Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of Rink-History.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. As seen in 2008. Courtesy of Google Maps, 2008.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Demolished in between 2008 and 2012 to make way for a new Middle School. Courtesy of Google Maps 2012.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of The Herald News - 16 June 1938.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of The Herald News - 03 September 1938. Photoshop and Edited for Content Copyrighted by Rink-History. For clean up, edited article for fitting on this website and combination of 2 pages. That was the original.. Two separate pages combined into one.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of The Herald News - 31 August 1938. Photoshop Copyrighted by Rink-History for clear background.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of The Herald News - 28 August 1941.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. I sure hoped she did go back the following year but I noticed nothing in the news about that. Any one know what happened to her? Courtesy of The Herald News - 11 May 1943. Copyrighted by Rink-History for clean up.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of Billboard - 11 September 1943, Page 44, first and second column, top story. Photoshopped and graphic design copyrighted by Rink-History. (cleaned up, re-arrange spacing /edited for website).
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ. Courtesy of The News - 25 April 1952.
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ
America On Wheels 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ
America On Wheels 19 Henry St., Passaic, NJ
Passaic Skating Rink 19 Henry Street, Passaic, New Jersey was one of those America On Wheels roller rink under the umbrella of AOW Corporation. Since it was corporate owned, the managers were Edwin Brozek, William Annis. and Parke Grant.
This rink stood out different than any other AOW Corporate owned theater-like gradular looking building that looked like they were from the World's Fair. This occurred around late 1930s which did coincidence with the First New York's World Fair.
But this one was to give that old factory feel. They were ahead of their time! Some other rinks did have the same concepts. A couple of them in New England did. And I think in New York City as well. But this I felt really stood out that this was once a factory for sure BEFORE Henry Kruger's Garage (no relations to Kroger supermarkets and spells different! Also no relations to Freddy Kroeger either! Ha.)
Unfortunately, there is no photograph of interior like most AOW rinks did not. I wonder why! Too few did perhaps by skaters themselves back then. Did AOW have a policy like you see at a shopping malls not to take photographs? Good question. I would love to see what the interior of THIS very rink because of the old factory feel. Just lay the Hardwood Maple floor down and have huge windows. Ahh. that would have been cool. For years, I thought of having a rink like that. When I was living in Syracuse, New York, I would have done this at the old Penfield Furniture Factory building kiddie corner from massive Carousel Center Mall (now known as Destiny USA).
I would have had one of the floors as a roller rink and top floor as my residence. Rink would be on 2nd floor. ONE problem, that elevator was in the middle of the floor! BUT if you are creative, Yes, the rink on the outside of the floor plan with everything INSIDE the rink including lockers, conession stand, eating area, games.. etc. Pretty cool right? Maybe open up 3rd floor a bit for others to look down at the rink but of course, with plexiglass so no one can spill a soda down on beautiful Maple or Pecan wood floor. Tsk tsk!
Shops and stuff on first floor. BUT that factory in Northside of Syracuse, NY LACKED good parking. This is why one of the reasons for this rink to closed due to parking problems. Also the location. Similar problem for Penfield building if you can find it on Google Maps. You will understand why it is not good location either! Leasing was another problem for AOW Corporation. They tend to rent more often than not. This is why they lost lease at Perth Amboy which was truly designed for a rink. And the loss at Casino as well. Best to own the building if you want long term. Be smart. If it does cost so much, better to buy!
So, they closed for good around 1948 or was it April 1952? AOW Corporation does not really put out press releases as much as other rinks today do. Like with recent closed Skateland of Gaffney (SC) had 3 or 4 news media- both TV news and newspaper online announcement of closure. AOW does not do that. I think they prefer quiet exit which is not a good idea due to the fact skaters will come down even still closed and finds out it is out of business. Reputation. Best to have to face the music which is the media to say, "We are sorry, we are closed for good.. But thank you for coming to our rink, there are other fine rinks near by or our rink at so so location." If being quiet, then skaters will not know about other AOW rinks! Maybe is that why they declined from 1950s to its demise in 1986? Good question.
Building was renovated exterior to put smaller windows and ugly looking until they finally demolished around 2011 to make way for a 3 storys apartment complex. The building cross the street also faced similar that it was torn down and was rebuilt into a nice apartment with similar architecture materials and style. May be of same management. Or not.
According to Property Shark It was said to be sold on 08 March 2005 so likely it took a while for them to get board planning to approve for demolish and rebuilt. It is a new Passaic Public School. No wonder, the playground there and cross the street as well. They were all part of it. They paid for a huge 4.3 Million USD for the properties including cross the street I am sure but that website did not say part. Its possible. It is a middle school now.
This rink also had boxing and wrestling matches at the rink. At the time, it was common at rinks they do have had matches.
The Interior.
Massive Hardwood Maple floor in old factory building on 2nd floor. Likely had posts that the rink had which made it difficult for figure skating, couple skating, roller hockey, etc. None of that.
The Exterior.
It was one of those old factory building that was common with Red Bricks and Thick Concrete Posts and flooring that today they are either abandoned or converted to luxury NYC-Style Apartments which I love! Woo. Anyway, The exterior had huge checkered or chess layout windows. The skating rink was on second floor above Henry Kruger's Garage.
The Stats:
Rink Size: N/A. Floor: Non-colored Hardwood Northern Maple. Floor Layout: N/A.
Building Size: N/A. Built: N/A. Renovations: 1938 (into rink), 1952? (Into something else), etc. . Demolished: 2011 or 12.
Type of Building: Steel Trusses, Concrete Posts, Multi-story Bricks and Concrete - Walled Old fashioned Factory - like Building.
Roof: Flatted.
Acres: 0.3700.
Architect: N/A.
Contractor: N/A.
Interior Designer: N/A.
Organ: Likely Hammond Organ (common at any AOW Rinks)
Organist: N/A.
10 Pins Bowling Lanes: None.
Duck Pins Bowling Lanes: None.
Candlestick Bowling Lanes: None.
Pocket Billiard Tables: N/A.
Air Hockey Tables: N/A.
Foosball Table: N/A.
Basketball Speed: N/A.
Amusement Rides: None.
Driving Range Slots: None.
Miniature Golf Course: None.
Arcade: (Number unknown)
Skee-Ball: N/A.
Fascination: None.
Restaurant: None.
Cocktail lounge: None.
Laser Tag: None.
Bounce Houses: None.
Bumper Cars: None.
Go-Kart: None.
Motel: None.
Swimming Pool: None.
Jungle Gym Playground: None.
Skate Park: None.
Theater (movie/stage): ONLY chairs were set up for boxing and wrestling matches making it a stadium layout on the rink floor.
Dance Center: None.
Picnic Grove: None.
Operated: (Overall)-- 1938 to c. 1848 /1953. (Unknown closure date).
Reason for Closure: High cost of lease, parking and location problems.
Wanted: Information regarding exact dates of open/closed, why closed, size of rink, rink materials. Also, photos/articles. Also send me any updates such as reopening, sold, name changes, or whatsoever occurred with this rink or any rinks. Anyone knows or have photos, please let me know by emailing at Rink-History©. Before you email, please state this rink name AND THE CITY AND STATE (or COUNTRY) so I can know where or what rink you are talking about. Thank you. We welcome both active and defunct rinks.
Sources:
Sources are above in article, and gallery.
Loop Net - Property Records.
Property Shark - Property Records.
Date of issue: 18 August 2023.
Updated:
For office use only: 10.
Worth to visit:
None.
DISCLAIMER:
International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© (formerly known as Dead-Rinks) and Mark Falso are not responsible for your physical and legal injuries you may have caused. We do not endorse such illegal activities including breaking and entry of former rinks, malls, abandoned buildings, etc. Please always obey laws and regulations and property owner's signs. Some states allow purple paint on fence which means they even have guns on their property and have rights to shoot you. Please DO NOT attempt to enter property without permission!
For abandoned rinks, after you receive permission, do WEAR safety OSHA equipment including a safety glasses, pair of safety gloves, an orange vest or a jacket, and a construction helmet.
Thank you for understanding.
Dead Rinks is now International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© because many former names have become new names at the same rinks that are still active and due to much confusion, We have decided that International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© fits better for all rinks including defunct, closed, inactive, rebooted, and rinks that are still active today. For short on this site, it is International Roller Skating Rinks History© Bear with us as we change the entire site page by page each day. Thank you for understanding.
Second of all: The contents including words and photos above on this page and/or on any pages are purely educational entertainment purposes only. I provide what information from other websites, skaters, and operators and it may end up with different results between two (or more) sources. It is not our responsible for errors we caused. All sources are shown on each page. All opinions and statements of mine are also stated and are for purely educational entertainment only.
Rinks that are closed are considered dead. Rinks that are/were sold and with new management names new name(s), the former are considered dead. Previous operating rink that closed but came back years later, are considered dead because the reopening is considered rebooted, nothing to do with the former. Since we are rebooted to allow alive rinks, active rinks, we welcome those active rinks as well. It will be described.
As for “For Office Only” is for my reasoning and private legal reason for that.
Any music associated with any YouTube or any other videos provided on International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© are not the property of International Commercial Archeology Preservation© Group and/or International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© therefore we do not own the rights to the music.
All photos you submitted or we retrieved become property of International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© and are watermarked but they are credited to you (or where the source is from). Thank you for understanding. To understand more about this, please go to this page: Disclaimer.
© Copyrighted by International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation©, an International Commercial Archeology Preservation© Group. All Rights Reserved. Jn 3:3 to 17. Deut. 32:7.
This rink stood out different than any other AOW Corporate owned theater-like gradular looking building that looked like they were from the World's Fair. This occurred around late 1930s which did coincidence with the First New York's World Fair.
But this one was to give that old factory feel. They were ahead of their time! Some other rinks did have the same concepts. A couple of them in New England did. And I think in New York City as well. But this I felt really stood out that this was once a factory for sure BEFORE Henry Kruger's Garage (no relations to Kroger supermarkets and spells different! Also no relations to Freddy Kroeger either! Ha.)
Unfortunately, there is no photograph of interior like most AOW rinks did not. I wonder why! Too few did perhaps by skaters themselves back then. Did AOW have a policy like you see at a shopping malls not to take photographs? Good question. I would love to see what the interior of THIS very rink because of the old factory feel. Just lay the Hardwood Maple floor down and have huge windows. Ahh. that would have been cool. For years, I thought of having a rink like that. When I was living in Syracuse, New York, I would have done this at the old Penfield Furniture Factory building kiddie corner from massive Carousel Center Mall (now known as Destiny USA).
I would have had one of the floors as a roller rink and top floor as my residence. Rink would be on 2nd floor. ONE problem, that elevator was in the middle of the floor! BUT if you are creative, Yes, the rink on the outside of the floor plan with everything INSIDE the rink including lockers, conession stand, eating area, games.. etc. Pretty cool right? Maybe open up 3rd floor a bit for others to look down at the rink but of course, with plexiglass so no one can spill a soda down on beautiful Maple or Pecan wood floor. Tsk tsk!
Shops and stuff on first floor. BUT that factory in Northside of Syracuse, NY LACKED good parking. This is why one of the reasons for this rink to closed due to parking problems. Also the location. Similar problem for Penfield building if you can find it on Google Maps. You will understand why it is not good location either! Leasing was another problem for AOW Corporation. They tend to rent more often than not. This is why they lost lease at Perth Amboy which was truly designed for a rink. And the loss at Casino as well. Best to own the building if you want long term. Be smart. If it does cost so much, better to buy!
So, they closed for good around 1948 or was it April 1952? AOW Corporation does not really put out press releases as much as other rinks today do. Like with recent closed Skateland of Gaffney (SC) had 3 or 4 news media- both TV news and newspaper online announcement of closure. AOW does not do that. I think they prefer quiet exit which is not a good idea due to the fact skaters will come down even still closed and finds out it is out of business. Reputation. Best to have to face the music which is the media to say, "We are sorry, we are closed for good.. But thank you for coming to our rink, there are other fine rinks near by or our rink at so so location." If being quiet, then skaters will not know about other AOW rinks! Maybe is that why they declined from 1950s to its demise in 1986? Good question.
Building was renovated exterior to put smaller windows and ugly looking until they finally demolished around 2011 to make way for a 3 storys apartment complex. The building cross the street also faced similar that it was torn down and was rebuilt into a nice apartment with similar architecture materials and style. May be of same management. Or not.
According to Property Shark It was said to be sold on 08 March 2005 so likely it took a while for them to get board planning to approve for demolish and rebuilt. It is a new Passaic Public School. No wonder, the playground there and cross the street as well. They were all part of it. They paid for a huge 4.3 Million USD for the properties including cross the street I am sure but that website did not say part. Its possible. It is a middle school now.
This rink also had boxing and wrestling matches at the rink. At the time, it was common at rinks they do have had matches.
The Interior.
Massive Hardwood Maple floor in old factory building on 2nd floor. Likely had posts that the rink had which made it difficult for figure skating, couple skating, roller hockey, etc. None of that.
The Exterior.
It was one of those old factory building that was common with Red Bricks and Thick Concrete Posts and flooring that today they are either abandoned or converted to luxury NYC-Style Apartments which I love! Woo. Anyway, The exterior had huge checkered or chess layout windows. The skating rink was on second floor above Henry Kruger's Garage.
The Stats:
Rink Size: N/A. Floor: Non-colored Hardwood Northern Maple. Floor Layout: N/A.
Building Size: N/A. Built: N/A. Renovations: 1938 (into rink), 1952? (Into something else), etc. . Demolished: 2011 or 12.
Type of Building: Steel Trusses, Concrete Posts, Multi-story Bricks and Concrete - Walled Old fashioned Factory - like Building.
Roof: Flatted.
Acres: 0.3700.
Architect: N/A.
Contractor: N/A.
Interior Designer: N/A.
Organ: Likely Hammond Organ (common at any AOW Rinks)
Organist: N/A.
10 Pins Bowling Lanes: None.
Duck Pins Bowling Lanes: None.
Candlestick Bowling Lanes: None.
Pocket Billiard Tables: N/A.
Air Hockey Tables: N/A.
Foosball Table: N/A.
Basketball Speed: N/A.
Amusement Rides: None.
Driving Range Slots: None.
Miniature Golf Course: None.
Arcade: (Number unknown)
Skee-Ball: N/A.
Fascination: None.
Restaurant: None.
Cocktail lounge: None.
Laser Tag: None.
Bounce Houses: None.
Bumper Cars: None.
Go-Kart: None.
Motel: None.
Swimming Pool: None.
Jungle Gym Playground: None.
Skate Park: None.
Theater (movie/stage): ONLY chairs were set up for boxing and wrestling matches making it a stadium layout on the rink floor.
Dance Center: None.
Picnic Grove: None.
Operated: (Overall)-- 1938 to c. 1848 /1953. (Unknown closure date).
Reason for Closure: High cost of lease, parking and location problems.
Wanted: Information regarding exact dates of open/closed, why closed, size of rink, rink materials. Also, photos/articles. Also send me any updates such as reopening, sold, name changes, or whatsoever occurred with this rink or any rinks. Anyone knows or have photos, please let me know by emailing at Rink-History©. Before you email, please state this rink name AND THE CITY AND STATE (or COUNTRY) so I can know where or what rink you are talking about. Thank you. We welcome both active and defunct rinks.
Sources:
Sources are above in article, and gallery.
Loop Net - Property Records.
Property Shark - Property Records.
Date of issue: 18 August 2023.
Updated:
For office use only: 10.
Worth to visit:
None.
DISCLAIMER:
International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© (formerly known as Dead-Rinks) and Mark Falso are not responsible for your physical and legal injuries you may have caused. We do not endorse such illegal activities including breaking and entry of former rinks, malls, abandoned buildings, etc. Please always obey laws and regulations and property owner's signs. Some states allow purple paint on fence which means they even have guns on their property and have rights to shoot you. Please DO NOT attempt to enter property without permission!
For abandoned rinks, after you receive permission, do WEAR safety OSHA equipment including a safety glasses, pair of safety gloves, an orange vest or a jacket, and a construction helmet.
Thank you for understanding.
Dead Rinks is now International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© because many former names have become new names at the same rinks that are still active and due to much confusion, We have decided that International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© fits better for all rinks including defunct, closed, inactive, rebooted, and rinks that are still active today. For short on this site, it is International Roller Skating Rinks History© Bear with us as we change the entire site page by page each day. Thank you for understanding.
Second of all: The contents including words and photos above on this page and/or on any pages are purely educational entertainment purposes only. I provide what information from other websites, skaters, and operators and it may end up with different results between two (or more) sources. It is not our responsible for errors we caused. All sources are shown on each page. All opinions and statements of mine are also stated and are for purely educational entertainment only.
Rinks that are closed are considered dead. Rinks that are/were sold and with new management names new name(s), the former are considered dead. Previous operating rink that closed but came back years later, are considered dead because the reopening is considered rebooted, nothing to do with the former. Since we are rebooted to allow alive rinks, active rinks, we welcome those active rinks as well. It will be described.
As for “For Office Only” is for my reasoning and private legal reason for that.
Any music associated with any YouTube or any other videos provided on International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© are not the property of International Commercial Archeology Preservation© Group and/or International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© therefore we do not own the rights to the music.
All photos you submitted or we retrieved become property of International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation© and are watermarked but they are credited to you (or where the source is from). Thank you for understanding. To understand more about this, please go to this page: Disclaimer.
© Copyrighted by International Roller Skating Rinks History Foundation©, an International Commercial Archeology Preservation© Group. All Rights Reserved. Jn 3:3 to 17. Deut. 32:7.