Six Degrees of Abandoned Amusement Parks
Over the years, some of the most incredible abandoned places I've photographed have been defunct amusement parks. The six locations featured on this site all have a historical link to each other ...sort of.
It's like "six degrees of separation," except with abandoned amusement parks...
Click the link above the photo to see a detailed history, more images and the story of each location.
In 1956, work began on The Detroit Children's Zoo. The facility on Belle Isle in the Detroit River gave rise to its iconic thatched roof and wooden walkway structure. Some time in the 1980's it became...
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| - The iconic structure's of "Safariland" aka The Detroit Children's Zoo. |
Safariland/The Detroit Children's Zoo was subsequently abandoned in 2002. In 1956, as work began on the children's zoo, a brand new amusement park opened in Angola, Indiana known as...
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| - Funspot's signature ride: "The Afterburner." |
Just 45 minutes north of Fort Wayne, Fun Spot operated until 2009 when the "economy," closed it down. The park's signature ride was "The Afterburner," a looping steel coaster. An identical ride once operated at Kings Island Amusement Park north of Cincinnati, which is located right across the highway from...
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| - A dried up water slide at "The Beach." The Beach is set to re-open in 2013! |
The Beach abruptly announced its closure just before it opened for the 2012 season. While new owners have plans to revive and reopen the park for 2013, The Beach was void of water and visitors for an entire summer. In a marketing ploy nine years earler, it was accepting the non-refundable season passes of another Cincinnati waterpark that also closed abruptly. That park was...
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| - The wave pool attraction Surf Cincinnati filled with standing water and discarded lounge chairs. |
Surf Cincinnati had closed one year after another nearby amusement park and marketing partner had shut down - a park that Surf used to share radio and coke can advertisements with. A park once known as...
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| - Americana's iconic "Screechin' Eagle" coaster with weeds growing through the track. |
Americana/LeSourdsville Lake had been a local stable since 1922, closing eighty years later after its 2002 season. One of its iconic attractions was its wooden roller coaster named "The Screechin' Eagle." In the late 80s, Americana drew up plans to install another major, wooden roller coaster, but the plans didn't materialize. The never built coaster's design and layout was eventually used in the construction of a ride called "Thunder Run" which resides at the now defunct...
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| - The tracks of "Thunder Run" becoming overgrown with vegitation. |
Kentucky Kingdom is currently in the middle of negotiations to try and reopen under a new ownership and lease agreement through the state of Kentucky's fair board, but the future is uncertain. Meanwhile, weeds continue to grow through the tracks of "Thunder Run."