happened on the grounds of Croop’s Glen in 1935 that pretty much sealed the fate of this once booming park. I will sum up the following event using information I gathered from newspaper articles of that time and a number of other internet resources. On June 29, 1935, the Nanticoke Unemployed League (NUL)was sponsoring a day at the park. Reports have it that the park was filled with visitors that day. The park had a grand picnic pavilion that actually straddled Hunlock Creek. It was a soothing setting, as the sounds of the flowing water would fill the building. The floor of the pavilion was suspended about 20 to 30 feet above the creek bed. On that day, the NUL was also holding a “Cutest Baby Contest.” There were said to be hundreds of spectators in the pavilion to witness the event. I saw one article that stated there were 3,000 visitors, but I couldn’t determine
if all of them were in the pavilion. At around the same time the judging was to start, a storm came up. This caused a lot of park visitors to crowd into the pavilion for cover. Suddenly without warning, the center of the floor gave out sending men, women, children, and infants crashing into the creek below. Witnesses said it formed a funnel causing people to slide right down. Guests piled up, causing all kinds of injuries. Although there were no fatalities, a number of people suffered permanent disabilities. There were 147 visitors injured in total. The injured were rushed to Nanticoke State Hospital in ambulances, private cars, and trucks. Some ambulances had as many as nine victims in each one. As a result of this, there were numerous lawsuits filed against the park for negligence. There are some who contribute those lawsuits to being
the reason Croop’s Glen permanently closed. However, the park continued to operate its rides until the end of the 1941 season. The park was open in 1942, but none of the mechanical rides were in operation. The dance hall/skating rink did operate into the 1950’s until its demise in a fire, as I mentioned a bit earlier.
Croop’s Glen Park ticket booth
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