Mike Funyak, a 2011 Penn-Trafford High School alumnus who works in the amusement park industry, is looking for material for his proposed book about Allegheny County’s long-gone West View Park.
Located in the North Hills from 1906-77, the park made an impression on Funyak through his mother, Rosanne, and her parents, Mary and Vito Alioto, who met there.
“A lot of my mother’s family are from the North Hills, and a lot of them patronized the park and some worked there,” Funyak said. The Danceland ballroom and the Dips and Racing Whippet roller coasters were among the popular attractions that once drew throngs to the park.
Charles J. Jacques Jr. wrote the book “Goodbye, West View Park, Goodbye” a few years after the park’s demise. Funyak said he hopes to expand on that volume by searching for previously unpublished images and stories and by delving into the industry contributions of park founder Theodore Marshall Harton, who died in 1919, his company and coaster designers Ed and Andy Vettel.
“The park is the central story, but the entire story is truly the story of the T.M. Harton Company,” said Funyak, who noted he is consulting with members of the Harton family. Harton, he said, “helped pave the way for the advancement of roller coaster designs,” which he exported to England and Europe.
Funyak, who holds a business administration degree from Robert Morris University, is assistant director of operations at DelGrosso’s Park in Tipton. “It’s always great knowing what I do for a living is making people happy,” he said.
Those interested in sharing stories or materials for Funyak’s book can reach him at mdfunyak@gmail.com or 724-953-7414. They also can check out his Facebook group to provide input for his project.
