Coney Island Mermaid Parade and sideshow 'mermaid' traditions

Coney Island USA, located on Surf Avenue, organizes the annual Mermaid Parade (founded in 1983) celebrating Coney Island's seaside culture and its history of mermaid-themed sideshows. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Coney Island amusements and dime museums commonly exhibited staged 'mermaids' and fabricated curiosities as attractions, contributing to a local tradition of hoaxes and tall-tale entertainments. The modern parade and Coney Island USA explicitly reference and celebrate that legacy of theatrical, larger-than-life seaside storytelling.