Shoot The Chute - History

History

The first of this type of amusement ride was built by J.P. Newberg in 1884 down the side of a hill at Watchtower Park in Rock Island, Illinois. The ride traveled along a 500-foot (150 m) greased wooden track, skipping across the Rock River at the bottom. It was then poled back to the ramp by an on-board ride attendant. Newberg took this unique ride concept next to Chicago, where more flumes were built and the rides grew in popularity.

Paul Boyton opened Paul Boyton's Water Chute, America's first modern amusement park, at 63rd and Drexel in Chicago, Illinois, on July 4, 1894. Captain Boyton's was the first amusement park to rely solely on mechanical attractions—specifically, America's first major Shoot the Chute ride.Paul Boyton and Thomas Polk built another example in 1895 for Sea Lion Park at Coney Island. The ride was widely copied and "Chute" rides were found at many amusement parks throughout the United States, and even became the name of several amusement parks. While the original form of the ride is largely obsolete, modern log flume rides work on similar principles.

On the earliest chute rides, the flat bottom boat was pulled up the ramp by cable, sometimes with a turnaround on a small turntable. In the ride at Sea Lion Park, the passengers arrived at the top by elevator. The bottom of the ramp curved upwards, causing the boat to skip across the water until it came to a stop. The boat was guided to a landing by a boatman on board. The oldest ride of this type still in operation is the Boat Chute, constructed in 1926 and 1927 located at Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park in Chattanooga Tennessee. An operating modern reproduction of the Luna Park shoot the chute ride of the early 20th century, The Pittsburg Plunge, is currently in operation at Kennywood amusement park in Pennsylvania.