Silver Springs Nature Theme Park - History

History

Tourists began visiting Silver Springs several years after the American Civil War. In the 1870s, the invention at Silver Springs of the "glass-bottom boat" gave visitors a spectacular and unique view of the springs. Silver Springs gained national attention through journals and guidebooks, and became a mandatory stop on the "grand tour" of Florida. Former President Ulysses S. Grant visited the area in 1880. Other Presidents to visit the Springs included Calvin Coolidge in the 1920s. Colonel Tooey, a concessionaire who operated the Jungle Cruise boat ride, established the first troop of wild rhesus monkeys in the 1930s on an island in the Silver River. Tooey established the colony to attract visitors to his ride. He did not realize the rhesus monkeys were excellent swimmers. They quickly escaped, forming feral troops along the river.

Ocalans W. C. Ray and W. M. "Shorty" Davidson, owners of the land around the headwaters from the 1920s to 1962 were responsible for much of the development at Silver Springs. In the 1930s, Ross Allen's Reptile Institute brought more notoriety to Silver Springs. Several movies and television shows were filmed at Silver Springs including Tarzan in the 1930s. The clarity of the water of the Silver River made it useful for filming underwater scenes for James Bond movies, and episodes of the Six Million Dollar Man. There are over 20 movies and TV shows listed on IMDB as being filmed at Silver Springs.

The ownership of the theme park went through several private owners. During the 1980s, the distance of the theme park from interstate highways made it increasingly unprofitable. Faced with the possibility that the land would be developed as private real estate in the then booming Florida real estate market, the entire area around the Silver River was acquired by the state of Florida to become a state park. The state then leased the Silver Springs theme park back to a private manager, currently Palace Entertainment.