George Arthur Boeckling

George Arthur Boeckling (1862 – July 24, 1931) was a German businessman who served as the president of Cedar Point Pleasure Company, which later became Cedar Fair Entertainment Company. He is often credited for bringing Cedar Point out of the hole at the turn of the 19th to 20th century and making it a nationally recognized amusement park and resort destination.

G.A. Boeckling was born to German immigrants in Indiana in 1862. In 1897, he became general manager of the newly formed Cedar Point Pleasure Resort Company. Under Boeckling’s leadership, Cedar Point was transformed from a summer picnic area to a thriving amusement park with wide appeal. In 1908, the steamer G.A. Boeckling started providing local transportation between the city of Sandusky and Cedar Point. Thousands of visitors also arrived at Cedar Point on the Pennsylvania Railroad and Lake Shore Electric Railway.

G.A. Boeckling was very public-spirited, a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Elks Lodge, Aerie of Eagles, and was charitable to local churches, veterans organizations, and youth clubs of Sandusky. In 1922 the Sandusky Register called him “the man who made Cedar Point.” George A. Boeckling died from Uremia on July 24, 1931, and is buried at Oakland Cemetery.