donated Cascade Park to the city of New Castle, stipulating that the area be forever used for public recreation. During the second quarter of the century, park attendance began to decline. The lake, popular for fishing, swimming, and boating, dried up when the Big Run dam broke. In the 1950s, Paul Vesco entered into a contract with the city to operate the park. He removed the original Gorge and replaced it with a new roller coaster of his own design, originally using the same name (Gorge), but several years later changing the name to The Comet. The coaster cars were built by National Amusement Devices, in their popular Century Flyer style. The coaster's highest point was and boasted a track length. One of the coaster's most unusual features was that it was built on the edge of a valley. Most roller coasters of the day were towed up to the highest point by a chain and as the energy and momentum of the coaster was expended, the hills got smaller towards the end. The Gorge/Comet was different in that it left the station at ground level and "fell" into the valley, so the first drop was actually the second biggest drop. The coaster went down the valley, turned around and went up a chain hoist to the opposite side of the valley. It then turned around and dropped into the valley for the coaster's biggest dip and came back up the hill to return into the back of the station. The park managed to stay afloat during the 1970s and early 1980s despite a continuing drop in attendance. The coaster was damaged in 1982 when a tree fell on it. By this time the area had fallen on hard economic times, and the Comet was torn down several years later. Renewed interest and revival A New Castle square dancing group called the Paws and Taws began raising funds in the late 1970s to repair and restore the park's historic dance pavilion. Community interest in reviving the park soon followed, and the Cascade Park Development Committee, a group of volunteers, organized in 1980. The group came up with a plan to restore the park, and it was agreed at that point that any future development at the park would reflect its Victorian roots. During the 1980s, the park's old rides were removed, flowers and shrubs were planted, buildings were improved, public