Tolchester Beach Bandstand

From 1880 until 1962, musicians entertained summer visitors from this bandstand at Tolchester Beach, a resort town and amusement park in Kent County, Maryland. Constructed to attract daytrippers traveling by steamboat from Baltimore and Washington, D.C., Tolchester Beach was part of a golden era of nineteenth century amusement parks, with Coney Island serving as the most famous example. Like many amusement parks today, Tolchester Beach boasted a roller coaster, a penny arcade, and a shooting gallery. Visitors could rent a bathing suit and take a dip, and enjoy an ice cream or picnic under the trees while listening to the latest tunes played on the bandstand. Today, the bandstand is one of the few structures remaining from Tolchester Beach, which closed in 1962 and was later demolished.

St. Michaels, Maryland · United States