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Troves & Tales

Dark rides: an enlightening legacy

We brave the surprises lurking behind closed doors.

When I came across the term “dark rides”, my mind went to rollercoasters ridden in the dark. Like Disney’s “Space Mountain”, one of my all time favorites. Or the indoor/outdoor “Verbolten” in Busch Gardens, Williamsburg that made a grown man — my husband — scream.

I was wrong.

A dark ride is “an indoor amusement ride in which passengers board guided vehicles that travel through specially lit scenes, usually containing an on-ride soundtrack, special effects, and animatronics or animations.”

Think “fun” houses where you board onto a car on a track (sometimes a boat on a canal) and slowly eek around into a dark unknown. Disney’s “It’s a Small World” might be considered a less spooky version, depending on your point of view.

A timeline of twists and turns

While some suggest dark rides go as far back as the late 1800s, most consider the Pretzel ride of 1928 to be the first. When one brave soul described her new-ride experience as being twisted like the salty snack, the name stuck.

Early versions had only sound effects. A few had limited non-motorized visual made of out of papier-mâché and plywood that used mechanical triggers to animate characters.

Powered gears, magnetic switches, and other sophisticated effects were eventually introduced through the ‘30s, ‘40s, and ‘50s. But the most impactful “stunts” tended to be the most simple.

George LaCross, partner of the Laff in the Dark website about dark rides, recalls:

There’s something about our human desire to be amused, specifically with surprises, that warrants a deeper dive. For now, we’ll just note that the strength and consistency of this desire created an entire dark ride industry.

Amusement park owners not only bought editions of the original Pretzel and its competitor, Laff in the Dark (not the website). They also invested in add-on enhancements sold by other companies.

The business of selling dark, momentary thrills was here to stay.

In the 1960s and ‘70s, dark rides featured real-life screams recorded and played on vinyl records, 8-tracks, and cassettes. They also started to be themed — jungles, pirates, Westerns, and American history were popular.

Through the ‘80s and ‘90, they became known for their gore and sense of illusion, and introduced black lights and Day-Glo paints. Scenery aesthetics like fading corridors and spinning objects made you feel like you were moving in a way that you actually weren’t.

Late 20th century technology updates were aimed at preventing scares as much as creating them. After a tragic fire killed eight teens trapped in a dark ride in 1984, sprinkler systems were added to protect both the patrons and the vintage ride assets they came to enjoy.

Hidden dark ride gems

The most popular dark rides still get much of the attention online. Some of these legends still exist today, while others faded off into infinite darkness — either because the park that housed it closed, or the dark ride itself needed to be retired.

We uncovered a couple dark rides seemingly less talked about yet worth mentioning:

Haunted Barrel Works
Centreville Amusement Park | Toronto Islands, Ontario, Canada

The Haunted Barrel Works dark ride hides in plain sight, according to enthusiast Jason Burkett, who chronicled his personal tour of it years ago. Built in-house in 1970, the ride sits unassumingly behind a ticket booth. It features “Hitchcockian”-timed stunts triggered by barrel car wheels and was used in a Goosebumps television episode in the late 90s.

The Spee-Lunker Cave
Six Flags Over Texas | Arlington, Texas, United States

In a 2002 post, Barry Green detailed the literal ups and downs of the “river” boat dark ride that opened at Six Flags in 1964. At a time when real-life spelunkers were exploring caves, the ride’s creators (who’d worked on famous movies and tv shows) developed scenes with eye-popping Spee-lunker characters. One stunt sent the boat of riders up an incline and then plunged it down a waterfall. Riders were later misted with water and cold air to experience an arctic blizzard. All in the dark!

The Spee-Lunker Cave was replaced in 1991 by a Warner Brothers version dark riders found enjoyable but lacking the former’s caliber of thrill and magic. Cult-like super fans tried petitioning the return of the original dark ride. The ride would eventually change again to the current iteration: Pirates of Speelunker Cave.

Dark ride collectibles?

According to LaCross, collecting all or parts of dark rides wasn’t a thing without the internet. Before the web, old, unwanted figures or components were usually tossed in dumpsters or sold to metal recyclers for cash.

Set in poor environments and tossed around from regular use or needing to be relocated, dark rides wear out and demand intense restoration. LaCross, who considers some dark ride figures to be works of art, thinks only a niche audience appreciates such a vintage character missing an eyeball.

It’s true the internet has allowed dark ride enthusiasts to connect and share stories, details, and photos. The techies among them have built databases and catalogs which we share below.

But it’s unclear to us what’s out there to collect. A cursory eBay search turned up nothing. On Etsy we found dark ride dioramas. We did find an old Pretzel car on Invaluable that sold at auction in 2022 for supposedly $5,000-$10,000. And a collector asking questions in 2010 about this Pretzel car with orange bat add-on.

Don’t be in the dark!

Read more from dark ride enthusiast, George LaCross, who shares history and opinions — like why themed dark rides are less suspenseful, why an actual car horn in a ride was so frightening, and why he admires the work of “haunt world” engineers — in this 2013 interview.

And check out these dark ride sites and communities lighting up the web:

Dark Ride Database (DRdb)
Started by fans from The Netherlands in 2023, the site includes “semi-dark rides” and “show rides”, and invites you to contribute.

Dark Attraction & Funhouse Enthusiasts (DAFE)
View and contribute to the Attraction List, create a membership, learn about ride classes, attend events, and more.

Take a virtual ride on the extinct Mystery River once loved at Germany’s Movie Park in this 1996 video.

Check out images of vintage 1960s Fantasyland dark rides in this 2012 blog post., or chat with fellow dark ride lovers in this Reddit group.

Record Shop

Great Skee Balls of fire!

The blaze that killed Jack and Jill.

This weekend in history: Sunday, October 5, 1930

In 1921, the Seabreeze Amusement Park in Rochester, NY introduced a Virginia Reel wooden coaster, renovated and renamed Jack and Jill seven years later.

On October 5, 1930, a fire in a nearby Skee Ball stand engulfed several attractions, including the Jack and Jill coaster. Although a few remnants of it were salvaged, the ride was toast.

The Gallery

A ticket to ride

The aesthetic joy of ride tickets from fairs of the past.

“How many tickets do I need?”

“Do we have enough tickets?”

These are constant questions when taking kids to the fair. At least for me as the designated ticket holder.

And tickets and tokens are a big part of most fairs and carnivals.

Well, at least they are unless the fair has modernized and gone digital. It’s coming for us all, I know, but until that digital wave takes over completely, let’s take a quick look at some of the terrific tickets from non-digital days of the past.

Enjoy with me how much nicer these tickets are to look at. 

The Skooter

West Swinney Park in Fort Wayne, Indiana | Early 20th century

The Skooter and the park are no more, but these unused tickets from Fort Wayne, Indiana have an interesting way to track how many rides are left. Made by the Toledo Ticket Co.

Night of Fun

New York World’s Fair | 1964

Look at this punch card for night rides at The New York World’s Fair from 1964. I love night carnivals ls as the mood and vibe changes when things go dark!

Atracciones Sotelo

The Grand Fair in Mexico | 1930s

This sign and ride tickets are from a 1930s fair traveling through Mexico. Rides like El Latigo (The Whip), Remolino (Swirl), El Gometa (The Rubber Band), El Salto (The Jump) and El Puipo Marino (The Sea Octopus) are featured in this colorful illustrated poster.

Terre des Hommes

Expo 67 in Montreal | 1968

I wasn’t alive for Expo 67, but my parent’s generation loved to talk about it. These ride tickets were only 10 cents in 1968, which seems like a steal. And a list of ride names on the tickets with how many tickets each required makes these an extra interesting find. Most tickets don’t say the names or ride cost so you can only guess or do extra sleuthing.

Riverton Fair

Connecticut | 1923

These acorn shaped tickets were designed to be worn on a coat or attached to a zipper or even wrist. Whatever you did, these wartime fair tickets instructed you to “wear conspicuously.” The Riverton Fair still takes place in mid-October.

County Fair Gresham

Portland, OR | 1930s

I love how much is packed onto this ticket. You know what’s in store with this Fred Meyer store ticket that has a hand painted feeling to its design. One ticket is good for half off the 50-cent admission price so these two tickets would cover one person’s price of entry. And here’s some great history of the Gershem fair, along with great memories in the comments section.

Travel Agency

Destination: Thrills

Your get-a-way guide to nostalgic rides.

Liseberg

Sweden | Award-winning amusement park with vintage and antique rides

Liseberg began in 1923 as part of an exhibition that included fun slides and a near-1000 foot funicular train car ride. Today it boasts being one of the most popular theme parks in the world, where you can still enjoy a handful of vintage rides and attractions.

Wander through the 1961 Kristallsalongen mirror maze or soak in their 1973 FlumeRide. Prefer the ‘80s? Ride the Kaffekoppen teacups, the Fisketuren sea storm, or the Lisebergbanan steel coaster from 1987.

Carters Steam Fair

England | World’s largest traveling vintage funfair

This English vintage funfair was high on our list to include, but little did we know it stopped running this summer after 40 years in operation. Now all the fantastically kept vintage rides from the 1890s to 1960s are being sold off.

We could have removed this one from the list, but the rides here are too pretty to not look at and imagine what it would be like at a vintage fair today.

Pennsylvania

United States | Rolling hills…and rides!

Yep, the entire state.

As we worked on this issue, Pennsylvania popped up time and again, celebrated for all kinds of legendary rides and amusement park history.

Kennywood Park and Lakemont Park each have century-old classic coasters worth venturing. And Knoebels — well, this park ought to win the “Knoebel” prize for preserving nostalgic thrills.

Do not eat before braving Knoebels’ 1942 Looper, a human-size hamster wheel thought to be the only of its kind still operating. Can’t stomach that one? Then Flying Turns may be more your speed — a mid-century trackless wooden bobsled brought back to life in 2013 using just memories and photos. Knoebels has also resurrected an abandoned 1947 ride now called the Phoenix and a 1964 coaster from Colorado.

You can get your dark ride fix at Knoebels Haunted Mansion, or head toward Lake Erie to hit the iconic Whacky Shack.

Want something sweeter (and calmer)? Visit Hershey to take a free tour ride of their chocolate factory.

Schoolhouse

It is thought that people with lower levels of natural dopamine are more likely to be afraid of rollercoasters.

Funhouse

Tunnels of Love

Were dark rides your place to steal a kiss?

The Tunnels of Love ride in New York’s Coney Island featured extra dark areas where passengers could snag a smooch or two. Or three or more…

Dark rides gained a reputation as a place where young couples could make out. But superfans like George LaCross think that common belief was over hyped — that riders were on edge awaiting the next surprise, too jerked around to be aligning the lips for action. If anything, it was more likely to get you to hug and comfort your date.

So, we want to know:

Did you ever make out on a dark ride? Did you get the girl (or boy)?

Tell us your dark ride or roller coaster memories. Send us a note or post in the comments.

Off Road

This week’s finds:

• Larry Smith, economics professor and roller coaster enthusiast, let the cameras capture the experience when he took his son for his first ride in 1976. Watch and hear the play-by-play thrills in this video:

• Interested in making your very own carnival ride? Just curious how these rides are made? Check out the schematics of this old ride called the Kiddie Chairplane from 1947. Could be the start of a different kind of hobby project!

  

  The kids or grandkids would love their very own Kiddie Chairplane, don’t you think?

• We get nerdy again this week with Coasterpedia — you’re one-stop community-sourced wiki for all things rides, coasters, water slides, parks, and “amusing” history. Discover the fate of your favorite vintage coaster and learn about the many different ride types. Digital thrill seekers can click on “random page” for more online fun!

  

  A fitting result for my click on Coasterpedia’s Random Page link.

• Ride down memory mountain with National Amusement Park Historical Association member, Andrea Dreyfus. In conversation with ECTV’s Bob Savakinus, Dreyfus revisits the wonder of some Pennyslvania theme parks and chats about her personal collection of rollercoaster parts. Watch here.

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