Luna Park ca. 1910

Luna Park was the second of the three major amusement parks of Coney Island (the others being the Steeplechase Park and Dreamland.) It emerged from the success of Elmer Dundy and Frederic Thompsons' Trip To The Moon ride at Buffalo's Pan-American Exposition. Harry Tilyou, Steeplechase Park's founder, recognized the popularity of the ride and convinced the two to bring it to his park in 1902. However, Tilyou's attempt to reduce their share of the profits caused the Dundy and Thompson to balk at renewing their contract. Instead, they began making plans to become his competition.

Leasing the land of the Sea Lion Park, an earlier park that had been suffering due to Steeplechase's success, as well as the land where the Elephant Hotel had stood, Dundy and Thompson were able to obtain more than 20 acres. Spending almost a million dollars, they built rides, pavilions, and attractions centered around an electric tower (inspired by the Pan-American Exposition.) Opening on May 16, 1903, Luna Park was an immediate success.

The following year heralded the opening of Dreamland, an even bigger amusement park with an even bigger electric tower. The competition became extremely intense and, in 1912, Thompson went bankrupt (Dundy having died a number of years before.) The park had a series of other owners, but none of them were successful. A number of fires in 1944-45 doomed the park, it was closed and not rebuilt.