Roller Coaster History

Roller Coaster History Series

Introduction
Begin your ride with a introduction from roller coaster historian Adam Sandy.

How It Started

The Beginning
The origin, it begins with a simple slide.

Early Years in America
The first American Roller Coaster is born.

Early 1900s

Roaring Twenties
The popularity boom and the sudden building craze.

Coney Island History
Sodom by the sea at America's most famous amusement parks.

Depression and World War
The dark days arrive for the Roller Coaster.

Time of Change 60s through 70s

Sixties Amusement Parks
The demise of the classic amusement park and the birth of a new breed, the theme park.

Sixties Wooden Coasters
The calm before the building storm begins again.

Theme Park Building Boom
John Allen and Kings Island make for a winning combination.

Late Seventies
The start of the modern Looping Roller Coaster.

Decade of Innovation

Enter the Eighties
Wood was put aside for more variety in steel with the debut of stand up and suspended coasters.

Late Eighties
Final years of the decade dominated with rides from Anton Schwarzkopf and Arrow.

Modern Day Scream Machines

Nineties Steel Coasters Part 1
Nineties Steel Coasters Part 2
Nineties Steel Coasters Part 3
Bigger and better Roller Coasters arrive as designers now attempt to push the limits in size and designs.

Nineties Wooden Coasters
New wooden legends in the making.

Credits and Acknowledgements

Roller Coaster History Bibliography

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