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Kings Dominion Amusement Park History and Timeline

Park History and Timeline

On May 3, 1975, after less than two years of construction, Kings Dominion opened its gates to the public. It didn't take long for King Dominion to be recognized as the perfect family destination location in the Mid-Atlantic region.

The idea for a family amusement park north of Richmond, VA and south of Washington, D.C., began as a dream in 1971. A site was selected in Doswell, VA in the heart of the Mid-Atlantic to build the 400-acre park. The design of the new park was similar to Kings Island near Cincinnati, OH, using similar rides, attractions and themes including a 315-foot-tall Eiffel Tower replica and twin-track, racing roller coaster.

Kings Dominion opened May 3, 1975, offering fun and thrilling attractions that included the Rebel Yell roller coaster, Lion Country Safari Monorail, Log Flume, Steam Train and other family attractions.  The park's signature attraction was the Eiffel Tower, a one-third scale replica of the original Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.  Original themed areas were International Street, The Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera, Old Virginia, Coney Island and Lion Country Safari. 

In 1977, Kings Dominion added a fourth roller coaster in King Kobra.  The park was also one of the amusement parks used as a set for the movie Rollercoaster, filmed in 1977.   A campground was added in 1978 and a popular attraction known as Lost World debuted in 1979.   By the end of the decade, in just five short years, Kings Dominion had established itself as a destination place for families seeking fun, thrills and adventure. 

The early part of the decade saw two popular attractions added with the Grizzly roller coaster in 1982 and the White Water Canyon river rapids ride in 1983.  These two rides remain as popular as ever today.  In 1983, Taft Broadcasting sold its theme park division to Kings Entertainment Company (KECO). 

One of the first additions the new management group installed was Berserker, a looping starship ride on International Street in 1984.   In 1986, Shockwave, a standup roller coaster, was added.  Racing Rivers, a water slide complex, opened in 1987.   Avalanche, which remains the only Mack Bobsled roller coaster in the United States, opened in 1988. 

The decade of the 90's began with the expansion of Hanna-Barbera Land in 1990.  A thrilling new ride was introduced in 1991, Anaconda, which was the first roller coaster in the world the feature an underwater tunnel.   A new waterpark addition opened in 1992, Hurricane Reef.  In 1993, a motion simulator ride featuring the Days of Thunder film, debuted.  The 1994 season saw the addition of a new themed area of the park called Wayne's World, which featured a wooden roller coaster, The Hurler. 

In 1996, Kings Dominion unveiled the first LIM-launched roller coaster, The Outer Limits: Flight of Fear.  The following season, in 1997, saw the debut of KidZville, which was a re-theming of the Hanna-Barbera section.  New attractions included the Taxi Jam roller coaster.  The trend of adding launch coasters continued in 1998 when the park opened Volcano, The Blast Coaster.  Expansion continued in the waterpark area with a re-theme to WaterWorks in 1999. 

The early part of this decade saw Kings Dominion open major new rides and attractions starting with the HyperSonic roller coaster in 2001.  In 2002, Ricochet was added, followed by Drop Zone (now Drop Tower) in 2003.   The 2004 season saw the addition of a family dark ride experience, Scooby-Doo & The Haunted Mansion.  The following year, in 2005, Tomb Raider: The Ride (now The Crypt) was added.  

Another new roller coaster joined the park's lineup in 2006 in Italian Job: Stunt Track (now Backlot Stunt Coaster).  On June 30 of that year, the park was sold to Cedar Fair Entertainment Company.   In 2007, WaterWorks was expanded, adding a second wave pool, Tidal Wave Bay and a four-person raft ride.   Over the next two seasons, Kings Dominion added three new attractions starting with a thrilling steel roller coaster, Dominator.    The park added its first Ferris Wheel in 2009 with Americana, as well as El Dorado, a family flat ride. 

Today's Kings Dominion

Kings Dominion's commitment to providing its guests with world-class thrills, fun, and family entertainment continues into this decade. The park built one of the top steel roller coasters in the world in 2010, Intimidator 305. This giga coaster by Intamin is themed to the late NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt and represents the largest capital investment to date in the park's history.

A new light show, Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular, was added in 2011. In 2012, two attractions debuted with WindSeeker, a 301-foot-tall tower swing ride, and Dinosaurs Alive!, an animatronic dinosaur park that features nearly 40 life-sized, roaring, moving dinosaurs. In 2013, Kings Dominion unveiled the bigger, better Planet Snoopy, the world's largest PEANUTS-themed children's area, featuring 8 new rides (18 total), a fresh market, and more.

In 2014 Kings Dominion celebrated its 40th Anniversary with the return of some of your favorite past attractions including Candy Apple Grove, Safari Village, and the Singing Mushrooms. In 2015 Kings Dominion rebranded its waterpark to Soak City and added a new mega slide complex, Hurricane Heights, and a family splash zone, Splash Island. In 2016, Kings Dominion introduced the gravity-defying thrill ride, Delirium! In 2017 Kings Dominion expanded Planet Snoopy which included 3 new thrill rides - Kite Eating Tree, Sally's Sea Plane, and Peanuts 500. In 2018, Kings Dominion reimagined their former Hurler roller coaster into a mesh of twisted wood and metal - Twisted Timbers. WinterFest was also introduced to Kings Dominion in the winter.

2019 brought flavor and fun to the park with the introduction of Grand Carnivale, an international festival. Kings Dominion remained closed for most of the 2020 season, however, reopened with limited operations for Taste of the Season at the end of the year. In 2021 Kings Dominion added Coconut Shores, an expansion to Soak City Waterpark, and Grain & Grill, a locally-sourced restaurant.

For the 2022 season, Safari Villiage was reimagined into Jungle X-Pedition, a land of discovery and adventure, featuring Virginia’s only 4D Free Spin roller coaster, Tumbili. Scrambler was rethemed to Arachnidia, and Avalanche was rethemed to Reptilian. In 2023, the roar was restored to Grizzly, which underwent a massive refurbishment, and Firehouse BBQ opened to hungry guests in Planet Snoopy.

DETAILED TIMELINE

The construction of Kings Dominion began October 1, 1972.  It took nearly two years to build the park.  Attractions for the first season in 1974 included the Lion Country Safari and the Scooby Doo roller coaster. 

After less than two years of construction, Kings Dominion opened to the public on May 3, 1975.  That day, approximately 20,000 guests enjoyed the park.  More than 1.5 million visitors would follow during Kings Dominion's first season.  Park visitors enjoyed five magical lands -- International Street, Old Virginia, Coney Island, The Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera and Lion Country Safari, which opened as a preview to Kings Dominion in 1974.  Attractions for the season in 1975 included Rebel Yell roller coaster, Lion Country Safari Monorail, Log Flume, a Steam Train, Sky Ride, Galaxie roller coaster, and the park's signature attraction, the Eiffel Tower. Families raced down 12 hills on the Rebel Yell racing roller coaster, took a spin on the Carousel, viewed the musical revue "Give My Regards to Broadway" in the Mason Dixon Music Hall and observed the park atop a 315-foot-tall Eiffel Tower.

Bengal tigers arrived at the animal preserve.  The park sent visitors spinning around Candy Apple Grove in the new Apple Turnover ride.

The King Kobra roller coaster was the new attraction this year, featuring a 75-foot drop.  The Kings Quarters Hotel also opened.  The movie Rollercoaster starring George Segal and Timothy Bottoms was filmed at the park. 

The Kings Dominion Campground opened, increasing the number of two-day visits to the park.

The 17-story Lost World mountain was the new attraction this year, featuring three separate rides: Journey To Atlantis, Land of the Dooz and the Time Shaft.

New for this season was the Haunted River, which replaced Journey To Atlantis in the Lost World.

The 180-degree theater opened, which allowed visitors to cruise through the Baja desert and see a volcano up close!

This season saw the park unveil the Grizzly, a wooden roller coaster in a forest setting with an 87-foot drop and high-speed twists and turns.  Also new was The Showplace, a 7,500-seat, outdoor concert venue.

White Water Water Canyon opened this year, presenting guests with a fun, thrilling watery course and spouting geysers.  Riders were assured they would get wet on this ride.  Senior executives with Taft Broadcasting purchased the theme park division of Taft and formed Kings Entertainment Company (KECO) with Kings Dominion, Carowinds in North Carolina, Kings Island in Ohio and Canada's Wonderland in Toronto.

Berserker, a giant Viking ship that takes riders through a series of 360-degree loops, was added to the park's lineup of world-class thrills this year.  Land of the Dooz was replaced by Smurf Mountain.

Kings Dominion celebrates its 10th anniversary season.  A new water ride was added this year, Diamond Falls.  Also added was a new children's play area, Scooby's Play Park.

It was standing room only this year, as Shockwave was introduced as the first stand-up roller coaster on the East Coast.  The interest in the new ride helped drive attendance over the 2 million mark for the first time in park history.

Racing Rivers, featuring three different types of water slides (Torpedo, Splashdown and Riptide), was the new attraction this year.   On the business side, KECO reorganized so that the company owned and managed Kings Dominion, Carowinds, as well as the entertainment and design division, Kings Productions.  KECO also managed Kings Island, Canada's Wonderland and Great America in Santa Clara, California.

New this year is Avalanche, a bobsled-style family roller coaster with twisting curves, deep valleys and steep hills.  The rides trains are themed to Olympic bobsleds from five countries:  United States, Germany, France, Italy and Switzerland. 

New this year is Sky Pilot.  This exciting ride allowed guests to determine their own flight pattern, including the option to spin a dizzying 360-degrees.   

The park's 15th anniversary season saw a fresh new look in Hanna-Barbera Land.  The expansion included the addition of five new children's rides, more characters, as well as new games and shows. 

Kings Dominion introduces one of the biggest and baddest rides around, Anaconda.  This new steel roller coaster sends riders screaming through six loops and is the first roller coaster in the world to feature and underwater tunnel.    The park is also the site for the American Coaster Enthusiasts' summer conference. 

A whole new theme area was added this year with Hurricane Reef.  The six-acre waterpark featured 15 water attractions, including a variety of slides.   Kings Dominion, along with Kings Island, Carowinds, Great America and Canada's Wonderland, were sold midway through the season to Paramount Communications, Inc. 

An exciting new attraction opened this year with Days of Thunder, a racing simulator ride.  This ride enables guests to experience what it would be like to be behind the wheel of a racecar.  New owner Paramount Communications, Inc., begins the process of re-theming rides and attractions to movie themes. 

A fun new area opened this year with the addition of Wayne's World.  The Hurler, the park's fourth wooden roller coaster, highlighted the new attractions in this area of Kings Dominion.  Viacom purchases Paramount Communications. 

Green slime was the rage of the summer for Kings Dominion's 20th anniversary season with the addition of Nickelodeon Splat City.  The Showplace re-opened as the Kingswood Amphitheatre. 

Kings Dominion introduces the world's first linear induction launch-style roller coaster with Outer Limits: Flight of Fear.   Riders on this unique attraction are sent roaring through a series of inversions in total darkness.  Also new this year is Xtreme Skyflyer, an attraction that combines the elements of hang gliding and sky diving.

The park's kids' area, Hanna-Barbera Land, is transformed into KidZville.  This all-new section features rides, shows and attractions specifically for kids.

The world's fastest suspended roller coaster is unveiled this year at Kings Dominion with the introduction of Volcano, The Blast Coaster.  The attraction is the park's second linear induction launch-style roller coaster, joining Flight of Fear.   Paramount Action FX Theater becomes the new name for the Days of Thunder motion simulator theater, featuring a new film:  James Bond 007: A License to Thrill.

Hurricane Reef is expanded from six acres to 19 and rebranded WaterWorks.   The makeover includes the addition of more water activities for families.  

Kings Dominion celebrates its 25th anniversary season.  New attractions include Nickelodeon Central in the main park and Pipeline Peak in WaterWorks.  This attraction features four new thrilling, enclosed water slides.

This season saw the introduction of the world's first compressed air-launch roller coaster, HyperSonic XLC  and began a new annual event celebrating Halloween called FearFest..  Also new this year is 7th Portal, an adventure-filled 3-D film. 

The park unveils its 12th roller coaster in Ricochet, which features a series of unexpected twists, turns and a 50-foot drop.  Also new this year is a popular family ride, Triple Spin.

Kings Dominion debuts the tallest drop tower ride in North America in Drop Zone Stunt Tower.  Guests plunge a staggering 27 stories from a height of 305 feet at a speed of 72 miles per hour, providing them with a thrill they'll never forget.  Also debuting this year is SpongBob SquarePants 3-D. 

The first interactive family dark ride in the Mid-Atlantic region is unveiled in Scooby-Doo & The Haunted Mansion. 

An attraction for adventure seekers is unveiled this year in Tomb Raider: The Ride (now The Crypt).  The multi-sensory ride appeals to park visitors and coaster enthusiasts alike with its thrills and special effects.   

The Italian Job: Stunt Track (now Backlot Stunt Coaster) opened as a new fully themed action stunt car experience.  Thunder Raceway Go-Karts also debuts this year.  On June 30, Cedar Fair Entertainment Company purchases Paramount Parks from CBS Corporation for $1.25 billion.

Three new attractions are added in WaterWorks: Tidal Wave Bay, Tornado and Zoom Flume.  An all-new Halloween event is introduced in the fall, Halloween Haunt.  

Kings Dominion added to its lineup of world-class thrills by introducing its 14th roller coaster this year, Dominator.  This scream machine sends rider through five inversions at speeds up to 67 milers per hour on the longest floorless roller coaster in the world at 4,210 feet.  The ride also features one of the largest vertical loops in the world.

The focus is on families this year with the addition of two new rides,  El Dorado and the Americana Ferris Wheel.  The Grizzly roller coaster was retracked this year, providing riders with a smoother, more enjoyable ride experience. 

This year is one of the most exciting in the park's history.  Intimidator 305, a Intamin Giga Coaster, is unveiled as the biggest and fastest roller coaster on the East Coast.  Standing 305 feet at its highest point, riders race down a 300-foot first drop and through high-speed twists and turns at speeds over 90 miles per hour.   The ride was voted "Best New Roller Coaster of 2010" by Amusement Today.   Two other exciting attractions also debut this year with Planet Snoopy replacing Nickelodeon Central and Boo Blasters on Boo Hill replacing Scooby-Doo & The Haunted Mansion. 

A new night time light show highlights the new attractions this year, Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular.  Starring everyone's favorite PEANUTS characters and their summertime adventures, this colorful pageant of lights invites guests to explore a breathtaking display the entire family enjoys.

Two new attractions debut this year.  Riders soar 30 stories above the park on WindSeeker, a 301-foot-tall tower swing ride.   Visitors to the park are able to step back in time to periods between 245 million and 65 million years ago in the all-new Dinosaurs Alive! 

On March 29, 2013, Kings Dominion unveiled its bigger, better Planet Snoopy children's area. Planet Snoopy at Kings Dominion will feature 8 new rides (18 total), a newly expanded 1,100 square-foot Family Care Center, daily meet-and-greet opportunities with the PEANUTS characters, the Richmond-based self-serve frozen yogurt shop SweetFrog and more. 

Also in 2013, Kings Dominion has its largest entertainment line-up in years, with 7 new shows, including "All Wheel Sports" with bikers and skaters who were semifinalists on Season 7 of NBC's America's Got Talent, along with "On Broadway", a Broadway-style musical revue. Also new is "Dominion at Dusk" featuring Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular, a new live show and fireworks on all 10pm closes. 

In 2014, Kings Dominion began celebrating its 40th Anniversary with the return of some favorites from the past. Just a few of these attractions were the Candy Apple Grove and the Singing Mushrooms. Our Congo area was also rebranded Safari Village in honor of Lion Country Safari that debuted in 1974. 

In 2015 Kings Dominion announced its Waterpark expansion project with WaterWorks being rebranded as Soak City. We also introduced 2 new attractions. Hurricane Heights, a 65 ft. mega complex featuring 3 new slides and Splash Island, a family splash zone. 

On May 3rd, 2015 Kings Dominion celebrated it OFFICIAL 40th Birthday with a huge party at the park that included a plaque dedication for the front gate, live entertainment in all areas of the park, special birthday prizes for guests and much more. 

In 2016 Kings Dominion introduces the all new gravity defying thrill ride, DELIRIUM! 

3 new thrill rides - Kite Eating Tree, Sally's Sea Plane, and Peanuts 500 are added to make Planet Snoopy bigger and better.

Twisted Timbers, a hybrid roller coaster made from wood and steel is unleashed upon guests, and WinterFest debuts for its first season just in time for the holidays.

Grand Carnivale, an international celebration makes its debut, featuring food, activities, games, live entertainment, and the immersive Spectacle of Color Parade.

Kings Dominion opens for Taste of the Season, a limited-time event in the winter.

Coconut Shores is added featuring Lighthouse Landing, a 45-ft tall multi-level aqua play structure, and Sand Dune Lagoon, a 3,000 square foot wave pool.

Safari Village is reimagined into Jungle X-Pedition, a land of discovery and adventure. Tumbili is added as the park’s 13th roller coaster, a 4D Free Spin flipping riders as they “swing” among the vines and trees. Scrambler is rethemed to Arachnidia, and Avalanche is rethemed to Reptilian. Outer Hanks becomes The Outpost Cafe, featuring culinary delights such as prime rib, rotisserie chicken, and our world-famous fried bread.

The Grizzly undergoes a massive refurbishment project, with the retracking and reprofiling of 1,040 ft. of track using The Gravity Group’s engineered precut track design. Firehouse BBQ invites volunteers to extinguish their hunger with mouth-watering barbecue such as brisket, pulled pork, and jalapeño sausages.

What This Virginia Theme Park Looked Like In The 1970s Will Blow Your Mind

A lifelong Virginia resident, Beth loves exploring different parts of the world and currently resides in Charlottesville. She holds a degree in English Literature and one of her short stories has been featured in the Shenandoah Review. Other interests include hiking, songwriting, and spending time in the mountains.

More by this Author

Let’s take a trip back to 1973. Ground has broken on a new theme park and it’s the talk of the town…for practically everywhere in Virginia. Today, we know and love Kings Dominion as the place to go for out-of-this-world roller coasters and other fun attractions. If you’re anything like me, you may be a little timid to try any of the free fall or gravity-defying rides. Back in the 70s, the rides may not have reached the same speeds, but there were plenty of loops, twists, and exhibits to partake in. Whatever your stance may be on thrill seeking, it’s fascinating to peer into the history of this beloved amusement park. Here’s what Kings Dominion looked like over 40 years ago.

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What do you think of these pictures? Do you remember when Kings Dominion first opened? We’d love to hear about your experiences there!

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Animals ruled the crowd at early Kings Island

Lions and tigers and baboons, oh my!

In the early years of Kings Island, visitors could see more than 300 animals at the old Lion Country Safari – and sometimes hear about them roaming Warren County after their escape from the 100-acre wildlife preserve.

The attraction opened in 1974, the park's third year, on space used today for Flight of Fear, Firehawk and the new Banshee (where the Son of Beast also once stood).

In 20 years, more than 15 million visitors rode the 2-mile monorail through the animal preserve, which also was named Wild Animal Safari and Wild Animal Habitat before it closed in 1993, said Don Helbig, Kings Island public relations manager.

"It was amazing. Most of the time, quite a large percentage of the daily park attendance would ride the monorail," said Bob Reece, the wildlife exhibit director 1977-92.

The monorail entrance was to the right of the current Drop Tower. Taft Broadcasting, which built Kings Island, also opened a similar attraction at the sister Kings Dominion park near Richmond, Va.

More than 25 lions were brought in for the 1974 opening by Lion Country Safari, a third-party vendor with animal parks near West Palm Beach and Atlanta. Visitors also saw tigers, rhinos, elephants, hippos, giraffes, monkeys, ostriches, zebras, baboons, leopards and other animals from around the world.

More than a few wandered off. Less than three months after the opening, a 2-year-old female lion escaped. She was found dehydrated in heavy underbrush.

Two years later, 50 baboons escaped over the two fences to the embarrassment of Taft Broadcasting executives. The baboons leaped to freedom jumping on the backs of fellow baboons huddled at the base of the fence. It took a week to round them up – and then they escaped again.

"We had 50 mean baboons roaming Warren County," said Charlie Mechem, former Taft Broadcasting chairman, in an interview last year. "It was a classic story of a company that thought it knew what it was doing – and they literally made monkeys out of us."

That baboon incident – and a lion fatally mauling a Lion Country Safari ranger who got out of his jeep for an unknown reason inside the habitat in 1976 – persuaded Taft executives to take over day-to-day management.

Under Reece, security was improved with new electronic gates while reducing the animal population, which was nearing 400. Kings Island also began charging monorail riders – first a quarter, and eventually $1 – to reduce crowds on the ride.

"At the time, everything in the park was no charge. We put on a nominal fee to slow down the crowd a little bit," said Reece, 72, of Boynton Beach, Fla.

Sustaining the sensitive electrical connections along the monorail track also posed problems. Animals "would get close to the track, or jump the track. Sometimes they would kick up mud on it, or it would get flooded. We had a lot of down time. It was a real thorn to us," Reece said.

Reece helped form the Cincinnati Wildlife Research Federation partnership with Kings Island, the Cincinnati Zoo and University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Kings Island staffers also were part of the Center for Reproduction of Endangered Wildlife (CREW) effort by the zoo's Dr. Betsy Dresser to save endangered bongos in Kenya in the early 1990s.

About that time, park officials were discussing closing the $2 million animal attraction to add rides as Kings Island's annual attendance continued to swell.

"The park was getting filled (with visitors). Wild Animal Habitat was the prime area to go into to provide more space for rides," Reece said.

In 1993, a year after Reece left, Kings Island closed Wild Animal Habit.

The animals ended up back with Reece at his next job, managing a 14-square-mile animal preserve called the Wilds southeast of Zanesville. Kings Island and Kings Dominion animals were donated in 1994 to what was then North America's largest wild animal complex.

Why get rid of an attraction that drew 15 million visitors? Because its "life cycle" had expired, Mechem said.

"A roller coaster goes forever. If someone comes back to the park, as zillions do every year, they're going to ride the roller coaster 10 times. But they're probably not going to ride Lion Country Safari more than twice, at most. It just kind of ran out of steam, as most of them have," Mechem said.

The monorail

From the safari to a jungle, the old Lion Country Safari monorail marks the entrances to Jungle Jim's International Markets in Fairfield and near Eastgate Mall in Clermont County.

Owner "Jungle Jim" Bonaminio bought seven cars for $1 from Kings Island in the late 1990s. After 15 years, the train shuttles people several hundred yards from his second-floor Oscar Event Center in Fairfield to a station on the south edge of the parking lot during festivals and receptions, said his son, Jimmy, creative services department manager.

His father's dream was to have the monorail loop around the 58 acres on Ohio 4 in Fairfield, with a stop at a never-built hotel, or be extended one block north to Tom Raper RVs, according to Enquirer stories.

"We've not given up on it, but with the new store, we've got a lot going on," his son said.

John Kiesewetter

Lion Country Safari history: Animals bit, gored and mauled visitors, staff

Fifty years ago, visitors lined up for miles for the opening day of  Lion Country Safari  , a drive-through wild animal park that was the country’s first cageless zoo.

In its half-century history, the park in rural Palm Beach County has been a favorite of local residents and of famous chimp researcher,  Jane Goodall , who still visits once a year to study the park’s chimp population.

RELATED: Lion Country Safari sold to new owner

Lion Country Safari is also home to the largest herd of zebras outside Africa, a 93-year-old tortoise, southern white rhinos and a herd of giraffes.

Its ambassador is an elderly lady named Little Mama, a former Ice Capades performer, who, at close to 80, is the oldest living chimp in the world.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

RELATED: Photos of Lion Country Safari’s wildlife

But mixing dangerous animals with humans during 50 years means accidents sometime happen.

In a half century,  Lion Country Safari  in Loxahatchee has had one fatality, as well as a number of maulings and bites. Most happened during the early years of the wild animal park when state and federal regulations were vastly different.

RELATED: Lion Country Safari might acquire cheetah, penguins.

In fact, the rules were so casual in the 1960s and ‘70s that visitors could arrange to cuddle with lion cubs.

Here’s a list of incidents from The Palm Beach Post archives:

August 1967: Two weeks before the park opened, a worker revived a female lion after pulling the unconscious 11-month old from a canal, where she’d fallen in. The game keeper gave the lion mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, putting his whole head in the lion’s toothy mouth.

November 1967:  A mother lion mauled her rare, white cub, which was taken to Glades Central Hospital where it recovered in a baby incubator attended to by the LCS vet and the hospital’s nurses.

RELATED: Reader memories of Lion Country Safari

January 1969:  Former ‘Tonight Show’ host Jack Paar, who was making a documentary at LCS, was bitten on the wrist by Jack Paar, his namesake lion.

October 1971: A 24-year-old elephant warden was hospitalized after the 8,000-pound pachyderm he was tending stepped on his head.

August 1973: Gus, the park’s 7,000 pound white, rhino trampled a worker who was injured but survived.

January 1974:  In the park’s only fatality, a 4,000 pound water buffalo named Ralph trampled and gored to death the animal keeper who fed it every day. Malcolm Gallop, 60, of West Palm Beach, was attacked in front of a carload of tourists.

“It picked him up and slammed him down,” said Mrs. Robert Morton from Phenix, Va. who witnessed the attack while visiting the park with her family. “It just kept slamming him down.”

Park staff said Ralph had been acting aggressive since a calf he sired was born nine days earlier.

December 1975: Former lion tamer Emma Bates was given permission to feed the cubs she raised at her Royal Palm Beach home before she gave them to LCS. During one visit to the lions’ enclosures, she arrived with 40 pounds of raw meat in her car’s trunk. A group of lions burst out the door and one tackled Bates, gripping her head in its jaws. A nearby worker fought off the lion with a rake. Bates survived with multiple bites and broken bones.

July 1989: A chimp attacked workers trying to move a group of chimps to another island. One worker slipped and shot another worker in the abdomen with his park-issued .357 handgun.

March 1990: JoJo, a four-ton female elephant, picked up a worker with her trunk, spun him around, then gored him. The worker survived.

December 1993:  A 400-pound male lion named Helmut mauled a caretaker who was hospitalized with puncture wounds, a severed jugular vein, and two collapsed lungs.

A Year of Kings Dominion

The Doswell amusement park begins a 12-month schedule | Photos courtesy Kings Dominion

by SaraRose Martin

February 23, 2023

This article has been edited since it first appeared in print.

Kings Dominion is home to 400 acres of attractions and rides.

Twenty miles north of Richmond, Kings Dominion amusement park’s steel coasters climb to 300 feet and whip many of its more than 1 million annual visitors up to speeds of 90 mph. Its 400-acre grounds in Doswell feature more than 60 rides and attractions, including a waterpark.

In 2023, Kings Dominion will remain open year-round. The new schedule adds weekends through early March, accommodating an increased demand for guests to experience the park and its additional entertainment.

“There’s a lot of cabin fever around that time of year. People have been in their houses a long time,” says Mark Riddell, the park’s director of communications. “A place like Kings Dominion is great even if you’re not riding rides; you can walk around, you can have a meal.”

The decision reflects an industrywide trend, according to Michael Shelton, executive director and vice president of the International Association for Amusement Parks and Attractions. “We feel like our industry is growing now, we’re kind of back after the pandemic — back and then some,” he says. “Most parks are seeing explosive growth and really great crowds and a really great return to normal, and Kings Dominion is no different.”

The park opened in 1974 as the 280-acre Lion Country Safari, a drive-thru zoo of sorts, with various animals in the open along a route that visitors could experience through their car windows. That park also had the Kings Dominion site’s first ride, the Scooby-Doo Ghoster Coaster roller coaster. In 1975, Kings Dominion opened the full park and its 15 attractions to 20,000 guests.

A steel coaster, Tumbili debuted in 2022 and spins guests back and forth.

Kings Dominion has shifted over time from operating as a partial animal park to a full-fledged theme park. An ownership change in 2007 from Paramount Parks to Cedar Fair led to major transformations, as new themes and names were added and prominent coasters were revamped. One of the areas added last year, Jungle X-Pedition, features Tumbili, a 4D spin coaster on which riders spin around independently from the track.

“That whole area has gotten sort of a face-lift in this new theming,” Riddell says. “The restaurant location that’s down there is the Outpost restaurant; that’s where you can get prime rib in the park. We have vegetarian options at all the restaurants. It’s quite an extensive overhaul of the food program.”

Much of the fare served at Kings Dominion is handmade and locally sourced, Riddell says. Offering a farm-to-table menu, Grain and Grill has also taken over the former Panda Express.

“Things aren’t brought in and heated up, it’s made right here,” Riddell says. “The chicken tenders are organic and sourced from a farm that’s 200 miles from here and hand-breaded here at the park.”

The Grizzly is a popular wooden roller coaster at the park.

Kings Dominion has plans to retrack and reopen The Grizzly, a popular wooden coaster that debuted in 1982. The park is also in the planning stages for a celebration to commemorate its 50th year, according to Riddell.

Since its inception, Kings Dominion has remained a favorite of families from Washington, D.C., to Hampton Roads.

“We see these multiple generations of families come back to the park every year, and there’s a great deal of nostalgia,” Riddell says. “You talk to the average person that’s lived in Richmond their whole life, and they can rattle off what ride was open when and what changed to what.”

Powhatan resident Norman Shumake, the managing director of Kings Dominion Fanatics , an online group he developed for park enthusiasts to share stories and experiences, has visited Kings Dominion almost every year since it opened. He can remember watching the U.S. bicentennial fireworks set off at the park in 1976 when he was just 3 years old. Shumake and his family visited the park nearly 50 times in 2022 alone.

“We’ve kind of raised our own kids at the park,” Shumake says. “It’s a multigenerational thing now.”

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Lion Country Safari Mauling: An Untold Story

By KIghostguy , January 6, 2018 in Kings Island

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Hello everyone. Here is my latest writing, this one about an often-forgotten tragedy on Lion Country Safari. Has a complete account of the incident and investigation with exclusive information with several rare photos. Hope you all find this interesting.

https://kingsislandghost.blogspot.com/2022/01/the-untold-story-of-kings-islands-fatal.html

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Gordon Bombay

February 9, 2019

No. Outpost 5 is in reference to the recordings that used to play in Adventure Express' queue line. "All aboard the express for Outpost 5."  The loose storyline to AE was that you were boarding a

January 16, 2018

I'm showing my age here...but this is kind of funny. So I remembered going on this safari as a little girl, probably when I was about 5...and apparently didn't go back to the park again until after th

January 6, 2018

Hello everyone. Here is my latest writing, this one about an often-forgotten tragedy on Lion Country Safari. Has a complete account of the incident and investigation with exclusive information with se

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An important thing to note, as you mentioned at the end of the article, is that when it originally opened, it was not operated by Kings Island.

Sister park Kings Dominion also had a Lion Country Safari.  To this day, Six Flags Great Adventure still has a drive thru animal safari located next to the amusement park.

13 minutes ago, CoastersRZ said: An important thing to note, as you mentioned at the end of the article, is that when it originally opened, it was not operated by Kings Island. Sister park Kings Dominion also had a Lion Country Safari.  To this day, Six Flags Great Adventure still has a drive thru animal safari located next to the amusement park.

Thanks for reading the post. I mention the Kings Dominion Safari at the beginning of the post.

I must have read right over that part!

Very sad, but interesting. Thanks!

Magenta Lizard

I can't believe he wasn't fired before the mauling. I can only hope it was that the incidents other than his leaving the vehicle were either not reported to his supervisors or were downplayed by those who witnessed them. Seriously, straddling a lion? Pulling their tails as a regular thing? What was wrong with him?!

TheRickster

Would there be a way to super impose the map from the report showing the incident location with a satellite photo of the current park?

17 hours ago, Magenta Lizard said: I can't believe he wasn't fired before the mauling. I can only hope it was that the incidents other than his leaving the vehicle were either not reported to his supervisors or were downplayed by those who witnessed them. Seriously, straddling a lion? Pulling their tails as a regular thing? What was wrong with him?!

Agreed. He did seem to be a rather careless fellow whose actions reflect that of someone who neither respected his own life nor the danger the lions posed. If this was truly known to be common behavior from him, he should have been reported and he should have been fired. Heck, he shouldn't have worked there at all.  

8 hours ago, TheRickster said: Would there be a way to super impose the map from the report showing the incident location with a satellite photo of the current park?

There certainly is a way; the problem is that I don’t know where the lion enclosure was located in present-day Kings Island.

Would love to see the source materials and citations for this Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

On 1/7/2018 at 11:48 AM, shark6495 said: Would love to see the source materials and citations for this Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Associated Press. "Kings Island Ranger Killed By Lion; Found in Park Safari Section" (July 25, 1976) Wire Report

_____________. "Lions Fatally Attack Ranger" (July 26, 1976) Wire Report

_____________. "Massive Neck Bite Killed Lion Park Ranger" (July 27, 1976) Wire Report

_____________. "Mauled Ranger Left His Vehicle" (July 31, 1976) Wire Report

_____________. "Ranger Killed By Lion Had Been Injured Previously" (July 28, 1976) Wire Report

Brinkmoeller, Tom. "Update" (January 5, 1978)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

Enquirer Hamilton Bureau. "Ranger's Body Discovered in Lion Preserve" (July 25, 1976)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

Enquirer Lebanon Bureau. "Illness Might Have Caused Ranger to Leave His Jeep" (July 27, 1976)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

_____________________. " Probe Launched in Ranger's Death" (July 28, 1976)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

Fusco, Pete. "Kings Island Ranger Killed by Lion Attack" (July 25, 1976)  Dayton Daily News

__________. "Lion Victim's Mother Wants Patrol Probe" (July 27, 1976)  Dayton Daily News

__________. "Lion's Bite Fatal Quickly, Coroner Says" (July 26, 1976)  Dayton Daily News

__________  and Stewart, Don. "Sheriff's Probe Asks If or Why Ranger Left Jeep" (July 29, 1976)  Dayton Daily News

Graham, Mike. "'How' in Ranger Death Determined, But 'Why' Unknown" (July 26, 1976)  Journal-News  (Hamilton, OH)

___________. "Kings Island: Investigation Ahead" (July 28, 1976)  Journal-News  (Hamilton, OH)

Hunter, Ginny. "Blood May Be Clue to Ranger's Death" (July 28, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

___________. "Lion Victim Had Been Hurt Before" (July 27, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

___________. "Still a Mystery: Why Did Safari Ranger Leave Jeep?" (July 26, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

No Byline. "Coroner Has Theory on Ranger Death" (July 27, 1976)  The Journal Herald  (Dayton, OH)

________. "Death at Kings Island May Remain a Mystery" (July 26, 1976)  The Journal Herald  (Dayton, OH)

________. "Lion Bite Fatal to Ranger, Coroner Rules" (July 28, 1976)  The Western Star  (Lebanon, OH)

________. "Lion Mauling Ruling Today?" (July 26, 1976)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

________. "Lion May Have Killed Kings Island Ranger" (July 25, 1976)  Journal-News  (Hamilton, OH)

________. "Mauled Ranger Disobeyed Rules, Sheriff Reports" (July 31, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

________. "Mauling Death Probe Hangs on Blood Tests" (July 29, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

_______. “ Ranger’s Death Investigated” (August 3, 1976)  The Warren County Reporter

________.  "Sheriff Ends Ranger Probe" (August 4, 1976)  The Western Star  (Lebanon, OH)

________. "Tests Completed in Ranger's Death" (August 5, 1976)  The Cincinnati Post

Roher, Jim. "Mauling Victim Left Vehicle, Investigators Believe" (August 1, 1976)  The Cincinnati Enquirer

In addition to the above newspaper articles, I also have the full case file from the Warren County Sheriff's Office. That includes: the investigation report by Col. Lynn Ertel, witness statements from Dick Fussner, Candace Walker, Dennie Acus, Pat Callahan and Terry Gressner, first-aid report from the July 4 clawing, autopsy and lab report on John McCann, memo sent to the sheriff from deputy Harold Metcalf, June and July safety memos, job description sheet for Lion Country Safari, maintenance report on jeep #5, notes from Col. Ertel, the July 30 press release, and all photographs taken by Col. Ertel, Clark Nolte, Coroner Ralph Young, Dick Fussner and the Hamilton County Coroner's Office.

Thanks I love original sources. It’s the skeptic in me:). Plus reading in the news papers at the time. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

AZ Kinda Guy

I’m having trouble placing the site of the mauling. Perhaps an overhead shot from Google Earth?

22 minutes ago, AZ Kinda Guy said: I’m having trouble placing the site of the mauling. Perhaps an overhead shot from Google Earth?

This is from Google Earth. The map from the Sheriff's Office puts Blazer Berm behind the lake in the center-right of this picture. So, the location today is a restricted area behind Banshee.

Kind of off topic, but I wonder how often Google updates Google Earth?  Son of Beast was torn down in 2012 and it's still on the map.  

On topic, thank you for the write up.  Seems like he was just a young guy who maybe didn't appreciate how dangerous those big cats can be and paid for it with his life.  Such a tragedy.

57 minutes ago, timfsu2k said: Kind of off topic, but I wonder how often Google updates Google Earth?  Son of Beast was torn down in 2012 and it's still on the map.

Way more often that it appears to the unaware user. Warning: rant ahead.

I hate, hate, HATE that Google Maps satellite view always defaults to showing 3D constructions, with no way to change that default permanently on the web. What this does is show the latest imagery that has 3D graphics available for everything , with all newer imagery ignored because they haven't been fully 3D-ified. If you turn 3D off (which SHOULD be the default, but Google in their infinite wisdom gives us no way to change that default on the web) by opening the menu in the upper left and clicking "3D on", you will actually get up-to-date imagery that you SHOULD be given in the first place that shows a completed Mystic Timbers and also shows the Island Smokehouse under construction, indicating that it is from spring 2017.

</rant>

8 hours ago, AZ Kinda Guy said: I’m having trouble placing the site of the mauling. Perhaps an overhead shot from Google Earth?

8 hours ago, KIghostguy said: This is from Google Earth. The map from the Sheriff's Office puts Blazer Berm behind the lake in the center-right of this picture. So, the location today is a restricted area behind Banshee.  

I did my best to do it quickly in photo shop.... evidently the hand drawn map is not to any sense of scale....

Yeah I've been all over back there and wasn't sure which pond/lake it was referring to. Very cool to see it laid out like that! I was even thinking maybe it was the pond by the campground, but it seems to fit that photoshop just fine.

The road going from the old SOB station out past FOF totally feels like you're driving through the Savannah.

Another amazing blog! I always feel like I know so much about KI and then people like you and @Shaggy  show me that there are always so many details to the stories that we don’t even think about. Great work!

Obviously nearly all of the Wild Animal Habitat is gone now. Much of it was lost to progress, with a few remnants still remaining in the woods. Kings Dominion’s closed at a similar time to Kings Island’s attraction but their boneyard is far more interesting. There is still a huge network of confusing backroads through the woods at KD that are surrounded by several layers of security fences and multi-tiered gates. It is VERY evident that it used to be a zoo of some sort. From almost anywhere in the park you can’t tell that anything is back in the woods, but it’s almost like a whole city.

Can anyone confirm that KI’s Wild Animal Safari was opened year-round, as mentioned in the blog? I had heard that before, but never from a first hand source. I know that in the later years KI partnered with the Cincinnati Zoo, so a lot of the animals went there in the winter. When did it stop being year-round? Would you enter the park through the main gates to do this in the winter, or was there a separate gate somewhere?

KIs safari area was still like that at least as of 08. It's just so overgrown you can't see it on the satellite photos now. There are still a couple buildings out there and the TALL fencing is there in parts.

5 hours ago, BoddaH1994 said: Another amazing blog! I always feel like I know so much about KI and then people like you and @Shaggy  show me that there are always so many details to the stories that we don’t even think about. Great work ... Can anyone confirm that KI’s Wild Animal Safari was opened year-round, as mentioned in the blog? I had heard that before, but never from a first hand source. I know that in the later years KI partnered with the Cincinnati Zoo, so a lot of the animals went there in the winter. When did it stop being year-round? Would you enter the park through the main gates to do this in the winter, or was there a separate gate somewhere?

First of all, thank you for your kind words. I’m really glad everyone is enjoying these blog posts!

In regards to your question...yes, it was open year-round. I can’t remember exact dates of the articles off the top of my head, but it was mentioned several times in the Cincinnati Enquirer in 1974. The International Restaurant was also open year-round.

• 2 weeks later...

AFAIK The Lion Country Safari was never opened year-round at KI.  It was intended to, but never did.  The park issued a press release the first week of October 1974 indicating the attraction would be open weekends only through November (originally intended for daily operations) and then closed for the winter months.  (Mostly because the area was bracing for a hard winter - predicted by the farmers almanac.)

1 hour ago, Shaggy said: AFAIK The Lion Country Safari was never opened year-round at KI.  It was intended to, but never did.  The park issued a press release the first week of October 1974 indicating the attraction would be open weekends only through November (originally intended for daily operations) and then closed for the winter months.  (Mostly because the area was bracing for a hard winter - predicted by the farmers almanac.)

Thanks. Yes, I just double-checked and you are correct. 

Hope you find the article interesting and feel free to use the info/pictures on Sit On It.

On 1/6/2018 at 5:16 PM, Magenta Lizard said: I can't believe he wasn't fired before the mauling. I can only hope it was that the incidents other than his leaving the vehicle were either not reported to his supervisors or were downplayed by those who witnessed them. Seriously, straddling a lion? Pulling their tails as a regular thing? What was wrong with him?!

You got to remember the times. Back then, kids could go roller skating in the streets with no helmets or pads. You could still whip your kids. Pregnant women smoked and drank. People smoked everywhere, including airplanes(gag). And lawyers didn't rule the world. Safety wasn't as big of a thing. Looking back, the guy clearly was asking for it. But then, they all probably had a good laugh about until he died. 

King Ding Dong

^ I remember people smoking in hospital rooms. Funny but not funny.  

XGatorHead 8904

When I was in elementary school, we went on a field trip to KI to ride the monorail.  It was my first time being in the park while it was closed; the only thing open was the monorail.  IIRC, our school was the only one there but I could very well be mistaken about that.  I was going to Hopewell Elementary at the time so this would have been 1st or 2nd grade in 1979-1981 or 4th or 5th grade in 1982 - 1984 (we had switched school districts in 3rd grade).  That's a field trip I'll always remember because it was so different to see the park absolutely quiet and I though it was so neat that they would open just for us.

Back then, my family only got to visit the park once a year using the tickets that my grandma got from working at KI. In addition to the park tickets, the employees were given tickets to the monorail too; I even received them when I started working at the park in '89, so I rode it every time I went back then.

And thanks for citing your sources.  I was going to ask for them too because a lot of those incidents sound like disciplinary issues that would have been kept within the park, but I can see how they were probably in the investigative reports that followed.

59 minutes ago, XGatorHead 8904 said: And thanks for citing your sources.  I was going to ask for them too because a lot of those incidents sound like disciplinary issues that would have been kept within the park, but I can see how they were probably in the investigative reports that followed.

As far as McCann's past incidents, with the exception of the clawing, no reports were written and they were only brought up in the statements from the fellow rangers.  

YOULLBEBACK

Could you imagine the liability of an attraction like this nowadays?  What a different world just a couple decades ago!

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Lost Legends… Rides so spectacular in scale and so incredible in their experience, their stories are shared through generations. Here at Theme Park Tourist, our Lost Legends series has spent years slowly collecting the inside stories of forgotten rides from around the globe: the Big Bad Wolf that huffed-and-puffed its way through Busch Gardens, the icy, forgotten Curse of DarKastle , the monstrous Son of Beast and dozens more .

Today’s tale is particularly raw for fans of Kings Dominion near Richmond, Virginia, where an entire mountain fell, taking with it one of the most extraordinary and extreme roller coasters ever made. VOLCANO: The Blast Coaster was sincerely one-of-a-kind, using prototype technology to launch guests vertically up and out of a flaming, steaming, rumbling peak.

How did Volcano come about? What was it like to take on nature’s greatest force? What happened to make this active peak go dormant? Dig in to the full story, then be sure to share your memories of this explosive coaster in the comments below.

The story’s start

As odd and it may sound, the story of one of the world’s most intense roller coasters begins with The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear, Scooby-Doo, and the Smurfs. That’s because in 1966, a Cincinnati, Ohio-based television company – Taft Broadcasting – purchased Hanna-Barbera, acquiring the rights to those characters and essentially owning Saturday morning cartoons for a generation. Taft suddenly owned an intellectual property catalogue that would make Disney jealous, and had an idea of how to use it.

In 1969, Taft purchased Cincinnati’s Coney Island – a small amusement park along the Ohio River – which had been devastated by a number of floods. Their plan was to relocate what they could of Coney Island to a new, custom-built park on newly acquired land northeast of Cincinnati. There, they’d leverage the layout and lessons learned from Disney’s own 1971 Magic Kingdom and their acquisition of the Hanna-Barbera library to create one of the first modern theme parks based off Disney’s tradition.

In 1972, Kings Island opened with all the standards you’d expect post-Magic-Kingdom: a grand entryway (International Street) leading up to a park icon (a 300-foot-tall Eiffel Tower) with “spoke” paths radiating out into themed lands like Rivertown (an old Ohio settlement), Oktoberfest, Coney Island (featuring the world-record-breaking twin white tracks of the Racer), and of course, the Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera.

Kings Island was a hit for Taft Broadcasting… So much so that they decided to do it again…

Kings Dominion

Following the success of Kings Island, Taft set out to expand into a new region of the country, settling on a 400-acre site in Dowell, Virginia (just north of Richmond). The heart of the Mid-Atlantic, this East Coast park would be an attractive option for both residents and tourists from Richmond, D.C. Baltimore, Raleigh, and Norfolk. Given that this new sister to Kings Island would become an icon of “The Old Dominion,” the Virginia park was named Kings Dominion.

When Kings Dominion opened in 1975, it had a lot in common with its sister park in Cincinnati: an International Street leading to an Eiffel Tower with branches off to the Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera, an Old Virginia mining town (opposite Kings Island’s Rivertown), and even a Coney Island with a dual racing wooden coaster.

But of particular interest today is a land Kings Island had not opened with: the Lion Country Safari .

The Lion Country Safari had actually opened before the rest of Kings Dominion. It was used in 1974 as a “preview” attraction, allowing guests to drive their own personal vehicles on a route through actual zoological exhibits stocked with big cats, elephants, lions, rhinos, antelopes, and giraffes.

When Kings Dominion officially opened in 1975, the roadway was replaced with ride. Now, guests would begin their journey in the Lion Country Safari land – a thatch-roofted adventurers outpost recalling African encampments – and board a monorail (yes, a monorail!) that would carry them through the 20-minute tour of animal habitats. 

In 1979, the remote Lion Country Safari would gain an equally-adventurous neighbor in one of the largest expansions the park had ever seen… No, not a volcano. At least, not yet.

The Lost World

In 1979, the park debuted the Lost World. This craggily peak reigning 170-feet over the park (nearly as tall as Cinderella Castle) isn’t so different from the never-built Discovery Mountain once planned for Disneyland Paris in that the mountain itself would’ve concealed an entire sub-land with multiple rides and attractions of its own. Decades before Disney would attempt it, Kings Dominion did it .

The multi-ride complex quickly became the park's signature attraction, its fantasy peak rising above the forests of Virginia – a scale few would've expected of a regional park. 

In fact, the Lost World was an intertwined complex containing three attractions :  

• On “ground level” was Journey to Atlantis , an Arrow Dynamics log flume ride through fairly simple dark ride scenes of skeletons, culminating in a lift and splash into the lagoon that surrounded the peak;
• On the second story, the unusual The Land of Dooz was a from-scratch dark ride deep into the Earth to meet a race of Hobbit-like people who apparently create the world we know (cranking gears to turn the planet, pushing up growing plants, dying the Red Sea, and more) in a substantial 7-minute trip;

• Finally, guests could hike through a claustrophobic cavern and emerge overlooking the Time Shaft , a cleverly-concealed a steampunk-stylized Chance Rotor (a spinning cylinder pinning guests to the wall with centripetal force, then dropping the floor from beneath them) accentuated by music and lighting effects – a sort of "Journey to the Center of the Earth" / "Time Machine" thrill.

While the scale of the Lost World was grand (in fact, the $20 million expansion was said to be the largest and most expensive theme park expansion project ever undertaken outside of Disney's parks), the attractions inside weren’t entirely timeless.

As a matter of fact, both dark rides would undergo substantial rewrites within a few years, each elevated to their long-lasting and most recognizable forms.

In 1980 – the year after the Lost World’s debut – the Journey to Atlantis flume ride was redesigned as The Haunted River – a ride many Virginian natives will recall. From a black light “Piranha River” and gag-filled Ancient Egypt to a graveyard and Pirates-of-the-Caribbean-influenced shipwreck, the attraction was surprisingly robust for a regional, seasonal park, and as a re-theme nonetheless!

For a generation of locals, The Haunted River may have been a test of courage for young kids. But in 1984, its upstairs neighbor became a family’s best friend. In 1984, the Land of Dooz was recrafted around Hanna-Barbera’s popular Smurfs franchise. The ride (and indeed, the entire mountain complex) was renamed Smurf Mountain in honor of its newest inhabitants.

The musical Smurf Mountain might’ve seemed like just the kind of classic family dark ride that would be beloved even to today. You can almost imagine generations of guests meeting the Smurfs through an oddball dark ride at Kings Dominion, maybe even believing the characters to be original creations designed just for the attraction. However, that’s not what happened… Kings Dominion was about to be changed forever by a new owner who had big ambitious for the Lost World mountain… Read on…

Just your friendly neighborhood fan of tropical hideaways, Victorian boardwalks, mid-century tomorrows, ancient temples, and cursed forests! In between dreaming of Dole Whips, I'm a museum experience developer. I'm also the researcher behind Theme Park Tourist's  Legend Library   – filled with stories of  Lost Legends , Modern Marvels , Declassified Disasters , and more.

I was SOOO Lucky to visit the park for the first time in Spring of 2018 before it closed. So glad I got the credit before disappearing!

In this era of copycat coasters (it seems like everyone has one giga coaster, one drop coaster, one flying coaster, etc) Volcano was truly the most unique ride I have ever ridden. I miss it terribly.

You hit the nail on the head. One-of-a-kind. Purpose-built. Designed around an existing structure... We don't see many rides like this anymore...

Wonderful article. Thanks for all your effort in this.

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