Coney Island Timeline

Highlights

1609 - Dutch explorer Henry Hudson discovers Coney Island
1829 - The Shell Road links Coney Island with Brooklyn
1875 - Andrew Culver builds the Prospect Park & Coney Island Railroad to the resort
1877 - Manhattan Hotel, the first luxury hotel, opens at Coney's far eastern end
1879 - The island's first horse racing track opens
1880 - The New Iron Pier is built to handle arriving steamships from Manhattan
1884 - World's first roller coaster debuts
1895 - Sea Lion amusement park opens
1897 - Steeplechase amusement park opens
1903 - Luna Park opens & the Bowery burns
1904 - Dreamland amusement park opens
1907 - Steeplechase amusement park burns
1911 - Dreamland amusement park burns
1920 - The Subway connects Coney Island with Manhattan and Brooklyn
1923 - Boardwalk opens and 175 businesses razed to widen Coney's streets
1927 - The Cyclone roller coaster, the world's most famous, opens
1944 - Luna Park burns in a fire
1964 - Steeplechase Park closes