Cedar Point Amusement Park
Magnum Roller Coaster
As long as you are in Ohio, check out Cedar Point in Sandusky. It is 364 glorious acres of fun, fun, fun. Cedar point amusement park boasts of having the most roller coaster rides in the world and four of them are over 200 feet high (61 m). Located on a narrow strip of land that sticks out into Lake Eire, it has everything you can imagine — water parks, hotels, marinas, go carts and all the amusement rides.
It is also the second oldest amusement park in America. Building began in an 1870 picnic and fishing area when a cabinet maker first constructed a beer garden and dance floor on the property. He added bath houses, a playground and charged for a ride on his boat. However, his business went under and it wasn’t until 1882 that leases were set, improvements were made and picnic tables and another boat were added. Then in 1890, a grand pavilion complete with a confections opened. At last the first roller coaster was constructed — the Switchback Railway which needed horses to pull it back into place.
Next came the figure eight toboggan coaster — cost per ride? One nickel. And what are rides without a hotel so you can stay and ride longer? Add to that a swing, a carousel, a coliseum, a railroad and you have a theme park.
After that came more hotels, a ballroom, gardens and prohibition. Not good news for the beer garden. Still the building continued until the owner died in 1931and the great depression kept riders away. When the depression ended, along came the hot dog, good times and French fries. But the rides needed improvement. .
Cedar Point Amusement Park has a rich history of owners and additions including a monorail, the Wild Mouse roller coaster, the Crystal Rock Castle, San Francisco Earthquake Ride, the Magnum XL-200 roller coaster, the Mean Streak and more with names like Mantis and Banshee.
Cedar Point is normally open from May through Labor Day, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. On July 4th the park is open until 1 a.m. Guests of the on-site hotels (Hotel Breakers, Sandcastle Suites, Lighthouse Point, Camper Village, Breakers Express and Castaway Bay) are granted 1 hour early access to the park.
By Marti Talbott
Author of The Promise, Seattle Quake 9.2 and The Aftermath
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Experience the Point: Unofficial Guidebook to Cedar Point: 3rd Edition
Ohio Oddities: A Guide to the Curious Attractions of the Buckeye State
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