Parks Kent Island Park (Story Park)

[Kinderly]

I really don't feel like digging up the old thread for this, so I'm just posting a new one.

If any of you were around for the good ole' days of RCT3, you'd probably remember the concept of story parks. That is something that I wanted to try again in my incarnation of Kent Island Park. Hopefully you'll all enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed creating this.

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Kent Island Park, Chapter 1
“Roaring 20s”​

Kent Island Park was originally established as the Kent Island Colony in 1909 as a model colonial village on Kent Island in Maryland. The park at this time was still owned by the Simmons Family, their ties to the land going back for generations. The Colony was a quaint place, and really was this time’s equivalent to a theme park. They had live, period accurate music, an old-timey restaurant, a pub, and an outdoor theater where guests could watch shows of all sorts. The idea to expand the colony into an amusement park didn’t pick up until 1925 when owner David Simmons travelled to New York’s Coney Island. Upon his return to Maryland he looked into the expansion and construction of a park extension, turning the dinky Kent Island Colony into an Amusement Destination.

1927 was the official opening of the newly dubbed Kent Island Park. Of the newest attractions included a carousel and a roller coaster named Shooting Star.

The park’s construction started immediately near autumn of 1925, expanding off of the already existing Kent Island Colony. The park officially opened to the public in 1927 as Kent Island Park. The park’s ride lineup consisted only of the elegant Hilltop Carousel and the thrilling Shooting Star, one of the tallest wooden coasters in the world around this time.

The Shooting Star adorned the edge of the parking lot. It was the first thing every guest saw before entering the park.

After this major expansion, nothing much happened afterwards for years. The Great Depression started to affect the park’s finances. Guests were forced to stop coming, and eventually the park slipped. David Simmons still opened the park to the public, but the Shooting Star and even the Hilltop Carousel were closed to save as much money as possible. In one last desperate grab for money, Simmons committed arson in the hopes of reimbursement.

The park was forced into abandonment in 1934.


David Simmons was tried on accounts of arson and insurance fraud, and the Simmons family left their home. The bank reclaimed the park, put it up for sale, but in the midst of the Depression no one was looking to buy property of any kind. So, the park was officially closed in 1934, and would stand abandoned on the site until someone came forward to buy the land.

 

[Fifrelin]

That's a great idea ! You did a good job with the execution too - at first glance I thought the pics were from a real park haha

 

[pink908]

I love it when people get not only creative in their park but also with the presentation of it realy nice and hope to see more soon!

 

[DistortAMG]

I absolutely loved the story parks from RCT3! Looking forward to following this! I have seen this over on SGW too. Very nice park!

 

[Nemmie]

Great to see you bring this over here buddy [up]

 

[wowman]

great idea and nice pictures

 

[Kinderly]

That's a great idea ! You did a good job with the execution too - at first glance I thought the pics were from a real park haha

I love it when people get not only creative in their park but also with the presentation of it realy nice and hope to see more soon!

great idea and nice pictures

Thanks. I can't really take credit for the idea though. There were plenty of story parks before this one.[wink]

I absolutely loved the story parks from RCT3! Looking forward to following this! I have seen this over on SGW too. Very nice park!

Thanks!

Great to see you bring this over here buddy [up]

Thanks Nemmie!

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Kent Island Park, Chapter 2
"Rebirth"​

While the Depression came to a close, Kent Island Park sat silently waiting. The last time the park was fully open to the public was over 7 years past. By 1941 the park was in complete disrepair. Had a business entrepreneur by the name of Charles Yule not stumbled upon the property while visiting Maryland, the park may have never gotten another chance at life. Yule purchased the park from the State Government, renovated it, and by 1943 he had it back up and running… with a few extra parts.

The Whip opened in 1943 with the park. Behind it, the water ride named The Plunge which opened in 1946.

The Whip was the first of many attractions to come under Yule’s ownership. It was brought in from another, rather unsuccessful park and given new life on Kent Island. Along with the new ride, another was being rebranded. The popular Shooting Star was renamed Screamin’ Eagle to further cement this new era of operation.

A postcard from 1948 shows an overview of the park. During this time, it contained 4 rides, 1 roller coaster and 2 picnic fields.

By 1945 the park had nearly doubled in size, its infrastructure changed completely. During Yule’s ownership, the Kent Island Colony operated as a complete separate entity from the park, still owned by him of course. It was his opinion that the two worked much more efficiently under separate operation. From 1944 to 1947 the Colony saw a drop in attendance and in 1948 officially closed to guests completely. Fortunately, Yule never tore the section down.

The Plunge splashes down at the bottom of its drop, ending the ride.

In 1946 the park opened its second major attraction to the public. The Plunge was one of a few water rides to come from the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. in the 40s. It had a small “dark ride” section, which led to a hill followed by a splashdown. While the drop wasn’t as tall as Screamin’ Eagle’s, its main purpose was to serve as a cool down on hot summer days. It was a hit with guests and became a staple in the park.

Charles Yule would eventually come to sell the park in 1949 for the second time in its short life due to his own personal financial troubles. It was bought for approximately $116,000 and reopened for its 1950 season.

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I’ve released the 1946 version of the park on the steam workshop for those who want to take a closer look without all of the photo filters. I hope you enjoy it!
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=860911611

 

[Meretrix]

Absolutely charming. The vintage photo idea really sells the park.

 

[Joël]

Great pictures! I like the effects that you have applied to them. Kent Island looks like a lovely park and you've already created a nice story!

 

[Kinderly]

Thanks you guys!

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Kent Island Park, Chapter 3
“The New Age”​

The park was bought yet again in 1950 by Jim Connolly, a man with experience in the amusement industry. He previously managed 2 amusement parks, one of which was brought back from complete abandonment. With Connolly’s much deeper pockets, Kent Island Park was preparing for a huge expansion, one which would change its image completely.

A newspaper article about the Bay Bridge’s completion.
The park hadn’t seen the number of guests desired by previous owners and it lost money because of it. Kent Island was a hard place to get to if you didn’t live on Maryland’s eastern shore. This changed in 1952 when the Chesapeake Bay Bridge was built, bringing in hundreds of potential new visitors to the park. To prepare for this, Connolly closed the park from 1952-1953 to renovate its infrastructure.

The Midway was one of the new additions. While it was quite skimpy, it offered activities for those non-ride folks.
In the new Kent Island Park, Connolly built a newer, bigger entrance to handle the massive crowds. Along with this new entrance, Bay Street was built to provide services the park was lacking for years. Three new attractions were added to the park, along with the park’s new Midway.

Lord Kent, his name being based on Lord Baltimore, was the park’s very first entertainer.
A new entertainer was introduced as well. Lord Kent was the first of many mascots to be introduced. The figure was mainly just a cheap, paper mache sphere with a mouth and eyes, along with a plastic crown and red sash.

A photo from the park’s 1953 opening day.
The park re-opened in 1953 to a huge crowd of guests, more than the park had ever seen before. The Bay Bridge broke Kent Island Park out of its long period of isolation, its popularity continued to grow outside of the state as newer modes of interstate transit were established.

Kent Island Park for the most part remained in this condition for over a decade. The popularity of parks like it were dying down, and it never saw the need for a new expansion. As the 60s came to a close, Kent Island suddenly experienced a surge in popularity it hadn’t felt in a long time.

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Once again the park has been released on steam for those wanting to explore the new additions. Some parts aren't as complete as last time (mainly the entrance plaza), but most of it is complete for your viewing pleasure.
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=879213949
Have fun!

 

[Kinderly]

Kent Island Park, Chapter 4
“Slow Growth”​

The late 60s saw a large expansion to the park, the largest it had seen since its reopening in 1953. While it wasn’t large space-wise, the expansion revived the public’s interest. A new roller coaster was built in the back of the park, one that was just as thrilling as Screamin’ Eagle.

Timber Fox stands right on the edge of the water.
Timber Fox opened to the public for the park’s 1967 season. While its profile suggests it was no more thrilling than the other woodie in the park, it had certain qualities that defined it. One of these was the coaster’s extreme airtime. There was at least 3 seconds of airtime around the track, one of these moments was within a double down section during the latter half.

The Scenic Railway’s track was rerouted to include a second station.
With the expansion in 1967, the Scenic Railway train ride was transformed into a transport system. The newly dubbed Kent Island Express would ferry guests from the Colony side of the park, to the Timber Fox side. What would take 8 minutes by walking would now take 3, should you want to save time.

The new entry ticket booths stood beside the entrance.
1967 also brought about the paid entry system. Before, guests would have to buy tickets for rides from within the park. This system was becoming obsolete, where paid entry was viewed as more cost efficient and more profitable.
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As always, you can now visit the park as it was in 1967. There is a lot not shown in this update, so be sure to check it out!
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=908255962