That crocodile could use a kid.

Addison, Illinois, June 1961. These were the only crocodiles I ever liked.

Crocodile Ride

Addison, Illinois, August 1963. I favored this ride, but I also enjoyed the "Flying Swans."

Related by Marriage: He was imagining something.

Addison, Illinois, August 21, 1965. Mr. Irene saddles in for a ride at Adventureland. His Mom wrote the exact date on this photo; I suspect this memento is from an end-of-summer outing.

Motion Sickness?

Addison, Illinois, August 1963. I'm either getting bored with the attraction, or I am feeling green.

Two Memories

Addison, Illinois, August 1963. (1) It made me sad to see a melancholy deer behind a fence at Adventureland. (2) I hated that outfit: I never liked "pedal pushers," and that embroidered bull on the top was ridiculous.

Kiddie Train

Addison, Illinois, June 1961. Most amusement parks featured children's trains. The train at Adventureland followed an especially long route.

"Pony Rides"

Addison, Illinois, June 1961. We're enjoying a ride around the amusement park, Adventureland, but I think those "ponies" are really mules.

Flying Swans

Addison, Illinois, August 1963. I ride the "Flying Swans" attraction at Adventureland. If I wanted to go to an amusement park, then my Dad usually took me to Kiddieland. A trip to Adventureland was a special treat.

Related by Marriage: Riverview

Riverview Park was an historic, seventy-four acre, amusement park that operated in Chicago from 1904 to 1967. Most Chicagoans viewed Riverview as a "Nort' Side" park. People who lived on the South Side, like Mr. Irene's Mom, rarely visited that foreign part of town. By contrast, my Best Friend's Mom, the big-hearted Louise, grew up on the North Side, and she often talked about visiting Riverview in her youth.

Suburban kids like Mr. Irene and me did not get out to Riverview very often. My Dad usually took the kids to Kiddieland. If we were celebrating a special occasion, then we sometimes went to Adventureland in Addison, Illinois.

(I liked to ride Adventureland's floating crocodiles.)

Chicago, Illinois, August 29, 1963. Mr. Irene's Mom wrote the exact date on the photo and added, "Riverview Amusment Park at Western and Belmont." Could this have been a last hurrah before the school year started?