Park Timeline
| Year | Events | Image |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Safari Park and Enchanted Forest (amusement park) open. Rides (with manufacturer information included): Carousel, Sky Ride, Giant Wheel, Super Round Up, Runaway Mine Train, Log Flume, Flying Wave, Traffic Jam, Swiss Bob, Calypso, Matterhorn, Woodland Express, Grand Prix, Pretty Monster, Antique cars, and Big Fury. | |
| 1975 | Rides added: Jumbo Jet, Enterprise, Poland Spring Plunge, Lil' Thunder, Super Cat, Schwabinchen, Wild Rider. | |
| 1976 | Rides added: Musik Express replace Happy Feeling petting zoo; Pretty Monster moved to current site of tea cups. | |
| 1977 | Rides added: Monster Spin replaces Pretty Monster in current tea cup spot, Gondola (added then removed at end of season) | |
| 1978 | Rides added: Lightnin' Loops, Wild Rider, Scrambler, Haunted Castle Across the Moat-a single haunted walk-through attraction added for then named Halloweekends. | |
| 1979 | Rides added: Rolling Thunder, Spin Meister, second side of Haunted Castle built for regular season; Grand Prix cars removed at end of season. | |
| 1980 | Buccaneer and Adventure Theater added; Six Flags Great Adventure Rail Road removed at end of season. | |
| 1981 | Roaring Rapids added; Wild Rider removed. | |
| 1982 | Joust-a-Bout added | |
| 1983 | Bally runs Six Flags; Stuntman's Freefall and Parachuter's Perch added (the latter came from Six Flags St. Louis) | |
| 1984 | Haunted Castle is destroyed by fire, killing eight visitors. Sarajevo Bobsled added; Rolling Thunder Coaster 2's trains run backwards (known as "Rednuht Gnillor") | |
| 1985 | Looping Starship added (later known as Space Shuttle). | |
| 1986 | Ultra Twister (TOGO heartline coaster) added; Matterhorn is removed and sent to Six Flags Atlantis in Hollywood, Florida, Swabinchen removed at end of season. | |
| 1987 | Splashwater Falls added; Scrambler moved to Swabinchen location; a management change at the end of 1987 re-emphasized family values at the park | |
| 1988 | Condor debuts on site of Calypso; Sarajevo Bobsled removed and sent to Six Flags Great America | |
| 1989 | Great American Scream Machine added; Ultra Twister removed before end of season and sent to Six Flags Astroworld | |
| 1990 | Shockwave added from Six Flags Magic Mountain | |
| 1991 | Adventure Rivers (in-park street-clothes rubber-raft water slides) added (removed for 1999); Condor and Swiss Bob removed. | |
| 1992 | Time Warner purchases Six Flags and renames the former Enchanted Forest section "Action Town" and builds the Batman Stunt Show Arena; Lightnin' Loops removed mid-season and is sent to Adventure World in Maryland and Frontier City in Oklahoma, Shockwave removed at end of season and sent to Six Flags Astroworld | |
| 1993 | El Sombrero (Swabinchen) added to Frontier Adventures, Batman: The Ride opens in May; Action Town becomes Movie Town | |
| 1994 | "Right Stuff: Mach 1 Adventure" (Iwerks turbo simulator) added (runs Elvira Superstition during Fright Fest) | |
| 1995 | Viper debutes in June | |
| 1996 | Skull Mountain, Enchanted Tea Cups, and Lethal Weapon Stunt Show added | |
| 1997 | Dare Devil Dive – a 155 ft (47 m) tall Skycoaster added, Batman & Robin: The Chiller is built but only operates briefly this season | |
| 1998 | Batman & Robin: The Chiller opens regularly this season; the Adventure Rivers dry slides and Sky Pilot are removed at the end of the season in order to expand the ride offerings for 1999 | |
| 1999 | Medusa (now known as Bizarro), Blackbeard's Lost Treasure Train, Road Runner Railway, Looney Tunes Seaport (themed kiddie area), and Houdini's Great Escape added; a large collection of flat rides promoted as a "War on Lines" include Spinnaker, Time Warp, Pirate's Flight, Evolution, Jumpin' Jack Flash, Pendulum, Rodeo Stampede, Chaos, Twister, and Jolly Roger; "Escape from Dino Island 3D" replaces "Mach 1 Adventure;" Gotham City Carnival of Chaos replaces the Batman Returns Stunt Show; Hollywood Animal Actor Show occupies Bandstand on the Lake for one season; Great American Road Race (up charge go-cart track) opens on former queue for Mach 1 | |
| 2000 | Hurricane Harbor water park opened as a separate admission park; employee housing (Six Flags University) opens on former site of ball field; Spinnaker removed after the season ends. | |
| 2001 | Nitro opens on April 7; short-lived Season Pass entrance opens; Slingshot and Turbo Force (up charge rides) debut; Viper stands but does not operate all season; El Sombrero, Centrifuge G Force (scrambler), and Time Warp are removed | |
| 2002 | Pirate's Flight is removed by the start of season; The Summer of Festivals features a new theme and new exhibits each week through summer in central park; Viper reopens; Chiller's trains are modified by removing the shoulder restraints | |
| 2003 | Evolution is removed before the season starts and sent to Six Flags St. Louis; Superman: Ultimate Flight opens on April 17; ErUPtion (upcharge attraction) added; "Right Stuff Mach 1 Adventure" is brought back for one season; Jumpin' Jack Flash only operates for a few hours in 2002 and 2003 and its removed at the end of season, Pendulum is removed by the end of season and sent to Six Flags Great America | |
| 2004 | SpongeBob SquarePants: The Ride replaces "Right Stuff;" Batman: The Ride's supports are repainted midnight blue with yellow track, Main Street's buildings are repainted and new landscaping is added; the Season Pass Entrance and Bugs Bunny Land are discontinued at the end of season | |
| 2005 | Chiller and Great American Scream Machine are repainted; Safari tours bring guests through the Safari via vans from The Northern Star Arena; The Golden Kingdom themed area debuts with Balin's Jungleland (children's play area), Temple of the Tiger (tiger exhibit), and Spirit of the Tiger (educational tiger presentation), Kingda Ka opens on May 21; Viper is demolished in June to make room for a new roller coaster; Taz Twister, Rodeo Stampede, and Chaos are removed (Stampede was sent to Six Flags Over Texas) | |
| 2006 | Spin Meister is removed by the start of the season, Red Zone wins a take over battle of Six Flags and increases prices on admission, parking, and other items within park; Bugs Bunny National Park opens in March; Runaway Train's track is repainted orange, its supports are repainted red, and its trains receive new single t-bars; Flying Wave's opening is delayed by two months due to refurbishment; Plaza Del Carnaval, the re-themed Spanish section, opens just before Memorial Day, the Carnegie Deli restaurant also opens that weekend on Main Street; El Toro opens on June 11; Rolling Thunder is closed for most of the spring and two of its four trains are used on one side during most of its operation; Kingda Ka only runs two trains throughout the year; the Batman side of The Chiller opens on May 5 for the first time since 2004, the entire attraction is closed on June 2 and remained closed for the entire season after an incident on the Robin side; Stuntman's Freefall, Riptide, and Koala Canyon (the last of the former Adventure Rivers attractions) are removed | |
| 2007 | Batman & Robin: The Chiller reopens but is closed permanently on June 28 due to more malfunctions; Wiggles World opens; Autobahn receives several new cars; Ben and Jerry's opens three locations in the park, a Cold Stone Creamery is added to the Quenchers building next to the Carnegie Deli, The Great American Hamburger is transformed into Johnny Rockets Express and Wok & Roll becomes Panda Express; Kingda Ka has four trains running, all four trains on Rolling Thunder are racing for the first time since 2005, a package pickup system has been established for merchandise with a pickup location by Guest Relations; Movie Town Water Effect is demolished during the offseason. | |
| 2008 | The Dark Knight, a new indoor roller coaster based on the film of the same name, is added; SpongeBob SquarePants: The Ride is removed for a new ride called "Fly Me To The Moon;" two more Johnny Rockets and one more Coldstone Creamery open in the park; Old Country and Houdini's Great Escape are closed; the Super Teepee is destroyed in a storm and removed; Six Flags institutes a new locker policy to reduce the amount of loose articles brought into the station, $1 Lockers are available at each major coasters for one-time use of up to two hours; Cabanas are available for rental in Spin Meister's location; Space Shuttle and Flying Wave are removed | |
| 2009 | Medusa goes under a complete overhaul and becomes Bizarro, opens on May 23; the Big Wheel is repainted to resemble what it looked like in 1974; Mr. Six returns and is now a character in the park, he has a dance party every couple of hours (including 12:30 pm, 3:30 pm, and 6:00 pm) and does a small dance in the morning when the park opens; a cyber cafe opens next to the Carnegie Deli in Main Street. The Parachute Tower is re-painted with a blue, red, orange, and yellow paint scheme in September and Houdini's Great Escape is re-opened exclusively for Fright Fest. | |
| 2010 | Hurricane Harbor adds a ProSlide Tornado scheduled for opening on Memorial Day Weekend, the water park's first new slide in nearly a decade. Many buildings on Main Street are refurbished and given fresh coats of paint. Fly Me To The Moon is closed for the season in preparation for a new major attraction for the 2011 season. The Great American Scream Machine is demolished to make room for the Green Lantern roller coaster. | |
| 2011 | Green Lantern, a green B&M stand-up coaster, is introduced at the end of the Boardwalk to coincide with the release of the Warner Bros. film of the same name. Slingshot, an upcharge attraction, is added, replacing erUPtion, also on the Boardwalk. Tango, a family ride, Bugaboo, a children's ride, and Foghorn Leghorn's Stagecoach Express, a mini-train ride, are all reopened after each spending at least a season standing but not operating. Fantasy Fling is repainted red and renamed "Tornado", since its sponsor is the food item Tornadoes. Coca-Cola Freestyle, a new refreshment restaurant featuring over 100 flavors of soda, opens, replacing Jersey Shore Candy. | |
| 2012 | SkyScreamer is added into newly themed adventure alley section, along with fender benders and Déjà Vu, as well as Air Jumbo
Safari is closed on September 30th. The Safari undergoes major renovations and redesign during the winter to unite Six Flags Great Adventure as one property. |
Read more about this topic: Six Flags Great Adventure
Famous quotes containing the word park:
“Linnæus, setting out for Lapland, surveys his “comb” and “spare shirt,” “leathern breeches” and “gauze cap to keep off gnats,” with as much complacency as Bonaparte a park of artillery for the Russian campaign. The quiet bravery of the man is admirable.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)