Cyclones and Bullets

I had been working for the past four days but eagerly using the off-time in the hotel to research some old places to detect.  Well, I learned that just one mile from my house used to be a large amusement park!  I was shocked to say the least, especially considering that I drive by the spot nearly every day.  I checked out historical photos, maps, and read extensively from our local historical society.  I compared old maps to current maps from Google and Bing.  The assurance came when I recognized one particular house...a house I knew very well.  Once I saw that, I knew exactly where the park used to be!

Now...to find out what is still left!

Long story short, the Puritas Springs Park was opened in 1898.  The park had penny arcades (think metal detecting!), a roller-skating rink (second largest in the United States), animals, picnic spots, and games.  Then in 1928, the park rolled out what it was most-famous for:  The Cyclone.  The Cyclone was a roller-coaster that used the ravines for natural speed...up to 80 miles per hour!  I loved reading about this little park, albeit a very popular one!  And the thought that it is just one mile away still blows my mind!

Puritas Spring Park just one mile from my house!  And The Cyclone in the top left!  I was dead-set on finding it!

The Mile High Cyclone!  One mile from my house!

But that was my goal:  to metal-detect this old theme park.  From pictures and a knowledge of the area, I realized that the park was mostly apartments and pavement now.  The owner sold the park in 1958 to land developers.  But looking at aerial pictures, I could see that some of the park was still left...the part that belonged to The Cyclone!!!  And with a roller-coaster that was shut down by the Cleveland Police for being unsafe (one guy was tossed off, three women had back injuries), all I could think about was coins flying!!!  I was hoping to find my first silver!!!

So this morning, I headed over to the park.  I parked at what is now a golf course and climbed up the hill.  Although I had an idea of where the roller coaster used to be, that ravine is steep and looks flatter in that picture!  At one point, I climbed up, down, then back up, walked for a bit thinking I was going the right way, then ended up looking down at my truck!  ha!  I couldn't believe it.  Oops!

But I just swung the metal detector back and forth along the way.  And I quickly realized that this is no modern park!  My detector was silent!  No coins, no junk, nothin'!  But that just meant that when a beep did come...

BEEP!!!

I rolled back the very thick leaves and peeled back the first layer of dirt!  The find was rather large!  I had found a lock!  It was just laying there on the top surface of soil.  Where was this lock from?!  The park?!  The animal barn?!  A gate?!  Or was it from the houses that have now taken over?  Who knows...

My first find in the woods...a lock.

I kept looking.  Another beep!  I would dig up a .22 caliber shell.  My first gun find!  Little did I know this would certainly not be my last today.  Very frustratingly, I would also pick up lots and lots of junk today.  I was so happy to be hiking through these woods, yet I was surrounded by the constant reminder that people are so dirty.  I hate it.  I found a tree where it appears a few decided to drink.  Initials carved into trees.  And tons and tons of cans and bottles.  It's a simple fact:  people are just dirty.

I ended up finding old bottles, though, that I still can't identify.  Two of them have a capital-letter "G" with a head of wheat going through it, so I assume it's a beer bottle, but I can't swear by it.  But as I walked, I quickly filled up the sack that I was carrying...with more junk.  Bottles and cans.

An unknown amber bottle.

Then I had another beep.  And I dug up my first BULLET!!!  It wasn't buried very deep, but I knew what it was the moment I saw it.  (The problem is that I didn't know exactly what it was.  Further research shows me that this is a muzzle-loading bullet, the type used in guns during The Civil War.  Now I don't think that this bullet is from The Civil War or even that old, but my guess is that it's from an old gun.  It has one groove with notched marks in the groove, but that is all I know about it!  I just wish I had known that it was from a muzzle-loading gun, and I would have searched that area a bit more aggressively!  Oh well...).

My first bullet!

From here, I walked up what I thought to be the old track to the roller-coaster.  The ravine was just too path-like to be normal...or at least that's what it seemed.  I swung the detector back and forth the entire time...and ended up picking up a couple more bullet shells.  A .22 and a shotgun shell.

Once I realized I had gone the wrong way, I headed towards the area where I thought the roller-coaster used to be, and that's when I found a huge cable.  Hmm...could it be?  I walked a bit more, and I couldn't believe it!  I found part of the old roller coaster!  Defunct for at least 55 years!

The roller-coaster from 1928!

One of the original turns!

The supports for the massive wooden structure.

One of the longest pieces still intact.

The rest of the time, I basically put down the detector and just traipsed through the woods looking for the coaster.  I had a pretty good time figuring out which direction it was heading and locating various pieces.  So many online posts had wondered if this thing was still around, so it was a bit satisfying to have found these pieces!  Time has certainly taken its toll, but what a neat piece of history...just one mile away from my house!  I just walked up and down the steep hills trying to guess which direction the coaster would have turned.

I found no coins today, and that was a disappointment.  I really thought it would be easier to search this old park!  But the ravine was muddy, the metal track had nails galore all around it (not worth my search efforts!), and I was just quite content with trying to trace the coaster.  My metal-detecting kind of transitioned into an old-fashioned hike...with a purpose.  So that was satisfying.  All in all, a great day and a wonderful way to enjoy one of our real first spring days!

Once back at home, I did do a little bit more of my backyard.  Mostly nails, although I did manage to pick up three more pennies.  So along with the ridiculous amont of junk found today, I came up with five gun-related finds, three pennies, and one unknown coin the size of a quarter (EDIT:  After writing this post, an "R" is visible through the massive rust, but that's it?!  It does not appear that this would match the "R" on a modern-day quarter, as it sits too low.  So is this a Standing Liberty?!  Is this my first silver?!  THIS IS DRIVING ME NUTS!!!  But the rust is so bad on both sides that I can't make anything else out!  Agh!!!).



Today's finds.  Our Earth is a dirty, dirty place!

The only finds of value or interest from today...a shotgun shell, two .22 shells, a .32 Smith & Wesson shell, a muzzle-loading bullet, three pennies, unknown coin.



Four bottles amongst an unshown bag of other bottles, cans, and junk.

The gorgeous bullet.  1800's?  1900's?!

This coin is driving me nuts.  After writing this blog, that "R" just appeared out of nowhere.  It's not a modern-day quarter, as the "R" is too low for E PLURIBUS UNUM.  Is this the back of a Standing Liberty?!  It's killing me!

I learned an important metal-detecting lesson today.  Today's search was just so much different than my previous hunts.  First of all, the terrain was much different.  No grass.  Just thick leaves, heavy roots, and steep ravines.  And the finds were just so different, too.  I was so eager to find coins, and yet the real "theme" of the woods today was bullets.  It was an eye-opener for me.  I'm used to parks filled with coins, but I guess it's a reality that humans take to the woods to shoot guns.  Not surprising, I guess.  But what a unique day in terms of finds...in Cleveland, nonetheless.

In terms of value, three cents isn't going to get me far!  In terms of satisfaction, I'll have that park on my mind every time I take that drive.  And I'll wonder just how many people realize that quite literally in their backyard is the roller-coaster that thrilled hundreds if not thousands for 30 years?  As with most things in life, though, money won out in the end.  As with every cyclone, this one came and went.

"They paved Paradise and put in a parking lot."