Revisit Summit Park

On Sunday, May 4, 2025 at 1:00 pm, the Oriskany Museum will host a slideshow presentation exploring the original Summit Park (1897-1926), featuring photos from the Shirley Burtch Collection and commentary by local engineer Jamie Kernan. The presentation will include well-known favorite postcards as well as lesser-seen photographs.

Summit Park opened on Memorial Day weekend 1897 on the bluffs above the Oriskany Creek on the outskirts of the Village of Oriskany. The park was serviced by a dedicated trolley line from Utica, bringing thousands of travellers during the summer season to experience its merry-go-round, rollercoaster, amphitheatre, dance hall, boat docks, and more. The park was visited by well-known personalities of the era, such as Pres. Theodore Roosevelt and Amelia Earhart, as well as popular brass bands and entertainers from around the region. 

The park unknowingly closed for the last time on Labor Day weekend 1926. The park sustained heavy damage in a storm that winter, bringing an end to the first Summit Park. The site briefly reopened in the mid-twentieth century as a picnic park, but now has been reclaimed by nature. In 2019, a Pomeroy Foundation Historic Marker was placed by the Battle of Oriskany Historical Society to commemorate Summit Park. The marker can be seen at the corner of Utica Street and Oklahoma Avenue where the trolley turned to enter the park. 

The Oriskany Museum is located at 420 Utica Street in the Village of Oriskany just off State Route 69 between the cities of Utica and Rome. The museum collection focuses on the Battle of Oriskany, the Village of Oriskany, and the USS Oriskany CV/CVA-34. The museum is currently open Tuesdays from 9:00 am-noon, Thursdays from 5:00-7:00 pm, and Sundays from noon-3 pm. For details, please visit oriskanymuseum.com. 

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For immediate press release. For questions, please contact Alexis W. Albright, Oriskany Museum Curator at oriskanymuseum@gmail.com. Photo below: Summit Park trolley station featured in a colorized postcard, c. 1900-1910.

The trolley station at Summit Park featured in a colored photo postcard circa 1900-1910.