Kursaal (amusement park)

The arrival of Marine Park The Kursaal site was opened in 1894 by Henry Austen on fifteen acres of land leased from solicitor Alfred Tollhurst and his son Bernard Wiltshire Tollhurst, as the Marine Park and Gardens. The park was designed by Henry Ernest Milner, consisted of gardens, with a bandstand, a 15,000 sq. foot sprung dance floor and a two-acre lake. Four acres of the site was enclosed by a cycle track, where football and cricket was played. Austen proposed to open a pavilion in the park to sell alcohol, but this was objected to by the Women's Temperance Movement, and the Tollhursts were so incensed by this that they announced that they would sell the site for housing. they opened a grand entrance pavilion, the Kursaal Palace, designed by George Sherrin and John Clarke, containing a circus, ballroom, arcade, dining hall and billiard room. The word Kursaal is German (literally meaning "cure hall") and refers to the main banquet hall of a spa town. The palace was opened by Lord Claud Hamilton, chairman of the Great Eastern Railway after arriving in a specially commissioned train. In 1903, the Margate and Southend Kursaals company was voluntary liquidated, and the site was put up for sale. Southend's Kursaal became the largest fairground in the south of England. In 1904 a screen was added to the ballroom so it could act as a cinema. There was controversy in 1908 when Princess Dinubolu of Senegal entered the Kursaal Beauty Pageant, the only black contestant. Luna Park In 1910, a new company was formed to purchase the site, Luna Park and Palace of Amusements (Southend) Ltd, which had been registered on 14 March 1910 by William Hilton. The park was renamed accordingly to Luna Park, and Hilton became the managing director of the park. The fire caused the company go into liquidation. Morehouse suddenly died in March 1920. His son David de Forrest Morehouse took over directorship. In 1929, 11 people were seriously injured on the Flying Boat ride. In 1934 David de Forrest Morehouse died and a board of trustees took over the Kursaal. Post-war period to the 1970s In 1948 C. J. Morehouse II took over the Kursaal from the trustees. Status Quo used a recording from their 1975 set at the Kursaal for their single Roll Over Lay Down. A photograph of the performance of AC/DC at The Kursaal in 1977 was used on the front cover of their Let There Be Rock album. Decline and closure The Kursaal as a whole had been in gradual decline since the early 1970s, with a large area of the outdoor amusements closing in 1973. On the closed site, the Woodgrange Estate, commonly known as the Kursaal estate was built. At the end of 1977 the decision was made to close the ballroom, with the main building and the remaining external park areas finally succumbing in 1986. The remaining outdoor amusement area was later redeveloped as Mark Court. In 1988, Brent Walker purchased the Kursaal, and announced plans to redevelop the site as a water theme park, but the company entered liquidation and the site remained empty. The 1998 reopening The council purchased the Kursaal, and after a multimillion-pound redevelopment by the Rowallan Group, the main Kursaal building was reopened in 1998 with a bowling alley, a casino and other amusements. The bowling alley closed permanently in 2019, and the casino closed permanently in 2020. This currently leaves only a Tesco Express store occupying part of this historic building. In May 2024, The Victorian Society listed the Kursaal amongst their 10 at risk sites that need rescuing. Future On 8 March 2026 it was announced that a deal had been reached to transfer the lease of the building to potential new owners Star Amusements, who plan to reopen the site in the near future as a leisure attraction. ==List of rides and attractions==

• The Skids/Swirls • Bumper Cars (1954–1973) • Ski Jump • Waltzer • Wild Mouse (1960s) • Calypso (1962–1983?) • Cyclone, a roller coaster and the largest of the Kursaal's attractions (1921–1957) • 2nd Water Chute (1958–1971) • Toboggan Slide (1910–1947) • The Whip (1921–?) • The Tumblers (1921–?) • Never Stop Railway (1923–?) • Autodrome (1930–?) • Caterpillar (1920s–?) • Whirlpool • Ghost Train (1931–?) • Petboats (1933–?) (destroyed by fire) ==Kursaal Cinema==

The park first added a screen to the ballroom in 1904, but in 1910 a new hall was built to house the cinema permanently, with it being named the Kursaal Kinema from October 1913. The cinema had a 25 feet wide proscenium and a small stage, but it closed along with the rest of the park during World War I when the site was used by the army. The cinema re-opened after a refurbishment in 1920, and in 1938 the name changed to the more traditional spelling of Kursaal Cinema. The cinema officially closed in July 1940 because of World War II, and after the war was converted into the function suite called the Estuary room. ==List of musical acts who performed at The Kursaal Ballroom and Estuary Room==

• 1968 - The Move • 1968 - The Troggs • 1971 - Sha Na Na / Uriah Heep / Paladin • 1972 - Family • 1972 - Status Quo • 1973 - Wishbone Ash • 1973 - Nazareth / Silverhead • 1973 - The Sweet • 1973 - Rory Gallagher • 1973 - Lindisfarne / Claire Hamill • 1973 - Status Quo • 1974 - Golden Earring / Alquin • 1974 - Rory Gallagher • 1974 - Status Quo / Snafu • 1974 - Sparks • 1974 - The Sensational Alex Harvey Band / Strider • 1974 - Be-Bop Deluxe • 1974 - Leo Sayer • 1974 - Humble Pie • 1974 - Van der Graaf Generator • 1974 - Tangerine Dream • 1975 - Pretty Things • 1975 - Dr. Feelgood • 1976 - Black Sabbath • 1977 - AC/DC • 1977 - Thin Lizzy ==Kursaal Football Stadium==

Southend United In 1919, David de Forest Morehouse became involved in trying to revive Southend United after World War I, and offered a one-year lease on the site within the park's ground, with an eventual purchase price of £9,500 agreed. The first meeting attracted 5,000 spectators and the first race was won by a greyhound called Self Starter at odds of 2–1 over 500 yards. The meeting was opened by the Deputy Mayor Alderman H A Dowsett and fifty track bookmakers attended. The racing was independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body the National Greyhound Racing Club). The pitch however was damaged in the corners as the track cut across it. In October new floodlights were added for the racing, but in a game against Bristol Rovers F.C. in November someone turned the lights on due to the murky conditions. They were quickly turned off as the Football Association did not allow floodlit matches. The damage to the pitch was concerning the Football Association, and in March 1928 they warned club's that they were considering taking action. However, it was the English Football League who ordered the club to cease racing at the ground in July 1928, after the club had four games postponed due to the pitch damage. ==See also==