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Camden Park: The Sign of the Happy Clown Says It Best: Rides, Picnics, Fun for All Almost everyone who has grown up in the Tri-State has fond memories of childhood adventures at Camden Park – The Big Dipper, the Tilt-A-Whirl, the Turnpike, the Carousel or the Haunted House. Everyone has a favorite, and most know which to avoid after a belly full of corndogs, cotton candy and soft drinks.
For two area residents, Camden is not just a memory. The park is so closely intertwined in their lives that it is part of the family. Clinton Burley, program manager of HealthNet Aeromedical's Huntington and Portsmouth helicopter bases, grew up in the park and remembers it vividly.
“My dad was office manager for many years,” Burley said. “His job was running daily operations. That meant from April to October, 7 a.m. to midnight, he was at the park, except on Mondays when it was closed. Many times we would have our family dinner at the park’s cafeteria.”
Established in 1903 by the Camden Interstate Railway, the park was meant to build weekend business for the trolley system. “The trolley ran from Huntington to Ashland,” Burley explained. “Weekday travel was pretty busy but the weekends weren’t. So they developed two parks, Camden in West Virginia and Clyffeside in Catlettsburg, in order to boost travel. And it worked.”
In 1916, the park was sold to Colonel E.G. Via who had managed the facility since it opened and he ran it until his death in 1946. At that time, the park was purchased by J.P. Boylin, a well-known businessman in Huntington. “When Boylin took over, it was a bit rough and tumble,” Burley related.
Since Boylin knew he needed strong players on his team, he looked up an old acquaintance from Chicago – Harry Nudd, who was named general manager. “My dad Robert Burley was working for Boylin in his furniture division and Boylin asked him to move to Camden,” Burley explained. The three men became the major stockholders of Camden Park, Inc. and set about the task of turning the park into a family oriented destination.
“Dad’s first job was to go out to rural areas and promote the park for picnics, church groups and schools,” Burley said. “They banned the sale of alcohol and put all of their time and effort into turning the park around. This was before the big theme parks; it was a different time. These regional parks were the place to be. Even in the ‘70s, school kids would come from very rural areas and it was the highlight of their summer.”
The park was dirty, many of the buildings were run down, and equipment was in dire need of repair. A lot of damage had been done by the 1937 flood. But Boylin, Nudd and Burley knew that Camden Park had great potential. They were determined to do what was necessary to make it successful. That meant a lot of work, many long hours and a major investment. Nudd was quoted in a 1984 newspaper article shortly after his retirement. “Back then, it was just cinders and sawdust, outdoor toilets and a few wooden shacks,” he said. “Believe me, it not only took a lot of hard work, but we also had to put back most of the profits to make it the place it is today.”
It wasn’t long before the park was transformed and the crowds began to pour in. “These guys put their hearts and souls into the park for years and years,” Burley recounted proudly, “and it showed. They truly cared about it being a clean, neat, safe place for families to go.”
Each year they tried to add something new to the mix. “They started having horse shows and local and regional events,” Burley said. “It was also during this time that they rented the park for local businesses and companies to bring their employees and families.” That popular tradition still continues today.
Live entertainment was also a big draw so they brought in top name country music acts, which were especially popular on holidays. “At one time, before they had the main stage, they had the performers play on top of the ice cream stand,” Burley laughed. “Brenda Lee played there and she would have three or four shows throughout the day. But she was so young at the time that she would run off to enjoy the rides between her sets.”
Camden Park became so successful during this period that other amusement park owners took notice. “Dad and Mr. Nudd were good friends with the guy who ran Coney Island in Cincinnati,” Burley said. “Taft Broadcasting purchased Coney Island then came up with the idea to create King’s Island. I remember vividly being there as it was being built. They had asked Dad to come and look over the plans and give his input.”
Growing up at Camden Park would be a dream for most kids. For Clinton Burley, that’s just the way it was. But as one might expect, it did have its perks. “One of my earliest memories is going down to the park when it was closed and riding the hand cars,” related Burley. “And I would often go down with my dad on Saturday or Sunday when he would pick up the receipts at the skating rink from the night before. I would skate all day; I loved the rink, and it really hurt when it burned (in 1996).”
The early 70s also brought a close connection for Camden and Marshall University. “They really wanted to have a buffalo at Marshall,” Burley said with a hint of laughter. “But they needed a place to keep him. So Marco came to live at Camden Park. One day, they took him to Fairfield Stadium where he got loose and ran wild. That was his first and last trip out of the park, but he lived there for many years.”
It is obvious that Burley still has a deep affection for the playground of his youth. “I spent so much time there,” he said. “It was more than just a place. It was part of the family.”
However, the heyday of the park was soon to be interrupted. In 1980, Nudd and Burley were ready to retire, and Boylin sold the park to a family owned business based in Virginia. The next 15 years were not kind to the park, and in 1995, it went into default. But as fate would have it, a member of the Boylin family once again saved the park. J.P.’s grandson Jack, currently serves as general manager.
“The park was going to be shut down,” Boylin noted, “and literally overnight Dad made the decision to take it back.” Interestingly, Boylin faced the same tasks that his grandfather had taken on. “Everything had deteriorated. All the infrastructure needed attention; we had to put a new roof on practically every building and we had to completely replumb.”
Boylin’s goal was to return the park to its glory days. “I wanted to bring it back to the way it was when I was little,” he said determinedly. “It took us 10 years just to get it in decent shape again. Now, we’re at the point where, once a year, we can take one or two rides and refurbish them. When we first took over, they all needed attention.”
Thanks to Boylin, Camden Park once again has become a vibrant entertainment center and family destination. “We look at what is relevant in today’s market,” he explained. “We’ve become very event driven.” Those events include School Days in May, bringing more than 20,000 students to the park during a three-week period; a Children’s Festival which runs every Thursday in June featuring costumed characters such as Diego, Dora, Sponge Bob and The Hulk; Hot Summer Nights on Friday and Saturday nights in July and August; and the very popular Halloween Spooktacular.
Holidays also tend to be big draws. This year the park will be host to a Memorial Day bird show, a dog show on Labor Day and of course lots of live entertainment including puppet shows and country music. “People think I’m crazy,” laughed Boylin, “but we offer lots of things that other parks don’t. And we’re very excited about the new miniature golf game that is being installed for this summer.”
It seems that the park has come full circle and is once again ready to warm the hearts of local visitors while it is also poised to become a major tourist destination for families. And what of the future? That may well be in the hands of yet another generation of Boylins.
“My family is very integrated into the park,” Boylin said. “We have had my six-year-old son’s birthday party here every year. He thinks he works here and even has a little desk beside mine where he sits and stacks coins.”
Yes, the sign of the Happy Clown is smiling once again. |
