Staley's Views of Coney Island viewbook

Coney Island is an oceanfront neighborhood located in Southwest Brooklyn that is adjacent to the neighborhoods of Sea Gate to the West and Brighton Beach to the East. Coney Island became known as a destination as early as 1824 when the first oceanfront resort, the Coney Island House, opened. After the American Civil War ended in 1865, the development of Coney Island progressed quickly due to the opening of train lines that connected Southwest Brooklyn to the more populated areas of Brooklyn and beyond. The accelerated development of Coney Island brought seasonal businesses, as well as more visitors. Between 1897 and 1904, three amusement parks opened along the main street closest to the ocean in Coney Island, Surf Avenue. In 1897, Steeplechase Park, filled with shows and rides such as the Steeplechase Horses, the Human Roulette Wheel, and the Blowhole Theater, opened to the public. Luna Park was the next to open in 1903, offering attractions such as the Trip to the Moon, the Helter Skelter Slide, and the Dragon's Gorge, as well as a lavish nighttime setting illuminated by thousands of electric lights. By 1904, Luna Park was pulling in a daily attendance of 90,000 people during its busy season. Also in 1904, Dreamland opened to the public. Dreamland differed from the other two parks in that it featured attractions inspired by international destinations such as the Japanese Tea Garden and the Fall of Pompeii, as well as a lagoon surrounded by an enormous hippodrome and rides such as the Haunted Swing and Shooting-the-Chutes. In 1911, Dreamland suffered a major fire that destroyed most of its attractions and killed many of the animals that were used in its shows. The park closed soon after.

In 1920, the subway was extended to Coney Island which helped to transport an average of one million visitors per weekend to Coney Island's amusement parks and public beaches during its busy summer season. In 1924, a 2.51 mile boardwalk opened (officially called the Riegelmann Boardwalk) that extended from Sea Gate to Brighton Beach. In 1944, Luna Park suffered a major fire and closed. During the 1940s and 1950s, New York City Parks Commissioner Robert Moses changed the scale and focus of Coney Island by widening its beaches, getting rid of many of its older attractions, building a municipal aquarium and skating rink, and supporting the rezoning of much of the area for residential use only. Astroland, the space age-themed amusement park, opened in 1962, filling in some of the gaps left behind with the closing of Dreamland and Luna Park. In 1964, the last remaining original amusement park, Steeplechase Park, closed. Astroland too was closed in 2008. As of 2011, Coney Island still has an amusement district, but on a much smaller scale than in its heyday. Several rides have survived, in part, due to their National Historic Landmark status, including the Wonder Wheel, the Cyclone roller coaster, and the Parachute Jump. A new version of Luna Park opened in May of 2010, but much of Coney Island's beachfront property is still in dispute between the city, local residents, and real estate developers.

Charles Francis Press published viewbooks, among other genres, in the early 20th century. Their office was located at 30 West 13th Street in Manhattan. Viewbooks, also called souvenir albums or view albums, are books that contain commercially published groups of photographs depicting a place, activity, or event.

Frank W. Staley was a photographer who created viewbooks that included his photographs. Some of his titles include Staley's Views of Coney Island (1908); Staley's Views: Los Angles, 1914-1915; and Staley's Views of Philadelphia,(1911).