of their streetcar line (a “trolley park”) and in doing so increase weekend ridership, while also combating the shady reputation of the tavern and its late-night activities. It was renamed “Olentangy Park” after a contest won by John R. Cook of West 6th Avenue. The park opened on June 12, 1896. Admission either came with the streetcar fare or cost 5c for pedestrians and cyclists. Arc lights and smaller incandescent lights were added, along with a power plant that exclusively powered Olentangy Park. The earliest attractions in the newly renamed park included the hexagonal wooden Dancing Pavilion, the earliest merry-go-round in Columbus, and a boathouse that rented out canoes and boats with electric motors known as “Naphthas.” Evidently, this scheme worked, as streetcar frequency had to be increased to once every three minutes instead of once every ten minutes due to the high demand.

1896 view of the Dancing Pavilion. (olentangypark.com)

More changes in the next couple years under the Columbus Street Railway Company’s ownership included the installation of kinetoscopes (a Gilded Age predecessor to the motion picture) in 1897, as well as new bowling alleys in 1898 due to flooding destroying the originals. Flooding was a problem for the park, as it flooded roughly once a year and often caused severe damage to the wooden buildings.

Olentangy Park expanded in 1899, with the incorporation of the Olentangy Park Company and the Columbus Street Railway Company transferring ownership to Joseph W. Dusenbury and Eli West. (Many sources erroneously report that the Dusenbury brothers owned it at this time, but it seemed to be just Joseph. The brothers owned several theaters and parks in Columbus, such as the Southern Theatre and nearby Minerva Park.) The company purchased 50 more acres of land, bringing Olentangy Park to a total of 100 acres.

Painting of the Olentangy Park Theatre. (olentangypark.com)

The 1899 expansion brought several notable new buildings and attractions to the park. Most notable is the Olentangy Park Theatre, designed by prominent local architects Yost & Packard to have a “combination of towers, and turrets and pinnacles, that will rise from broad piazzas, balconies, terraces and a capacious theater.” It opened on May 28, 1899, and upon completion it had 1,000 more seats than any theater downtown. The wooden theater had a Mansfield stone foundation and wood walls, featuring elaborate, colorful decor and an abundance of incandescent lightbulbs. Certain areas of the walls were operable for ventilation and light. Another addition was the Crystal Palace funhouse, featuring 60 plate-glass mirrors to confuse visitors navigating through.

Dizzying Loop-the-Loop roller coaster. (614NOW)

Over time, more attractions were built such as several roller coasters (Figure Eight Toboggan completed in 1902, Loop-the-Loop in 1908, Whirlwind in 1909, among several others) the “Water Toboggan” ride in 1900, a Ferris wheel in 1903, and the Japanese Gardens exhibit from the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, which was renamed to “Fair Japan.” A second dance pavilion opened in 1907, which was expanded twice in 1914 and 1920, eventually making it the largest in the entire state of Ohio. The southern end of the park had a zoo and conservatory. During this peak, it also had high attendance, once serving 40,000 visitors in a single day.

Many of the wooden structures were damaged over the years due to weather, flooding, or fire. Most notably, the theater mostly burned down in 1927, with the remainder being used for square dancing until the remnants were demolished in 1932. The final holdout, the wooden entrance towers, burned down again in 1939.

Populated view of the park c.1910. (Columbus Dispatch)

The Dusenburys sold Olentangy Park to brothers Leo and Elmer Heanlein in 1929. Under their ownership, the zoo was expanded, a second funhouse known as the “Mysterious Sensation” opened, and some temporary rides such as the “Lindy-Loop” and “Flight Tutors” operated. However, likely due to the Great Depression and more families having automobiles versus riding streetcars, attendance declined. The Heanleins closed the park in 1937.

Demolition of the park circa 1938. (WOSU)

The park’s site was purchased by Leslie L. LeVeque in 1938, and his construction company cleared the entire site and built an apartment complex known as Olentangy Village, which was completed in 1939. The Colonial Revival buildings were designed by architect Raymond C. Snow, and it was the first large-scale apartment complex in Columbus. The rides were either sold or relocated to Zoo Park in Powell (later Wyandot Lake and now Zoombezi Bay), as was the case for the carousel, Ferris wheel, airplane ride, bumper cars, and rifle range.

The bowling alley, also Colonial Revival in design like the rest of Olentangy Village. (WOSU)

As for remnants on the former site, most are long gone. A bowling alley built on the parking lot in 1940, known as Olentangy Lanes, burnt down in 1980. (It was also apparently the first to use automatic pinsetters, which were invented by Ohio State students.) A swimming pool built in 1917 remained, though it was reduced in size in 1996 and completely filled in 2002 to expand residential areas further.

If you want more exhaustive details on the park, such as a complete ride list, shows at the theater, etc., olentangypark.com has a very detailed wiki that discusses this information.

Photos

This photo at the corner of Arcadia Avenue and High Street looks northwest at the site of the park:

The streetcar entrance’s location is just out of frame on the left side, directly across from the site of the North High Street Carhouse (also demolished).

I also quickly popped into Olentangy Village for some hasty photos. The principal apartment building: