Entertainment in Killingworth

Killingworth Images

The Killingworth Images, also called the automata, were located on Green Hill Road at its intersection with Coughlin Road. They were built by Clark Coe in the early 1900s for the amusement of his grandchildren. There were twelve life-sized figures of people and animals and a Ferris wheel with twenty-two small dolls. He built a stone dam across a small stream which ran down the meadow across from his house. A sluiceway ran from the dam to operate a small water wheel that supplied the power for the movement of the images. The figures were attached at the base in such a manner that caused them to be activated by the power of the water wheel. Each image was ingeniously made from driftwood, barrel staves, and tree branches. A bent limb would be used for a leg and a heavier piece of a tree trunk for a body. With other small pieces of wood, he contrived the arms and other parts. The figures were then painted and dressed in the clothing of the period. The bandmaster swung his baton while the fiddler and musician with lute played their instruments. A mother rocked her baby in a cradle and another mother used her hand to belabor a boy lying across her knees. A woman pulled a stubborn pig. A boy and a girl see-sawed continuously. Another figure was seated on a pig. The small dolls sat on swinging seats in the Ferris wheel which revolved endlessly. Even at night, the ghostly squeaking of the images could be heard by passersby. Clark Coe died in 1919 and the property was later bought by Dwight Parmelee who reclothed and maintained the images for some years.

“The Bandmaster”

Cowboy Valley

Cowboy Valley was a “Wild West” tourist attraction located southwest of the intersection of Stevens Road and Route 81. It opened in 1957 and closed in 1959, but despite its brief existence, is well remembered by residents living in the area at the time.  It consisted of a western town with a Bank, Gunsmith, Courthouse, Joe Jones, M. D., Wells Fargo Express, Land Office, Red Eye Saloon, a newspaper The Clarion, the Trading Post, Silver Lode Mining Co., Western Outfitters, General Store, Prairie Hotel, Silversmith, Barber Shop, and Bootmaker. Wild west enactments, including robberies and stagecoach holdups, were carried out in Cowboy Valley.

Children chase a robber at Cowboy Valley.