1980s
The recession in the early 1980s began affecting attendance at the park. As a result, gate admission was reduced from $6.95 to $5.50 in 1982. New attractions that year included a transformation of the Hanneford Circus tent into a platform for Bumper Buggys, a soft-core version of bumper cars.
At the end of the 1982 Bill Robinson left the park and was replaced by industry veteran Lenny Gottstein. In May 1983, Food Services Director Frank Silvani died after a lengthy battle with cancer.
The highlight of the decade was the addition of the Raging Thunder Log Flume in 1984. The attraction represented the largest investment in the park's 77 year history and helped boost the annual attendance over 500,000. The flume, designed by Ron Berni and built by Barr Engineering of Minnesota, was located in a former bird sanctuary in the old Tombstone Territory section of the park. The area was renamed Logger's Run after the flume was added.
In 1985, the park auctioned off the horses from its 1924 PTC #71 carousel. Although some fans were disappointed about the sale, the carousel burned to the ground in an accidental fire in 1988. Over $500,000 in damages were reported, including the loss of the park's 1925 Dodgem' ride.
In 1987, the Galleon swinging ship was installed in Logger's Run. At the end of the season, park vice president Guy Sutton left to take a position with an industry consulting firm.
After the carousel fire, the park purchased a used Galaxi roller coaster from Nobles Funland Amusement Park in Paducah, Kentucky. Attendance at the park was maintained at 500,000.
Read more about this topic: Americana/Lesourdesville Lake Amusement Park