Today there are walking paths and nature vistas, along with a few structures from the past, but most of the memories lie in the minds of those who grew up visiting Benson’s Wild Animal Farm in Hudson.
My family visited Benson’s nearly every summer for a number of years. More than a zoo, Benson’s was an amusement park. There were snakes, tigers, and a gorilla, but also children’s play areas and a roller-coaster. We have photos of us posed in front of a stone lion at the entrance to the park.
I don’t think anyone liked Colossus the Gorilla. He was huge and scary, at least to us children, but he also was mean, and increasingly so as the years passed. His favorite pastime was flinging dung at the visitors standing outside his cage. Who can blame him, kept locked in that small cage for years when he should have been roaming the forests?
The amusement park closed in 1987, so my children never got a chance to visit.
I recall that my personal favorite was a labyrinth which, as a young boy, seemed huge and daunting and endless. My parents were impatient, I’m sure, as I dawdled inside the lines of shrubbery, enjoying being lost. Years later, when I visited Benson’s with an exchange student from England, the labyrinth proved to be a small, poorly maintained structure, and the roller-coaster was pretty small, too.
Memories of Benson’s get confused with visits to Storyland, up north in Glen, because both parks had an Old Mother Who Lived in a Shoe attraction. When Benson’s reopened as a restored park, most signs of the old Animal Farm had disappeared, but those wandering through can still discover the old Shoe and children can still have a great time playing in and around the structure.
The new Benson’s is featured in “Only In Your State” which brings back some of those memories for those of us old enough to have experienced the park in its heyday.
Gone But Not Forgotten
The Bristol Fire Department posted on its Facebook page an announcement about the death of a retired fire captain. “We learned yesterday [Tuesday] that retired Bristol Fire Captain Mike Goss passed away. He was one of our first full time professional firefighters and endeared by many in the department and the community. We mourn his loss, but celebrate his fight to the end with grace and dignity and his contributions to our community. Please keep his family in your thoughts,” they wrote.
New Scam
The Franklin Police Department posted a warning on Wednesday about a new scam soliciting money from businesses. “Aubuchon's received a call from a female who identified herself as ‘Angela’ saying she was from the Paul Smith School and was looking for sponsorship for a homework club program. To follow up, the representative from Aubuchon called the Paul Smith School to verify the program. The school stated they had no knowledge of anyone named Angela or a program that would be looking for sponsorship from local businesses or citizens. With the new round of stimulus payments and tax season nearing, the probability of attempted scams to separate you from your money is bound to increase.”
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