Parks. Thrills. Nostalgia.
The featured photo above is courtesy the Hershey-Derry Township Historical Society. If you are interested in looking at more photos in their collection, check out the Historical Society’s Online Collections Database after reading this article! On April 21, it was the 50th anniversary of the opening of Hersheypark for its 1968 season. This was Hersheypark’s
The Rotor was invented in Europe in the 1940s and was brought to the United States in 1951. Kennywood Park installed a Rotor in 1955, and Hersheypark installed a Rotor in 1970.
The Bug was one of Hershepark’s most classic rides, located in the Hollow, adjacent to Comet.
The Wild Cat operated in Hersheypark from 1923 to 1945. It was manufactured by Philadelphia Toboggan Company and The Wild Cat was the first roller coaster designed by Herbert P. Schmeck.
This is a special article about the history of Waagner-Biro’s double and triple wheels. For more information about Giant Wheel at Hersheypark see here and here. Waagner-Biro produced a new kind of Ferris Wheel in the 1970s through the 1980s that were twin or triplet wheels attached to a swivel bar to raise the wheel into
One of the earliest rides purchased by Hersheypark, the Miniature Railroad debuted in 1910 and was operated to the 1971 season. This is a detailed review of the history of the Miniature Railroad.
In 1926, Hersheypark installed their first two kiddie rides, Airplane Swing and Kiddie Ferris Wheel (1926). Nearby, the park installed their first bumper car ride, Skooter. Skooter was located in the building that once housed the Herschell-Spillman and Dentzel carousels approximately where Fender Bender is located in the park today. The Dentzel carousel had been
James K. Putt – who went by the name Jim – was a chief builder for Milton S. Hershey for the first 25 years of the town of Hershey’s existence. He was born on May 26, 1856, and died on May 11, 1938. Putt lived in Hershey from 1904 until his death. He was married
After the 1911 season, the popularity of the park’s first carousel required the park to purchase a larger carousel for the park. The original carousel, often called the Merry-Go-Round, was a smaller Hershchell-Spillman carousel. It simply didn’t meet the needs of Hersheypark’s operation in 1911, and so the ride was slated to be replaced. For
I recently wrote about a water ride at Hersheypark called Bike Boats. I wanted to look into the subject of the ride a bit more, so here is a look at the Bike Boats ride, one of the most popular attractions in 1930 and 1931. Bicycle boats have been patented as far back as the