The Whip – Lagoon History Project

Opened: 1925
Closed: Pre-1972
Location: South Midway
Designed By: William F. Mangels
Manufactured By: W.F. Mangels Company – Coney Island, New York
Ride Model: The Whip
Number Of Cars: 10 or 12

German immigrant, William F. Mangels began his amusement device manufacturing company on Coney Island in 1890. Over the next few decades, he was responsible for many of the early rides and games at Coney Island from carousels to shooting galleries. His inventions were well-known outside of Coney Island as well. One of his contributions to ride technology was the overhead device that recreated the galloping motion for carousel horses. He developed several rides including The Whip, which was patented in 1914. Its popularity quickly spread across to parks and traveling carnivals throughout the country.

Fatty Arbuckle on The Whip at Luna Park, Coney Island in 1917.

For those unfamiliar with the ride, imagine a larger version of Lagoon’s more recent kiddie ride, Red Rock Rally. Carriages were attached to a cable that rotated around two motorized discs. As cars were pulled around the oval track, they picked up speed and whipped around the disc at each end.

After Mangels’ death in 1958, his son took over the business, but eventually the company went bankrupt in the 1970s. Very few vintage Whips operate today. Most of them can be found in the northeastern United States in parks like Kennywood, Knoebels and Coney Island.

THE WHIP AT LAGOON

Riding The Whip in the late ’50s or ’60s. Photo: Paige Crandall

Lagoon’s Whip very rarely appears in any historical accounts of the park and photos are rare, too. When the ride does appear in photos, it’s often obscured or in the background. It operated for many decades, yet few acknowledge its existence.

The Whip is shown without any overhead structure in this aerial photo, taken some time from 1933 to 1946. Photo courtesy of Deseret News

The Whip was one of a handful of new rides introduced in 1925. Mangels modified carriage designs on later models. It’s possible that Lagoon updated their carriages over time like they have done on other rides like the Captive Aeroplanes (which were replaced with large, shiny Rockets) or the Flying Aces.

The Whip’s location according to a 1950 Sanborn map.

On a 1950 Sanborn Fire Insurance map, The Whip is shown on the Midway south of the Carousel. This seems to be where the ride stayed throughout its time at Lagoon.

An overhead structure seems to have been introduced in 1947 when many buildings were retrofitted or rebuilt with a modern architectural style. When a large fire spread through half the park in November 1953, The Whip survived with only minimal damage.

The Whip in November 1953, just after the large fire that burned half of the park. Photo courtesy of Deseret News

Luckily, film footage of The Whip has been shared online. In the video below, you can see Lagoon’s Whip in action in 1962 (starting at the 0:22 mark). At that time, the Space Scrambler sat just north of The Whip with the Speedway to the west and Rockets to the east. This area was the southern end of the Midway at the time.

1962 film footage of The Whip, along with Roller Coaster, Mother Gooseland, the Rockets and Space Scrambler (which was located south of The Whip at the time).

The Whip was still shown in an aerial photo of the park from 1970, but another photo from 1972 shows it had been replaced by the Octopus.

1970 aerial image showing The Whip still in place. Photo: US Geological Survey

1972 aerial photo showing the Octopus had moved to the former location of The Whip. Photo courtesy of Deseret News

The Whip was very close to the Animal Land Train station and in 1975, the station was expanded when it became the Wild Kingdom Train, using a tiny bit of The Whip’s old footprint.