Kennywood - History

History

A tree-filled portion of a farm owned by Anthony Kenny, known as "Kenny's Grove" overlooking the Monongahela River near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was a popular picnic spot for local residents since the American Civil War. In 1898, the Monongahela Street Railways Company, partially owned by prominent banker Andrew Mellon, seeking to increase fare profits on the weekends, leased the land from the Kenny family in order to create a trolley park at the end of their line. The company's chief engineer, George S. Davidson, designed the original layout of the park and served as its first manager. A carousel, casino hall, and dance pavilion were added in 1899. A bandstand was constructed in 1900, while the Old Mill was constructed in 1901, and the park's first roller coaster, the Figure Eight Toboggan, was added in 1902. After less than a decade, the trolley company no longer wanted to manage the park. The standing manager, A. S. McSwigan, along with partners Frederick W. Henninger and A. F. Meghan, leased and operated the park as Kennywood Park Limited beginning in 1906.

From its origin as a working-class picnic entertainment destination, the park grew in the first half of the twentieth century into a popular attraction that combined thrill rides with recreation venues such as swimming pools and dance halls.

Kennywood ceased to be served by streetcar when Mon Street Railways successor Pittsburgh Railways Company converted the route serving it, the lengthy #68 Duquesne-McKeesport line, to bus on September 15, 1958.

The park was designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1987.

Today, the park features a nostalgic atmosphere and is supported by a loyal fan base. As of December 2007, Kennywood Entertainment also ran Sandcastle Waterpark, which opened in 1989; Idlewild Park near Ligonier; Story Land, a children's theme park in Glen, New Hampshire; and Lake Compounce, New England's family theme park in Bristol, Connecticut, which is the oldest continuously operating amusement park in North America.

Safety is a top priority in the park. On top of the maintenance crew that ensures the rides are operating safely on a daily basis, Kennywood Park has its own armed public safety department. While not an actual police force, it enforces laws, investigates crimes, and responds to incidents on park property.

On December 12, 2007, Kennywood Entertainment announced that it would be selling Kennywood Park, along with four other amusement parks in the Northeastern United States, to Parques Reunidos, a company based in Madrid, Spain.

Kennywood now uses the slogan "America's Finest Traditional Amusement Park" as well as "Make a New Memory," although from the 1960s through the early 1990s the slogan was "The Roller Coaster Capital of the World." (a title which is now being used by Cedar Point) The property features three old wooden roller coasters still in working order, along with two newer steel coasters, the Phantom's Revenge (2001) and the Sky Rocket (2010), and one indoor coaster, the Exterminator (1999).

Through the years, the phrase "Kennywood's open!" has gained an alternate meaning and is often used in the Pittsburgh region to alert another person that the zipper on his/her pants is open.