Historic Greater Portland: Riverton Park
Where the Presumscot River crosses route 302 at the Portland-Westbrook line, lies a small jewel of a wooded park. Walking paths criss-cross the property. Looking at it today one can scarcely imagine the bustling developed vacation trolley park the area was 100 years ago. Fortunately, history has left us photos and postcards of a time long gone. Riverton Park opened for business in the summer of 1896. 
The park was owned and operated by the Portland Street Railroad Company and consisted of about 40 acres on the banks of the Presumpscot River. The thing that bought the city people to the park in droves was the Casino. This significant building featured parlors, a dining hall, a reception room as well as smoking, reading, and game rooms. In the game rooms, visitors played chess, checkers and dominos. The park also featured a zoo, a boat launch, pony rides, and open air theater and more. The trolley park was a popular destination until it closed in 1930, a victim of both a series of fires and the economic collapse.
