Cedar Fair

Cedar Point's sole business is to entertain the public and cater to the comfort, health and happiness of the people. Cedar Fair, L.P. is the parent company to a half-dozen of America's oldest and largest amusement parks. Cedar Point, the company's crown jewel, is the biggest seasonal amusement park in North America, attracting over three million visitors each summer. It's been acclaimed as both "King of Amusement Parks" and "Queen of American Watering Places." In the fall of 1997, the parent company announced its plans to acquire its first year-round facility, California's Knott's Berry Farm. The company also operates Minnesota's Valleyfair, Pennsylvania's Wildwater Kingdom and Dorney Park, and twin attractions Oceans of Fun and Worlds of Fun in Missouri. With the addition of Knott's, the group expected to draw a combined total of nearly 10 million guests in 1998. In contrast with such theme parks as Disney's Florida and California extravaganzas, Cedar Fair facilities focus on amusement. Flagship Cedar Point prides itself on having more thrill rides than any other park in the world. Its "scream machine" heritage stretches from 1892, when the 25-foot-high Switchback Railway thrilled riders with its 10 mph speeds, to the late 1990s, when a collection of a dozen roller coasters sent riders--in varying positions from sitting to standing--hurtling down 200-foot drops and through stomach-churning loops at over 70 mph. In 1996, Cedar Point earned its fifth consecutive designation as the world's "Best Traditional Amusement Park" from trade paper Inside Track. Cedar Fair's roots reach back to the late 1860s, when its founding park was just a sandy, cedar-bowered peninsula jutting out from the southern shore of Lake Erie. The impetus behind the endeavor has been traced to an 1867 editorial in the Sandusky Register, which suggested that "Somebody should erect a bathing house on the lake side of Cedar Point, about a quarter of a mile from the lighthouse," noting that "There is no finer place for bathing in the world." Though that last line may have been colored by a bit of provincial boosterism, there was enough truth in the statement to convince local businessman Louis Zistel to put up more than a dozen bath houses along the beach. He made money by renting bathing suits for 10 cents a day. By 1870, Zistel had generated enough cash to finance the construction of a beer garden complete with a dance floor and a playground. The park's first ride, a water trapeze that swung thrill-seekers out over the lake, was launched in 1880. Over the course of the next decade, Cedar Point added water slides, a water toboggan, and a motorized "sea swing." The park capped the 1880s with the construction of a Grand Pavilion, which featured a bar, dining rooms, an auditorium, and an opera house. At some point during this period, ownership of the property transferred to a group of four local investors. In 1892 they built Cedar Point's first roller coaster, the Switchback Railway. Featuring a 25-foot drop, the lakeside ride reached top speeds of 10 miles per hour. Within five years, however, the group had exhausted its financial resources such that the park faced closure. That's when wealthy Indianan George A. Boeckling came on the scene. Backed by a real estate fortune and a flair for showmanship, Boeckling ushered Cedar Point into an era of national prominence. Amenities and amusements were added rapidly after the turn of the century. The park's first modest overnight accommodation, the 20-room Bay Shore Hotel, was so successful that Boeckling built the sumptuously-appointed, 600-room Hotel Breakers as well as a two-story "Coliseum" entertainment center in 1905. Three new roller coasters replaced the Switchback Railway during these hectic years: The Racer (1902), Dip the Dips (1908), and Leap the Dips (1912). Boeckling launched an electrified midway, featuring merry-go-round, skating rink, fun house, souvenir shops, live entertainment, and a circle swin