The Silver Beach Amusement Park
The Silver Beach Amusement Park by Erin Farwell A few weeks ago I had a short story published in a Halloween-themed mystery anthology. Someone asked me how I came up with my idea and I explained how I decided on a corn maze as a location and the story emerged from there. Until this conversation, I hadn’t realized that this is how I work. One of my favorite settings to date is the Silver Beach Amusement Park in St. Joseph, Michigan from Shadowlands . Logan Drake purchased lake front property from local Indians in 1891. Starting small, Drake and his partner Louis Wallace, had cabins, canoes and small boats to rent to tourists who came from Chicago, northern Indiana and Wisconsin. A large wood slide was built and people enjoyed sliding into the chilly Lake Michigan waters. Within a few years a hand-carved carousel and German calliope was added along with a small roller coaster, photography booth and trinket shops. By 1900 the airplane ride, ice cream parlor and beer garden ...