Auroraadvocate.com - 150 recall fun days of Big Dipper and Geauga Lake Park

by Ken Lahmers

Editor

Aurora -- They came to remember a legend which they hope will not vanish from the area's landscape.

It wasn't a living person, but a wooden structure which has provided countless thrills for millions of people in the last 80-plus years.

About 150 people turned out April 25 at Aurora VFW Post 2629 to reminisce about the 83-year-old Big Dipper roller coaster and the former Geauga Lake amusement park.

And some possible options to preserve the Dipper and perhaps see it operate again were explored.

The gathering was organized by former Auroran Dave Mitchell, who now lives in western Pennsylvania. It was not affiliated with Cedar Fair Entertainment, which owns the former park land and still operates Geauga Lake's Wildwater Kingdom.

"We hope something can be worked out to preserve the coaster," said Mitchell, whose parents still live in Aurora. "I hope the Dipper doesn't meet the bulldozers some day."

Laid out in the VFW's lower level were many items of park memorabilia -- photos, posters and even the woolly head of Geauga Dog, the park's one-time costumed mascot.

Attendees heard three speakers relate park history, and talk about Big Dipper designer John A. Miller and how other famous old amusement rides have been preserved.

Charles Jacques, an attorney who has written several books about amusement parks, was up first. He's working on one about Geauga Lake.

HE SAID HE first visited the park in the 1960s, and called the site "a beautiful spot for a park." He reminisced about the sounds, particularly that of The Wave.

"Miller loved to design coasters," he said. "Some of his weren't real profitable; in fact, the Big Dipper wasn't in its early years.

"I remember when Premier Parks bought Six Flags and Sea World, and I thought for sure Geauga Lake would survive. But history proved otherwise."

Author and amusement park historian Jim Futrell presented a brief history of the park from its acquisition by Funtime Inc. until its closing in 2007.

"Although the 1950s and '60s were not good times for some parks, it was the golden era for Geauga Lake," he said. "The Funtime management [three former executives from Cedar Point] really put the park on the map."

Futrell said Geauga Lake and Sea World complemented each other. From 1969 to 1979, employment at Geauga Lake rose from 200 to 900, and the park eventually topped the $1 million mark in profits annually.

There was a time after the Double Loop and Corkscrew were built that Geauga Lake was the nation's only park with two looping coasters.

The park also started the trend of combining thrill rides with water complexes in the early 1980s when The Wave debuted.

When the Raging Wolf Bobs was built in the late 1980s, the park's attendance exceeded 1 million annually.

Futrell said the Texas Twister was a first-of-a-kind ride, and he added Geauga Lake was well known for its unique promotions.

Although a huge expansion took place after Premier Parks took over in 1995, the eventual closing of Sea World dealt a severe blow to the park and attendance began dropping when the 21st century arrived.

TWINSBURG resident Howard Gillooly, an information technology manager, spoke about how historic rides at some defunct parks have been preserved, including coasters at Lakemont Park near Altoona, Pa., and Mission Beach in San Diego.

He said some parks, including two in Texas and California, have been turned into mixed-use complexes, with old rides as centerpieces.

A former park in Phoenix has been converted to a family entertainment center, while Conneaut Lake Park in western Pennsylvania and Arnold's Park in Iowa are operated as non-profit entities.

Former privately-owned parks in New Orleans and Rye, N.Y. are government-owned, while Coney Island in Cincinnati and a park in Bowling Green, Ky., have been revived by entrepreneurs after having closed.

"We're not here to endorse any particular plan for the Big Dipper; we just want to see it preserved," said Mitchell. "We'd like to see it stay here and once again be a great benefit to the community."

He stressed the important thing is to "put something on that site which can provide jobs and tax revenue."

While stressing that his organization had no part in sponsoring the gathering, Aurora Historical Society President Tim Holder said the group has been instrumental in documenting the park's history.

He said the society has many artifacts, photos and memorabilia relating to the park, and will do its best to keep its memory alive for generations to come.

He said the society is printing postcards of Geauga Lake scenes to sell to the public, and will reissue a photo of the park's Marcus Illions carousel.

E-mail:

klahmers@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3155