I thought it would be cool to post my first memory of SDC and then you all can too! I don't know if this has been done, I didn't see it anywhere.
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So being from the east coast I didn't get to SDC until June of 1988.
The first thing I remember was the crazy tram driver closing his eyes through the tunnel. Okay, so from my vantage point it looked like both but I'm hoping he had one open!
Then in line for tickets my sister who had a short shirt on was given a ticket for exposing her belly button. She still has that ticket nearly 20 years later and it is something we all laugh about when we see it in her scrapbook. I just remember the feeling of being at "home" while on the park. The people walking around in costume were great to watch and laugh at when they would do something for the guests. (something I wish SDC would bring back - more characters) I don't remember the rides from the first trip it was the people and the atmosphere mainly.
But when I did get home I played trolly driver on my grandpa's golf cart and had a pretend "lost river" near our pond and river. lol those were the days!
My first memory IS Silver Dollar City. My mother is carrying me across the swinging bridge in 62 or 63. On the far side where woodcarvers is now was the road, parked cars and picnic tables.
My first memories are:
--Being made a deputy. (I still have the badge!)
--The Swinging Bridge. (I jumped up and down over and over again!)
I was so young the first season we went as a family that all I wanted to do was show everyone my deputy badge and go to the swinging bridge! :D
Well I first went to the park when I was only a few months old. I don't remember anything (duh) but we have a lot of pictures. The first real things I remember are playing in Tom Sawyer's Landing back when it was in its high time. The tree house was awesome and I loved the balloons. For hours, I also played in the area that had the slides and it was a huge ball pit (it is now the wax station).
My favorite ride when I was little was LROTO which my family has called the "round boats" forever. I was really scared of the ride but once my parents finally got me on it I loved it.
^I forgot about the slides and the ball pit! That is one of my first memories as well. I loved that place! I could play there for a very long time. My parents had to drag me away from it! :D
Like Old Guy and sdcforever, my earliest SDC memory is of walking across the swinging bridge. This would have been 1970 or '71, so I was 3 or 4 years old. I believe the bridge was still the entrance to the park at that time.
A few years later, I remember feeling all grown up when I was allowed to go on Fire in the Hole with my older sister. I still nearly wet my pants, of course.
My most enduring memory of SDC is the tarry-woody scent that permeated the place. I think it's the smell of creosoted lumber, but I could be wrong. I loved that smell as a kid and still do. Whenever I smell it anywhere I instantly think of Silver Dollar City.
Most of my memories are of the olfactory kind. The smell of the creosote, the musty smell of the Ozark Marketplace. I think most of all though, I remembered the visual of that creepy projection they had as you entered the Flooded Mine where the miner talked to you.
I too have vague memories of the Swinging Bridge when I was young - it must be extremely impressionable.
I also remember the Landing when it was in it's glory, with tunnels, ropes, bridges, slides, and all those little do-dads.
I remember the tree house best of all though, before it was fixed to be PC - they had these pop guns that pointed out the window and all these random little games and mirrors.
Quote from: betamike on June 04, 2008, 06:03:37 PM
I think most of all though, I remembered the visual of that creepy projection they had as you entered the Flooded Mine where the miner talked to you.
Oh, those busts with the projected talking heads on them? They were in dioramas that you could look in on while waiting in line. There was the mine warden and at least one prisoner, if memory serves. They were creepier than the "grim grinning ghosts" in Disney's Haunted Mansion by a long shot.
I feel bad that since I have been coming to SDC since my birth, that all the trips around that time are blended together in my mind. I do remember though that in the Flooded Mine it used to be a tiny little drop just after they dispatched the ore boat (just under the control booth). Am I crazy?!
^I kind of remember there being something like that but it might've just been the boats dropping out of the station and into the real water channel.
I was thinking that too, but it is odd that they don't do that now.
I don't think Flooded Mine ever had a drop.
Quote from: Dale on June 04, 2008, 11:18:39 PM
I don't think Flooded Mine ever had a drop.
The way I remember it, the boats rested on a conveyor belt for stability during loading and unloading. The boats dropped a tiny bit as they left the belt and floated on their own. It was a small jolt if there were just a few lightweight kids in the boat, or a larger drop if some tubby adults were onboard. Have they smoothed out the jolt since then?
^American Plunge pretty much does the same thing.
^^Rather than a conveyor belt, they use a set of rising and lowering metal bars that actually pick the cars out of the water enough to be stable, so there shouldn't be anything like that anymore.
Funny though, I never noticed this conversion before.
^I remember the tiny drop, which did cause a little jolt. I also remember the "talking heads" (the warden, etc.); however, I didn't find them creepy. I loved being in the queue so I could see them. I thought they were cool.
The pop guns in the tree house were fun, too. Man, I loved the tree house when I was a kid!
These are even more of my first SDC memories. (It's amazing what a little prompting can cause you to remember).
Betamike, I just spent way too much time going through your Silver Dollar City photoset on Flickr. (And your Disney photosets, and your NW Arkansas photo sets, and...) The photos are fabulous, as is your sense of humor. For anyone who hasn't checked out his Flickr goodies: http://www.flickr.com/photos/skinnytie/ (http://www.flickr.com/photos/skinnytie/)
Thanks Ozarkbred. I appreciate the comment! I am adding photos from my personal SDC collection little by little each day as not to overload my Flickr group. Keep checking back in for more surprises!
Please feel free to come on over to Flickr and add your own comments!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/skinnytie/
http://www.flickr.com/groups/silverdollarcity/
You're right about the bars lifting the cars to stabilize them. When they release(d) the mine car, you would immediately think the thing was going to sink all the way. I never considered it to be a real drop, though - like Pirates of the Carribean. As for the talking heads, one is still there telling people to "keep movin'!" The short lines really mess up some of these effects, and people never seem to understand why I stop to enjoy the theming in the queue.
My first SDC memories are from 1970 or '71; I was 7 or 8 the first time we went, and I went with my family every summer until I was a sophomore in college, c.1983. I took my two sons in 1998, and now that I have a 5 year old, I'm eager to take the whole family again.
I like to say we discovered Branson when it was still Branson, before it became Nashville. :)
Because we went every year, some of the memories are muddled and out of order. One of the first years that we went, Dad whispered to one of the performers on Main Street, who then sought out my teenage sister, who was blushingly dragged into the middle of a fight between two would-be suitors. While Dad took pictures. ;D
I remember Fire In The Hole being a brand-new exciting ride. I remember Rube's Diving Bell, which I thought was very well done. I was disappointed when it went away.
I remember the wonderful spaghetti at Molly's Mill. And the funnel cakes, of course. Having long conversations with Shad Heller while he worked at the forge. Grandfather's Mansion, which we always just called "the crazy house". The spooky projected faces in the Flooded Mine. The old fellow clog/jig dancing on a piece of plywood near the entrance. Yelling "rutabaga!" for the group photo at Marvel Cave. "The Rock of Many Names", and "domino staircase". The train robbery. Music at the gazebo, and everywhere else.
Man... I've really got to get back there soon. It's... ummm... for the kids, of course.
^Welcome to the forums!
I had forgotten about yelling "rutabaga!" for the Marvel Cave group photo. That was fun, and definitely SDC-quirky.
You should take your kids soon. It's mean to deny them the fun of SDC when they're practically begging for it. ;)
Not my first memory, but something that happened around that same time:
Does anyone remember when they did log rolling at the waterfall pool? I never got to see it, but it was another theming element for the lumberjack area. I had always wondered about the purpose of the waterfall since it looks so fake - a waterfall that starts above ground level??? I guess people used to stand around the waterfall for viewing the event, and they may even have brought volunteers out of the audience to joing in, but I'm not sure (I know that wouldn't happen today.). That's why there is a small pier in that pool. When Wildfire was being built, they crashed one of Doc's flying contraptions in the pool as a very subtle teaser for the ride.
^I don't remember log rolling in the waterfall pool. In fact, I've never heard of that before (I guess I'm too young). That would've been fun to do. I do remember when we first started visiting SDC when I was about five one of my favorite things to do was to walk (or run!) the path behind the waterfall, stick my hand in the water as it fell, and get splashed as some of the water hit the log railing. Now they've closed off the path so you can't even walk back there anymore. :-[
This is a little off topic, but I heard they might be removing the waterfall in the near future. Any truth to this? Also, does anyone remember the log rolling? Better yet, any past participants have any memories? 8)
Quote from: sdcforever on June 26, 2008, 10:54:46 AM
This is a little off topic, but I heard they might be removing the waterfall in the near future. Any truth to this? Also, does anyone remember the log rolling? Better yet, any past participants have any memories? 8)
Grrr! Why would they even consider that? It's practically a landmark in SDC! If its giving the park troubles I can understand that (sort of) but my gosh. I hate some of these changes.
^ i couldnt agree more. this park keeps moving towards being just a regular park. seems like all the new changes and attractions they are wanting to put in are moving further and further away from an 1800's theme.im all for new things and expantion as long as the theme is kept. they should repair the landmarks(such as the waterfall) if they are causing a prob instead of spending money on things such as new menus at the eateries( any one notice how lame these new menus are)
^Just to clarify, it's been two or three years since I heard the rumor that the waterfall might be on the way out. I haven't heard anything since then. It's so nice to sit on the second floor of the Lumberjack Camp dining area and look out at the waterfall. I hope there's no truth to the rumor.
^Still, just the fact that it's a rumor really gets on my nerves.
Closing off the waterfall makes sense in relation to the rumor (not that I am excited about that idea either). Remember when the waterfall was re-purposed to be the gateway to the "Land of Forgotten Crafts"?
I also had a memory from my childhood that I swear was at Silver Dollar City. Over at Lake Silver, I vaguely remember animals that would dive from a high platform into the water...in particular, a pig?
Quote from: betamike on June 26, 2008, 05:55:26 PM
I also had a memory from my childhood that I swear was at Silver Dollar City. Over at Lake Silver, I vaguely remember animals that would dive from a high platform into the water...in particular, a pig?
Lol, I couldn't tell ya. I've never heard anything like this. Who knows..
Ooooh, I would pay to see some line jumpers and rude teenagers thrown (I mean, "jump") off a platform into the lake, but I've never heard of this feature.
Just to clarify, There was a log rolling show in the pond in the late 70's that included a log rolling dog and yes the croud stood all the pond as well as bleachers set on the surrounding hills,but no one from the crowd was brought in. The waterfall was also the entrance to a proposed but never built walkthrough cave maze/attraction. There was a diving mule but that was in the Echo Hollow show with the Dillards.
Quote from: Old Guy on June 27, 2008, 12:52:16 PM
Just to clarify, There was a log rolling show in the pond in the late 70's that included a log rolling dog and yes the croud stood all the pond as well as bleachers set on the surrounding hills,but no one from the crowd was brought in. The waterfall was also the entrance to a proposed but never built walkthrough cave maze/attraction. There was a diving mule but that was in the Echo Hollow show with the Dillards.
Hmmmm...a cave maze/attraction. That sounds cool! Although, maybe a little overkill with Marvel Cave on the same site.
So, Old Guy, was the waterfall built specifically to be the entrance, then was the cave maze idea abandoned? Or was the waterfall already in existence when they came up with the cave maze idea?
The waterall came with the lumbercamp in "73"(it was a package deal) as a backdrop and to hide elements of the float trip behind it. The walkthrough was a later idea of a former entertainment director around "77" or so.
Old Guy, wasn't the waterfall area also incorporated as part of the Butterfield Stagecoach ride?
Quote from: Old Guy on June 27, 2008, 04:35:42 PM
The waterall came with the lumbercamp in "72"(it was a package deal) as a backdrop and to hide elements of the float trip behind it. The walkthrough was a later idea of a former entertainment director around "77" or so.
Ah, that makes a lot of sense! I didn't think about the location of the float trip in relation to the waterfall. Thanks, Old Guy!
Old Guy, you write about several projects that were intended but never finished. Why have they started so many things without finishing them?
^Most likely cost, future expansion, or just change of mind. I couldn't be sure though. I wasn't around back when all this stuff was happening.
keep in mind that a lot of ideas get tossed around. Those can get narrowed down to a few presented as options to the public. When I put together the survey before the Llost River was built, it included 11 other proposed attractions. The data was diverse and intended to find types of rides and appeal from a wide section of potential clients. Kids wanted different things than adult, and single males have different prioritys from Moms who tend to have a bigger stake in where the family tends to go. It all depends on who you are marketing to at the time, as well as economic indicators, things like presidential elections and the olympics in the same year every four years which increases advertising costs that season while reducing the number of tourests, gas prices, other parks within the market area and what they are doing,etc. The Lost River wasn't even the number one for anyone on the survey. It was however the cumulitive number one between divergent groups and within technical and monitary goles. It is a complex formula that leaves a lot of good ideas in the dust. Sometimes they get recycled like the Ice house which has been pushed out there at least 4 times that I know of. Maybe its time will come, maybe not. I'm way out of the loop now and those decisions have got to be even more complex now.
Quote from: betamike on June 27, 2008, 05:03:06 PM
Old Guy, wasn't the waterfall area also incorporated as part of the Butterfield Stagecoach ride?
while next to and visable from the old stage depot (which at one time had a talking stagecoach which told you a story before you left about a "10 foot tall stone faced injen" a talking rock indian who turned out to be friendly) the waterfall was never part of the stage ride.
I understand how things get selected or tossed out based on market research, but it just seems that so many projects have been started and never materialized completely.
quite true. I was was given a budget to experiment with using bubbles at whitewater and came up with all kinds of exotic bubble machines, bubble chamber concepts etc. In the end my conclusion was that as fun as this all could be it would become a collage fountain after a frat party for the whole park because there was no practical way to keep from spreading the bubble solution to the rest of the rides. great idea, to risky to try.
A friend of mine was given the job of inventing optical illusions for more "do not look in this hole" extras. He turned in dozens of drawings, technical plans, etc, all quite workable, but not a one ever appeared on the park. Who knows what happened. Man are we off topic!
More "Don't Look in this Hole"s! I'd go for a million dollar investment like that. Those little items are what makes SDC so lovable.
I do remember the logroll.
The "don't look in this hole" features are great, and quirky. I always loved the girl in the bathtub, who's not quite what she seems. ;D
Quote from: Old Guy on June 28, 2008, 04:43:34 PM
Quote from: betamike on June 27, 2008, 05:03:06 PM
Old Guy, wasn't the waterfall area also incorporated as part of the Butterfield Stagecoach ride?
while next to and visable from the old stage depot (which at one time had a talking stagecoach which told you a story before you left about a "10 foot tall stone faced injen" a talking rock indian who turned out to be friendly) the waterfall was never part of the stage ride.
Thanks a million! I knew there was a talking rock involved in that attraction, but couldn't for the life of me remember the story of why we encountered it during the ride. Man, was it hot inside that stagecoach during the summer!
I think I brought this up elsewhere but I know where two of the stages are now. One is at the Ralph Foster at SOTO, the other you can still ride if you want to go to Rawhide Arizona Theme park south of Phoenix. It's an even hotter ride there! ;) Are we still on the same thread? :-[
A talking stage coach would be strange. I could see the talking rock indian, but that would never be politically-correct enough today. Were they interactive or just recorded messages like the RR Bucket?
Actually I was thinking about things along this line, last week, when we encountered a couple of the talking trash cans at Disney. The guys who run those have the BEST job at Disney. They were hilarious. If you haven't see these, you have to search for talking trash can on YouTube. I was trying to think of something like that for SDC.
the stage coach had eyes! the shades were lids that covered them. The buterfield sdc stage logo surved as the mouth and flaped open and closed as music and the story played for the kids. Scarry stuff even to write about. OOOOOOhhhhh!!! ;D It wasn't interactive, just a time killer while the group wated for the stage to come. It was a very low capacity and high insurance/labor intensive attraction. Little wonder it was one of the first of the old attractions to close down. I'm suprised it lasted as long as it did. there was a real commitment back then to keep the history and theme alive.
My first memory of SDC is also of walking across the swinging bridge to get into the park, about 1962, I think. But my history with the park goes back farther than that. I was conceived on my mother and father's honeymoon in 1952, for which they journeyed to .....Marvel Cave Park and Rockaway Beach. Rockaway Beach, although pretty run down today, was quite the happening spot in the 50's and early 60's. Anyway, something about that conception must have linked me to the place because I have been working here most of my adult life, over 30 years.
Old Guy, I have enjoyed reading your posts, especially about the history of SDC. They bring back so many memories, stuff I had long forgotten. And then, they also start to all run together, such that I'm not sure what happened when. In another thread you talked about the casts of shows signing the walls of the Playhouse for many years--well my name was on that wall numerous times and I used to go back to it often for reminders of what I was doing when. It nearly killed me when they painted it over. Someone should have at least taken pictures of it. For the life of me, I can't guess who you are, but I'll bet I know you. I'm pretty sure I'm in one of betaMike's Saloon pictures. I was a bartender in the late 70's, early 80's.
Anyway, keep up the good work with the informal history of the park. I have visited this site a couple of times, but this is the first time I've posted. I will have to come back more often.
Zephon, you certainly sound like one of us. Welcome aboard, and please share more about the early history as you remember it. We've talked about the saloon show in other threads and specific performers. Do you have any stories to tell about your time there?
Well.......those were different times back then, a lot wilder, and a lot naughtier. We did things in those days that you could never get away with now. I probably shouldn't say too much.
But one time in the Saloon, Carry came busting in the door and one of the bartenders, in a very effeminate voice, marched up to her and said "Now Carry, don't get your panties in a tangle." He didn't last very much longer in there.
I was the town marshal for one season in the early 80's. Had a great time deputizing kids and playing with them. I would have the kids recite the "oath of office" before handing out a badge, part of which included making them promise to be good and obey their parents "to the best of their ability." Sometimes I'd make them take a test to see if they were qualified to be a deputy. I would ask them things like "what color is red?" At first some of them were stumped, trying to describe the color red to me, but when they pointed it out to me or said it's like an apple, they passed. I don't believe the last few marshals have given that kind of attention to the kids, and that's a real shame. Mornings I would deputize and greet people, then in the afternoon I would go down to Tom Sawyer's Landing and play with kids in the ball room and whatnot. Sometimes I would pick a family and just spend the afternoon walking around with them, riding rides and such. Remember the "Little Deputies Show" that happened at 4pm in front of Hannah's Ice Cream Parlor? And then there was the flirting. Of course I was much younger and single. One time I picked on a young lady of about 17 or 18 years, who had on a pretty, flowered outfit. I issued her a ticket for wearing pajamas in public and handcuffed her to a tree while I "interrogated" her for a few minutes. Then, to my horror, I discovered that I didn't have the key with me. I had left it in another pair of pants at home. Oh man, did I feel bad and embarrassed. I explained to her what was going on, that I had to run up to the OMP and buy another set of cuffs just to get the key; we didn't have a spare in the office. So she waited patiently, handcuffed to a tree with a couple of friends to keep her company, until I returned about 10 minutes later and let her loose. Luckily for me, she was very good-natured about it, not mad at all.
Ahh, the memories. Maybe more later.
I imagine employees are not supposed to flirt or exercise acts of bondage on guests these days.
Some of us even noticed a noose in a video that Old Guy linked in another thread. I suppose it's no longer acceptable to execute unruly guests any more either.
If you have any more stories like these, please tell them. This is great stuff.
Quote from: History Buff on July 04, 2008, 02:05:55 AM
I imagine employees are not supposed to flirt or exercise acts of bondage on guests these days.
It's a damn shame.
That was an excellent story Zephon, thanks so much for posting that.
Hey Zephon:
Yes, you do know me but we traveled in different circles at the park, so not really well. and I believe you were in the "Blue and the Grey", were you not?
I'll give you some hints about me. The only song I ever wrote for the city you sang in the musical feud.
"singing, you call that singing
I've heard a pine knot in a saw mill sound like that".....etc.
I spent more time than anyone else riding the big wheel bike around main street as well.
Need more hints?
I keep wondering if I have run into you guys as well over the years at the cafeteria or town halls, or whatnot. Hmmmm. Anonymity has its advantages. hahaha
quite likely Mike. I worked in your part of town ;)
Dang nabbit! This kind of thing drives me nuts. Of course, I couldn't ask any of my sources there as I'm sure you didn't go by the nickname of "Old Guy" there. ;D
I'm stumped, Old Guy. I can't figure out who you are. I know Vahldick and Calloway used to ride the big wheel around quite a bit, but we were in the same circle. I used to ride it some myself, what a hoot. Knowing you wrote that song doesn't ring the bell for me. I guess I'll need another hint. Or two. Yes, I was in The Blue and the Gray, so you must have me figured out.
Thats me. A mystery wrapped in an inigma. O.K. One more BIG hint. I'm in this picture
http://www.flickr.com/photos/skinnytie/2542998188/in/set-72157601729928940/
By circle, I mean indoor and outdoor entertainment. I was always an outdoor guy and never had a lot of time to associate with the indoor crews much. You were also in the "Echos from the Hollow" show too as I recall.
I figured it out, but I never would have guessed you were Sally Beale!!!
Interesting guess, a bit twisted perhaps,but interesting :-X
OK, one more question. Is your wife's name Deanna?
Nope. Keep going. (I'll admit the prize at the end isn't all that exciting)
If you're really stumped Terry Sanders knows. I was his camera man for Patty in Branson
Yah, I kinda figured that was a wrong guess after reading one of your posts in another thread. So now I'm guessing that is you hammering the strings?
Quote from: History Buff on July 05, 2008, 03:01:05 PM
I figured it out, but I never would have guessed you were Sally Beale!!!
Sally?! LOL!!!!
Quote from: Zephon on July 05, 2008, 10:46:19 PM
Yah, I kinda figured that was a wrong guess after reading one of your posts in another thread. So now I'm guessing that is you hammering the strings?
Wait....John Corbin? For real?!
Catfish maybe?
Yes I'ts true I'm Catfish Corbin Beale !
Quote from: Old Guy on July 06, 2008, 02:25:32 PM
Yes I'ts true I'm Catfish Corbin Beale !
Tee hee! ;D
is that the catfish that is at the city now? lol
^Lol! I ran into him at the banana split contest. Funny dude.
I always liked Catfish. Physically he reminded me of Mercy Purvis.
Wow what a great site. My first visit to SDC was back in 1967. I was four years old. At that time the only thing on the mountain was SDC and a place to buy cememt animals. I remember that we had tickets that got punched at every ride. I remember the stage coach ride, the mine ride(that was really scary, and there was a drop), the lost river, going down all those stairs into the cave, the train robbers, buying lye soap, grandpa man, the tree house, and so much more. I remember watching the glass blowers and the candy makers, the wood carvers and the the battle between the blue and the gray. We used to come to Branson two or three times a year. We stayed in Springfield that first year because there were no motels that my mother would stay in in Branson. Do you remember how long the ride was from Branson to SDC, it seemed like it took for hours. I now have pictures of me at a very young age looking in the holes, pictures of my kids looking in the holes. I have been to SDC with my grandfather (he grew up in the 1880's) my kids have been with there grandfathers, and I have been with my grandkids. I have smelled the wood and had the thoughts of SDC return. I have watched it change and grow for over 40 years, some good and some not so good. I do not like the cutting into the woods for the big coasters. Do you remember the sub ride? I remember when Fire in the Hole opened I was still young enough to be scared out of my mind. Do you remember the little gift shop at the top of the tram ride out of the cave. I could not believe it when we came back one year and they had built this huge(I was still a kid) store. I remember watching as a kid the Beverly Hillbilly's go to SDC. I could not understand how they could spend the night in the city hotel but we could not. One last thought did they change the way the Lucky Mine Restaurant looked inside? It seemed that the last time we ate there it looked different. I love reading all of the stories from SDC.
Thanks for sharing the memories, firstyear1967, and welcome to the site!
I didn't even know SDC had a punch ticket system back in the day.
I haven't been back into the Mine Restaurant for a year, but I don't think it's changed that much - at least as far as I can remember. The special table is still there and everything.
the punch system was great because the cards sold only had enough punches for all rides except one so if you wanted to ride all the rides you had to get an extra punch... i was just talking about this with an employee at SDC.
the gift shop at the cave exit! that would be nice.... there used to be so much cool cave merchandise to buy now little is available due to the merchandising above the cave exit..... :-(
My first SDC memories start about 1970, and I remember the chance to buy cave photos (including the group photo) after riding the cable car out, plus postcards and various knick-knackery, but I don't remember it being a "cave store" as such.
Punch tickets were gone by my first visit. Or to be more accurate, I don't recall ever using them. Since I was all about the rides as a frantic 7 year old, I think I would remember being limited by punch tickets.
I remember the stagecoach being a "ride", but I didn't understand why anyone would bother. We never did. "Hey, I can run all over the place a lot faster than those horses move!" was our way of thinking.
There were two periods of tickets. The first were long printed tickets you bought at a ticket booth outside each ride. (like the one at the mine entrance, the float trip mill, or the train depot ticket window) with artsy logos, rules for that ride, some real and some like "No spitten' from the Train". They tore off a tab at the bottom and you kept the rest. I had some in a collection of memorabelia I gave to Bruce Hershend a long time ago. Then the multi ticket punch card came next. It was the cheaper option, or you could still pay by the ride. This was back when it was a free park. A one price gate made operations cheaper to run, and let everyone ride as much as they wanted.
I do remember the pay by the ride system. My father told me that at one time they gave Silver Dollars as change. I was to young to remember this. Does anyone remember the big horse that the woodcarver made? It used to be in the wood carver barn it had a big crack in it as the wood dried it pulled apart I guess. I wonder whatever happened to that horse?
I do remember the horse and the crack. It was life sise and in a pen in the middle of the room. I think Pete Ingler carved it but don't bet the farm on it.
My first year working there, in 1976, I punched tickets outside Grandfather's Mansion for a very short period of time. I believe that was the last year for them.
There have been two changes that I know of to the Mill Restaurant since those days. The first, in the mid to late 80's I think, was the addition of the Presidents Room, which is off the entry line before you get to the buffet. The second was the addition of another dining room just to the south of the old building. This was done in the late 90's, I think. It is used mostly for special outings or events where they have to feed a large group.
Been sitting here chatting with a friend about my first memory of the park. Since I was only a few months old don't remember much, but while reminiscing the memories begin to come back. Ok, I do have a first memory and that is while exiting the tree house there was a star field that you walked through and it was quite dark as you couldn't really see your feet. Just had to keep your hand on the handrails to not trip over anything on the way out. Others include listening to the hammered dulcimer players, watching the barrel maker on the square, hearing the horses on the bridge, making your own pewter coin (on the press that has now been broken for several years), or making a mad dash to fire in the hole to make it the first ride of the day. Sitting here thinking about it more, I remember going to the echo hollow show with Mercy. He was a funny character and during parts of the show he would appear on the porch of the building with the water wheel (where he would "fall" off), or the building on the other side and he and another character would fill time with comedy while the singers changed. It was sad the year that Mercy didn't come back... I could go on for pages..... ;D
My first memory was playing at Tom Sawyer's Treehouse around 1979 or so, but my most intense memory is being scared out of my bloody mind at the Flooded Mine Ride when the lights went out and the saw started coming toward your car. Holy moly, I was so sure I was going to be cut in half. I still cringe whenever I float by that scene. As a pre-teen and teenager, we got seasons passes every summer, and would drive from Springfield about twice a week to SDC. I love to yell at my daughter, "Isabel Corley, you come back in here and put on your pants!" She's still learning the proper reply.
I LOVE SDC!!!!
Its been a part of my life since before I was born. My parents met there! During the 86 season, my dad was a tram driver and my mom was a ranger (yes... they had park rangers back then.) My dad would direct people to the "lovely Lucinda" (my mom) and they've been together ever since. My parents co-workers had my baby shower in the offices above the ticket lines and everything. My dad continued working at the ticket counter for a few years when he wasn't teaching during the summer, and I'm pretty sure we didn't buy a ticket until I was about 5. I have such wonderful, fond memories of SDC. Jumping on the bridge, Grandfather's Mansion, Thunderation and riding the balloons and saying the script along with Fire In the Hole.... nothing says fun like Silver Dollar City!
^Oh that is so cool that your parents met there!
I also used to get so excited when the billboards started showing up on the road as far away as Cassville or Monett. Man, it was like a placeholder to keep me and my sister pacified until we got there.
^Our family likes to count all the SDC billboards we see as we go down the road. The first one to see a SDC billboard is the winner. They usually don't pop up until Springfield for us.
yea i also loved the billboards....sad that there arent too many around now
I remember riding the Thunderation again & again with my brother, and always being too scared to ride in the backwards cars. I remember riding FITH for the first time, and i loved going through Grandpa's Mansion(i think that was always my first stop) My parents starting going to SDC before i was born in the early '80s, and every summer for vaction we would go to SDC, or Dollywood, or sometimes both. SDC holds such good memories for me. We would go almost every year!
Of course I only remember the Train from my first time. Hearing that beautiful whistle...my sister and I used to know the entire hold-up script and would perform it..a lot..for our family...I still know every word hah.
I'd have to ask my mom the 1st year i was at SDC, but i do recall the punch tickets. All i know is, The Flooded Mine song used to replay in my head for 2-3 days after we were there.
I forgot to add, my pa has 8mm film of some'a our trips that he put on VHS.
My first SDC memory is the skits on the square - I loved the Hatfields and McCoys! Of course, once the park was opened we would head down to the apple butter shop for a hot apple turnover with apple butter on top.
I have nothing but good memories of SDC and to me it is a home away from home. Just build me a cabin on Table Rock Lake and I would be happy.
Yes it did have a drop and they did warn everyone about it. My first memories are of the Candy Shop on the step on my fathers shoulders. The Butterfield Stage Coach, being 4 years old and looking down to the bottom of the cave.......(we are going where mom???) The gun fights in the street and the soldiers marching, left, idle left, idle left right left. Jim Owens lost river, and the flooded mine. By the time I first got to go 1967 the swinging bridge was not the entrance but my dad could sure make it bounce. The smell of flour and fresh bake bread in the mill........the smell of the woodcarvers shop and the big wooden horse they had carved. The last thought what about the smells coming from SDC when it rains on a hot day.
First memories huh? Okay definatly the ball pit and the slides that were with it. The corrugated metal slides and huck fins tree house. I remember grandfathers mansion was a million times better and I went thru it only a million and one times! I am tryihng to remember more, but its just not comin to me. That was so long ago. The only things that stick out are what you just read. Besides the smells of SDC and of course the Green Tram Ride, I got nothin. Still a great place though and I got tons more memories!
I also remember the tickets went like they are now. they were long and we wrote our name and address I think and you could go over and get them laminated and again I think it was where the stroller/wheelchair rental place is at....and I would get antsy in line and my parents would tell me to shush and be still
Rocky's tree house, the log rolling (which was somewhat traumatic for me as I temporarily got lost when I was three or four) and the mule swing are among my first memories of Silver Dollar City. Like so many of us who have been going since we were really little, My memories get mixed up. All I can say is that bluegrass music and the smell of hot asphalt make me think of SDC every time.
Getting off the tram and going past the big water wheel before the turnstiles....Danny Eakin was wandering around, sanging and playin'... talkin' to me and a big hug......still get the big hug.....my husband got a greeting but no hug.
Wondering if the train robbery was for real! Hey, I was only 6!
My first memory is from the early to mid 1960's riding between Branson West and SDC. I presume it was still highway 76 at that time. The thing I remember the most is how well you could see the train track from the highway. The track ran parallel to the highway for what I would guess was probably 300 ft. and was just a rock throw from the highway. I remember watching with great hope as we drove by to see a glimpse of the train. It wasn't grown up and commercialized like it is today. I am not even sure if the track is still in the location it was at that time. I also remember my father giving me a quarter to give to the man taking money for the train ride. I think the actual cost to ride at that time was 50 cents, so I presume he had already paid one quarter.
I think the train tracks run the same today as they did in the 1960's, for the most part. The tracks are right along Hwy 76 for a few hundred feet, the trees have just grown up over the years, so it's harder to see the highway. The train, when they used the older, smaller engine, ran the tracks in the opposite direction, too.