Free Spirit Skatepark - Beach Haven NJ

The first iteration of an amusement park that still stands today.

Free Spirit Skatepark was met with pushback from locals when construction permits were granted in mid-1977. Locals complained "You're letting our town turn into a honky-tonk!"

Despite complaints, the Richard and Thomas Hartman began building the park in July of 1977 and were finished in roughly one month.

The park contained slaloms and snake runs and by all appearances was very lumpy.

By 1978, the Hartman brothers razed the park so they could install rides but the city issued an ordinance against street parking around the site because "a lot of children go there and pop out in front of cars."  The Hartmans sued the city and won, eventually turning Free Spirit into Hartman's Amusement Center. It was the only place on the 18-mile island that had carnival rides.  The Center stayed open until 1985 when it was sold to new owners who converted it to Fantasy Island.