Contact

One last story about Linn County's "Manhattan Beach" connections.

Frank Brookhiser (1884-1971) purchased the Manhattan Beach dance pavilion from A. S. ("Snapper") Kennedy in 1925. He was a traveling salesman for the Burlington Fruit Co. for 14 years before starting a dance hall after WWI. He moved to Cedar Rapids in 1923 and opened the Dreamland Ballroom. Brookhiser was an early adopter of radio, and broadcast music live daily from 2 to 4 p.m. over WJAM. He added "Manhattan Beach" to his dance hall portfolio two years later. In the days before air-conditioning an open-air facility like Manhattan Beach was a popular and even essential venue for dancing and music fans in the summer.

In Aug. 1926 Brookhiser closed the Dreamland and opened the Danceland Ballroom, which was 3X larger. Brookhiser hired the best architects and workmen to redecorate the warehouse space over the Majestic theatre garage in the style of a Spanish hacienda. Henry Arp of Marion's Arp Paint Co. was given the critical work of painting the interior to capture the weathering effect of the sun on the stucco walls, the deep interior shadows and a starry sky overhead. Brookhiser made Danceland CR's favorite Winter ballroom for many years and continued operating the Manhattan Beach in the Summer.

In 1930 he leased Manhattan Beach to L. W. Jones and R. A Fryrear who had worked at Danceland for several years. It didn't last long. Brookhiser continued to manage Danceland through the Great Depression. He sold the business to Woodrow H. Wenkstern of Guttenberg in 1939 for a reported $15,000. He was a tireless volunteer on the gasoline panel of the local rationing board in WWII, when he wasn't engaging in his favorite hobbies: trap shooting, hunting and fishing. See Brookhiser at Find a Grave memorial # 107002766.

Next time: The Cedar River Palisades ... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago  ·  

Albert S. ("Snapper") Kennedy (1868-1934) was born in Bellevue, KY, just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, where his father worked as a printer. He grew up playing baseball with his older brothers. William ("Ed") Kennedy played 3b for the Cincinnati Outlaw Reds in the short-lived Union Association in 1884. The Kennedy family moved to KS in 1885 and Albert joined his brothers Ed, Harry and Joe in forming a local baseball team, the McCook "Famous". . . and the were! Albert soon eclipsed his brothers in every baseball tool: hitting, fielding, speed and versatility. He started playing professional minor league baseball in 1892 with the Beatrice, NE team and in subsequent years signed with the St. Joseph Saints (1893), New Orleans Pelicans (1894), Memphis Pirates (1894) and the Lincoln, NE club (1895).

Kennedy was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in 1896 but came down with a lingering bout of malaria. He withdrew from consideration, telling the team he couldn't play up to his or their standards. He didn't play ball that season and instead worked as a brakeman on the Vandalia RR west of Indianapolis until he regained his health. In 1897 he came to Cedar Rapids to play shortstop for the CR Rabbits. Norfolk, VA signed him in 1898, and then the club in Patterson, NJ. He went to Syracuse, NY in 1899 and then returned to Patterson in 1900.

In 1901 Snapper came back to Cedar Rapids to play 2b for the Rabbits. He returned in 02. He announced his retirement in 1903 and his intent to settle down in McCook, NE and manage a cigar store he bought there, but was lured out of retirement to act as player-manager-owner of the new McCook baseball team. He rejoined the Rabbits late in the season for their pennant run.

Kennedy retired as a player in 1904 and signed to manage the Ottumwa club. They finished first in the Iowa League that year and the next. In Nov. 1904 he signed a lease to take over the Cedar Rapids Auditorium and opened a roller skating rink, which he operated in the off-season for many years while he continued managing baseball clubs every summer. His record of success was unmatched and he wrote his own ticket; generally he had a financial interest in the teams he managed. In 1906 it was in Davenport; Marshalltown in 1907; Oskaloosa in 1908-09, and; Aurora, IL in 1910.

In Oct. 1910 Kennedy signed a long-term lease with the Cedar Rapids Auditorium owners and took control year-around. Winter roller skating continued, but after painting and upgrading the facility he began hosting circuses, poultry shows, automobile shows, conventions, wrestling and boxing matches, among many other events. He also became an automobile dealer about the same time, and after WWI a music promotor signing groups to play at his Manhattan Beach dance pavilion and organizing a local dance band he called the "Rag-a-dores." He formed the Iowa State Athletic Club in 1921 and made the city auditorium a major boxing venue for several years. Kennedy moved to Denver in 1930 to live with his son. He found a quieter life as a night watchman in a funeral parlor. He married Ethel Rattenbury in Cedar Rapids in 1906 and they had one son, Albert Sidney, Jr. See him at Find a Grave memorial # 117921871. ... See MoreSee Less

6 days ago  ·  

The "Manhattan Beach" label has been resurrected many times since Tom Kelty came up with it and attached to new recreational enterprises in the area. In 1915, Julius Kortlang, manager of the popular downtown Boyson Cafe, established a summer resort of that name on 18 acres he leased from Kelty. Facilities included a club house and restaurant, an open-air dance pavilion, a beach for boating, swimming and frolicking, plus picnic and camping areas. The resort opened with tremendous public excitement but a rainy summer squelched attendance and the resort was bankrupt after just two months. It reopened in 1916 under the management of Albert ("Snapper") Kennedy (1871-1934) a former star on the CR Rabbits baseball team and a leading local sports impresario. He managed the resort until 1925 and then sold it to Frank Brookhiser (1884-1971). The dance pavilion at Manhattan Beach was Brookhiser's primary interest and he operated it every summer until 1930 and the Great Depression. He also built the fabulous Danceland ballroom in CR in 1926, which kept CR jitterbugging until WWII.

In 1934 Bessie Whitney (1890-1967) opened the Manhattan Amusement Park on Kelty's riverfront. It included amusement rides and concessions, plus a beer garden and nightly dancing. It devolved into just a nite club after a couple of months and Kelty never found another lessor. Bessie was the widow of Frank Whitney--boxer, promoter and manager of Cedar Park on Marion Boulevard (1929-1934). See Bessie and Frank R. Whitney at Find a Grave memorial # 29478962. "Snapper" Kennedy is at memorial # 117921871. F. A. Brookhiser is at # 107002766. More about "Snapper" Kennedy next time. ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago  ·