RIVERDALE ROLLER RINK, was off East Avenue in Warwick.
It was owned by the Ernest Young family. It was on the second floor of an
old mill building. Mr. Young used to take a lot of pride telling folks about
the floating floor. He used to claim the skating surface was laid on
automobile springs. The rink was a RSROA (Roller Skating Rings of America)
and had a pro on staff who would not only teach basic skating but also dance,
figure, and free-style skating. Riverdale had a strict dress code and catered
more to the serious skater. In the sixties the Young’s closed the old rink after
they built a new one right on East Avenue. The last I knew the new building
housed a plumbing business and the old building is a warehouse.
-photo courtesy of Fred Deusch (Pictured on right)
View Fred on Skate Stilts HERE
"I met my wife at Riverdale and we just celebrated our 54th anniversary.
Our old skates are still ranking in the cellar. I’d still love to put them on but
I’m afraid the old bones might be a bit fragile."
- Fred Deusch
I remember going every Sunday afternoon with my friend skating to Michael Jackson's " Off the Wall" album. This was in the early 80's.
ReplyDeleteMy grandfather owned that rink.
ReplyDeleteWas your grandfather Ed or Ed Sr?
DeleteI use to be a regular there on weekends. In the breakdancing era. The early 80's to mid 80's.
ReplyDeleteWOW, I just about lived there in the 60's. I worked in the skate room so that I could skate for free, 8 times a week, twice on Sat and Sun. I skated dance and speed. I moved to Florida and Dick and she wife came to stay with us for a while. Those where really great days, it was my second family.
ReplyDeleteI just found this site. This has got to be Jimmy
DeleteLoved Riverdale. My youngest was two, still in diapers, disco playing and he just skated along in his coveralls. He had a couple of birthday parties there, too. I totally enjoyed the skating, the music but then I was in my early 30s and still with it !!! Never did learn how to skate backwards, though.
ReplyDeleteI skated there every Wednesday and Sunday
ReplyDeleteCouple corrections,RSROA = Roller Skating Rink Operators Association,Riverdale turned into RIVERDALE PROPERTIES and RIVERDALE WINDOW AND DOOR CORPORATION,Nothing to do with plumbing....
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed skating at Riverdale in 1948 and 1949. Best part was learning and skating the medal dances to live organ music and watching the free style skaters practicing their routines. My memory has faded some, but I believe the owners were Ed and Peggy Young and the organist was Amadie Pelletier, all very likeable persons. Ah.... sweet memories.
ReplyDeleteThe original owner was my grandfather and then it was run by my parents Ed and Peg. I don't remember Amadie Pelletier but I do remember Felix Tesler (sp?) and Frank Rowe.
DeleteI was a figure skater at riverdale. Went every Friday night, figure skater till 11am on Saturday stayed for afternoon secession from 12/4pm then went back from 7pm to 12, then Sunday 12/4, miss it so much wish they never closed my home away from home.
ReplyDeleteMy twin brother, Alan, and sister, Donna, spent much of our formative days skating and loving every quirk and aspect of the "Riverdale Experience." We started as first timers when our dad, Roy, would choose the day that had the discount if you had the right year penny!! All three of us gradually got more confidence and skilled and were ready for the "horse races": tough to describe unless you were there; horses made from barrels perched on a wheel/skate that we could just about straddle. That led to group lessons, then private lessons, then state and regional championships, none of which was anyway as wonderful as the people there we all came to know and love. The Youngs, Peabodys, David, Myrna, Spuntnik, Irene, Freddy, Brian, Paul, LuLu, et, al. Those were the days when if you had a "badge" that allowed you to pin it in on, you could practice "free style" in the "center section" of the rink. If your "badge" was in the single digits, you were pretty much "a name." All in all, it was a place to grow up in to match "never-never land" or "middle earth" , full of wonderful characters, smells, sights, and experiences more than most could dream of, more than able to carry you into high school, college, Viet Nam, marriage, work, and a great life all because you were a part of Riverdale.
ReplyDeleteHi Rob, just found this place. I heard that you moved to NH.
DeleteI learned the skate dances with my dance partner Jeannie L. at the R.S.R.O.A. Riverdale Rink during the late 1940s on Saturday nights and some Sunday mornings after Church services. We danced to the organ music played by Amadie Pelletier. Other friends included E. Giblin, Alice C. "Meatball" Patrarca. That was 74 y ears ago. I then joined the U.S. Navy and met the love of my life Arleene W. at the R.S.R.O.A. Palomar Roller Skating Rink in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Our children still have Arleene's roller skates and I still have 250 letters that Arleene and I exchanged while I was away in the navy. I treasured her and now the children and I treasure the letters.
ReplyDeleteMeant to say Alice C., and "Meatball" Patrarca".
ReplyDelete