Cedar Point is a 364-acre amusement park located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio, USA. [1]
Cedar Point's Ohio Historical Marker
History[]
Beachgoers in the 1890s [2]
Cedar Point opened in 1870, and is now considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the United States. Originally opened as a bathhouse, beer garden, and dance pavilion owned and operated by Louis Zistel. People were brought to the peninsula by his steamship the Young Reindeer. Cedar Point's first named ride, the Water Trapeze was opened in 1880 [3] and the first roller coaster, the Switchback Railway, was built in 1892. [2]
Hotel Breakers in 1905
The Cedar Point Pleasure Resort Company was formed in 1897 by Representatives of the Lake Erie and Western Railroad. George A. Boeckling was appointed as the park's manager. [4] In 1899 the first hotel on property, the Bay Shore Hotel was opened, having been converted from a pavilion. [3] In 1905 Hotel Breakers was opened to the public and still operates to this day. The hotel featured brass beds, oak dressers, Austrian wicker furniture, with running water and Tiffany stained glass windows in the lobby. It cost an average of $2 per night. [5]
The 1939 updated ballroom[5]
By the 1920s Cedar Point was beginning to become an amusement park, though Boeckling chose to advertise Cedar Point as a bathing resort with shows, exhibits, motion pictures and other forms of entertainment. [6] The second floor of the Coliseum was modernized in 1938 and some of the top bands of the time were booked to play in the ballroom. Because of this investment, Cedar Point was saved from sale to the state. [7] In May 1951, the Cyclone was removed because of its poor condition, leaving Cedar Point without a roller coaster until 1959. [3] In 1952 regular steamer service no longer went to Cedar Point, and the steamships were sold off. [8] In 1956 George Roose and Emile Legros brought Cedar Point with plans to turning the park into a housing development. Public outcry stopped this from happening and investors began to make big changes. The Cedar Point Marina was opened and the Cedar Point Causeway was built to help manage traffic in 1957, and the Causeway is how most guests enter the park today. [9]
Blue Streak under construction in 1964 [10]
In 1961, the dirt midway was paved as the park began to transform into the Cedar Point recognizable today. Named after the local high school's sports team, Blue Streak was constructed in 1964- making it Cedar Point's oldest still operating roller coaster. [11] Frontiertown was added in 1968 as the first expansion into the tip of the peninsula. Frontiertown was only accessible by the Cedar Point and Lake Erie Railroad or the Frontier Lift. [9]
Rides[]
Cedar Point currently has 70 rides, ranging from family friendly to high thrills. Many rides have come and gone over the years, so only current rides are shown on this page. [12]
Roller Coasters[]
In order of the year it was built:
| Roller Coaster | Year Built | Height (ft) | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Streak | 1964 | 78 | 4 |
| Cedar Creek Mine Ride | 1969 | 48 | 4 |
| Corkscrew | 1976 | 85 | 5 |
| Gemini | 1978 | 125 | 5 |
| Iron Dragon | 1987 | 76 | 4 |
| Magnum XL-200 | 1989 | 205 | 5 |
| Raptor | 1994 | 137 | 5 |
| Woodstock Express | 1999 | 38 | 4 |
| Millenium Force | 2000 | 310 | 5 |
| Top Thrill Dragster | 2003 | 420 | 5 |
| Maverick | 2007 | 105 | 5 |
| Gatekeeper | 2013 | 170 | 5 |
| Wilderness Run | 2014 | 19 | 2 |
| Rougaru | 2015 | 145 | 5 |
| Valravn | 2016 | 223 | 5 |
| Steel Vengence | 2018 | 205 | 5 |
Thrill Rides[]
In order of year built:
| Thrill Ride | Year Built | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Scrambler | 1960 | 3. |
| Cedar Downs Racing Derby | 1967 | 3 |
| Calypso | 1970 | 3 |
| Dodgem | 1970 | 4 |
| Monster | 1970 | 3 |
| Super Himalaya | 1970 | 3 |
| Matterhorn | 1972 | 3 |
| Troika | 1976 | 3 |
| Wave Swinger | 1979 | 3 |
| Ocean Motion | 1982 | 3 |
| Power Tower | 1998 | 5 |
| maXair | 2005 | 5 |
| Skyhawk | 2006 | 5 |
| WindSeeker | 2011 | 4 |
| Slingshot | 2014 | 5 |
| Professor Delbert's Frontier Fling | 2017 | 5 |
Family Rides[]
In order of year built:
| Family Ride | Year Built | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Midway Carousel | 1946 | 1 |
| Cadillac Cars | 1960 | 3 |
| Sky Ride | 1961 | 3 |
| Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad | 1963 | 1 |
| Space Spiral | 1965 | 2 |
| Turnpike Cars | 1965 | 3 |
| Kiddy Kingdom Carousel | 1968 | 1 |
| Antique Cars | 1969 | 3 |
| Giant Wheel | 1972 | 2 |
| 4x4s | 1990 | 2 |
| Tilt-A-Whirl | 1999 | 3 |
| Camp Bus | 1999 | 2 |
| Balloon Race | 1999. | 2 |
| Red Baron | 1999 | 2 |
| Peanuts 500 | 1999 | 2 |
| Linus Beetle Bug | 1999 | 3 |
| Charlie Brown's Wind-Up | 1999 | 2 |
| Woodstock's Airmail | 1999 | 2 |
| Lake Erie Eagles | 2014 | 3 |
| Forbidden Frontier | 2019 | N/A |
Water Rides[]
In order of year built:
| Water Ride | Year Built | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Thunder Canyon | 1986 | 4 |
| Snake River Falls | 1993 | 5 |
| Shoot the Rapids | 2010 | 5 |
Cedar Point Shores[]
Cedar Point's water park that is located next to the park. Previously known as Soak City, it offers a series of waterslides, tube slides, a wave pool, and a kiddie area. The waterpark operates on different hours than the park does. For more information visit the article: Cedar Point Shores.
Slides[]
In order of year built:
| Slides | Year Built | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Erie Nor'easter | 2017 | 5 |
| Crosscurrent | 2017 | 5 |
| Perch Plunge | 2017 | 4 |
| Runaway Raceway | 2017 | 4 |
| Point Plummet | 2017 | 5 |
| Storm Surge | 2017 | 5 |
| Lakeside Landing | 2017 | 3 |
| Pointside Plunge | 2017 | 5 |
| Wild Walleye | 2017 | 5 |
Other Attractions[]
In order of year built:
| Other Attractions | Year Built | Thrill Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Breakaway Bay | 2017 | 4 |
| Cedar Creek | 2017 | 2 |
| Runaway Rapids | 2017 | 2 |
| Great Lakes Cove | 2017 | 3 |
| Waterin' Hole | 2017 | 1 |
| The Sandlot | 2017 | 1 |
| SplasH2O | 2017 | 2 |
| Lilly Pad Walk | 2017 | 3 |
| Lemmy's Lagoon | 2017 | 1 |
Photo Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceder_point
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 http://sanduskyhistory.blogspot.com/2013/10/cedar-point-grew-along-with-middle.html
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Miller, K. (2019). Rolling Through the Years: A Cedar Point Atlas & Chronology. 1870 Publishing Group.
- ↑ https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p267401coll13/id/1669
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201303/3408/
- ↑ Francis, David W.; Francis, Diane DeMali (1988). Cedar Point: The Queen of American Watering Places. Daring Books.
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130607024713/http://thepointol.com/cedar-point-history-1905-1949
- ↑ https://www.cedarpoint.com/blog/media-center/cedar-point-timeline-1870-1969
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20130607024717/http://thepointol.com/cedar-point-history-1950-1969
- ↑ http://sanduskyhistory.blogspot.com/2021/05/the-blue-streak.html
- ↑ https://www.cpinsiders.net/blue-streak.html
- ↑ http://www.cedarpoint.com/