Children zoom down the 165-foot Magic Carpet Slide on North Alvernon Way near East 22nd Street in 1968 at speeds approaching 35 miles per hour.

The Tucson Citizen called it “a slide-ride with a whing-ding of a hill-thrill on South Alvernon Way.” It was the Magic Carpet Slide, which opened in September 1968. The slide was 35 feet tall and 165 feet long. The owners said you could reach 35 mph in your burlap bag. Cost for a thrill ride: 10 cents. Go to tucson.com/retrotucson to see more photos.


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