Fun on Wheels

In the mid-twentieth century, several summer amusements were concentrated in one convenient location on the southern end of St. Simons Island. Built in 1950, Glynn County’s International Style Casino provided a variety of entertainment, including a bowling alley and a swimming pool, steps from the St. Simons Lighthouse. The new building was adjacent to another structure, which was also called the Casino when it was built in the late 1930s. This structure remains today and houses a library and theater. One of the new Casino’s main attractions was a roller-skating rink, which drew eager attendees from both the island and the mainland. Located on the upper floor of the casino, the rink kept its rules prominently posted. Skaters were to wear “proper dress” and avoid reckless skating or the use of profanity.

When the Casino first opened, its facilities were segregated. Although African American residents and visitors could not use the Casino’s roller rink, the Harrington neighborhood had its own nearby rink. The rink, owned by Eula and Evans Lee, served a dual purpose, also housing a game room for visitors.

Whether or not they patronized the local amenities, young residents of mid-century St. Simons often found that they could make their own summer fun. Fishing, crabbing, swimming, and team sports occupied many a child’s days. Resident Diane Haywood remembered making a game of counting cars near her home on Frederica Road—often, she said, spotting “maybe about twenty or thirty a day.”

Jonathan Lorenzo Williams was born on Sapelo Island but moved to St. Simons during his childhood. In Voices from St. Simons, oral histories collected and compiled by Stephen Doster, Williams recalled that the local roads provided hours of fun, whether you were counting cars or traveling the routes yourself. “Believe it or not, we had fun growing up on the island,” Williams remembered. “We would have roller-skate races from the East Beach Causeway bridge to Demere Road, and we’d skate all the way to Fort Frederica and back. The roller-skate wheels were made of steel, and you carried spares in your pocket. So when you wore out a wheel, you stopped, put another one on, and kept going.”

This month’s featured images from the collections of the Coastal Georgia Historical Society include a view of the Glynn County Casino with the St. Simons Lighthouse in the background and a photograph of skaters on the second-floor rink. The Glynn County Casino was demolished in 2003 and was replaced by a new swimming pool and recreation area in 2009.

The Coastal Georgia Historical Society presents this article and images from our archives as part of our mission “to connect people to Coastal Georgia’s dynamic history.” The Society operates the iconic St. Simons Lighthouse Museum and the World War II Home Front Museum, housed in the Historic Coast Guard Station at East Beach. To learn more about the Society, its museums, diverse programs, and membership, please visit coastalgeorgiahistory.org.