Silver Dollar City


Silver Dollar City is an amusement park in the U.S. state of Missouri. Opened on May 1, 1960, the park is located between Branson and Branson West off of Missouri Route 76 on the Indian Point peninsula of Table Rock Lake. The park is an 1880s-themed experience that fits Branson's vision as a family-friendly vacation destination with down-home charm. Silver Dollar City's operating season runs from mid-March until late December, with the park closed during the months of January and February. Silver Dollar City is owned by Herschend Family Entertainment.

History

Marvel Cave

Silver Dollar City is situated at the site of one of the Ozarks' oldest attractions, Marvel Cave. Henry T. Blow, a lead mining magnate, explored the cave with six miners. They found no lead, but were convinced that the flat ceiling of one room was composed of marble, they originally named the cave Marble Cave. The cave remained undisturbed until 1882 when a group led by T. Hodges Jones and Truman S. Powell entered the cave in hopes of finding lead. Jones and Powell instead found huge amounts of guano and a flat wall which they also believed to be marble. Two years later Jones bought the property and formed the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company. The company planned a town, Marble City, on the rough hilltop near the cave and in 1884 recorded a plat map at the courthouse in Galena, Missouri. By 1889 much of the guano had been mined from the cave, the marble wall proved to be limestone, and no lead ore was found. The mining company ceased operation.
In 1889, William Henry Lynch, a Canadian miner and dairyman, purchased the cave and a square mile around it for $10,000. Lynch, with the aid of his family, proposed to open the cave to sightseers. The Lynches began operation of the sightseeing venture in 1894. The venture was not immediately profitable and was closed until Lynch raised additional capital to reopen the cave sometime after 1900. The cave has remained open since, making it one of the oldest continuously running tourist attractions in the Ozarks.

Herschend family

When William Lynch died in 1927, ownership of the cave passed to his daughters and the name of the cave was changed to Marvel Cave. The Lynch family operated the cave for nearly fifty years until a Chicago vacuum cleaner salesman, Hugo Herschend, purchased a 100-year lease on the cave.
After Hugo's death his wife, Mary, took over the day-to-day operations of the venture. With the aid of her two sons, Jack and Peter, she was able to make vast improvements to the cave, including the inclusion of a narrow gauge funicular railway, whose trains pulled visitors a distance of from the depths of the cave up to the surface.
Once the railway was in operation the Herschends felt the development of the cave was complete, so they decided to create another attraction which would bring even more tourists to the cave.

New theme park

Mary, Jack and Peter began building the 1880s Ozark village. Mary wanted authenticity and preservation as well as preserving the natural beauty of the area. The Herschends built the Ozark frontier town on the land surrounding the site of the cave. Silver Dollar City originally was the site of five shops, a church, a log cabin, and a street production reproducing the feud between the Hatfields and McCoys several times daily.
The name was inspired by Ozark Jubilee script writer and publicist Don Richardson after the promotional idea of giving visitors silver dollars in change. The scenic designer for much of the original attraction was Andy Miller, who had been the set designer for the Jubilee in nearby Springfield. Opening day, May 1, 1960, included an appearance by Uncle Cyp and Aunt Sap Brasfield. The first year, Silver Dollar City drew more than 125,000 people, four times more visitors than the number that toured Marvel Cave. "We discovered we were in the theme park business," Pete Herschend said.
In 1968, the park started charging admission.
In 1972 Genevieve Lynch, the last of William Lynch's daughters, died and she bequeathed the land under Silver Dollar City and Marvel Cave to the College of the Ozarks and Branson Presbyterian Church. The Herschends continue to operate it.
In 1976, the Herschends purchased the Goldrush Junction theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, which they renamed Silver Dollar City Tennessee. In 1986, the Herschends partnered with Dolly Parton and renamed the park to Dollywood.
Silver Dollar City expanded its entertainment over the years by adding attractions such as a stage coach ride, a steam engine train, interactive activities and various thrill rides. The park is also home to resident craftsmen who can be seen practicing their craft and exhibiting and selling their work to park visitors.

Pop culture

The Clampett family of CBS-TV's The Beverly Hillbillies decided to pay a visit to Silver Dollar City to start off the 1969–1970 season. The plotline involved Granny attempting to find a husband for Elly May back in the hills, while Jed socialized with hotel clerk Shorty Kellems. They visited the blacksmith Shad Heller, soapmaker Granny Ethel Huffman, and woodcarver Peter Engler, and Miss Hathaway was seen in the Ozark woods. The Hillbillies were from the area surrounding Silver Dollar City and Branson, and references to Jim Owens and his White River float trip business and some Missouri mountain locations were made throughout the show's nine-year run. Five episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies were eventually shot in the park.
In 1999, Silver Dollar City was the site for the 14th annual Stihl Timbersports Series Championships. Jason Wynyard became the champion for the third consecutive year.
On July 5, 2007, Silver Dollar City was featured in an episode of the soap opera As the World Turns.
On December 5, 2007, ABC's Good Morning America spotlighted the park’s Christmas festival, “An Old Time Christmas,” and declared it as one of the top five holiday events in the country. The park was featured as part of the show’s segment called “Good Morning America Lights Up the Holidays.”
From June 21–23, 2009, the park hosted the American Coaster Enthusiasts' national summer convention.
The park was featured in the book The Man Who Loved Clowns.

Layout, attractions and general information

Districts

Silver Dollar City is divided into ten districts.

Roller coasters

CoasterOpenedManufacturerModelNotes
Fire in the Hole1972Silver Dollar CityEnclosed Powered CoasterThe park's first and oldest roller coaster. Guests ride in a dark building with scenes that tell of a town set ablaze by the Baldknobbers overnight.
Grand Exposition Coaster2006ZamperlaFamily Gravity Coaster 80STD
Outlaw Run2013Rocky Mountain ConstructionWood/Topper Track CoasterThe world's second steepest wooden coaster and the only one featuring three inversions.
Powder Keg: A Blast in the Wilderness2005S&S SanseiAir Launched CoasterThe "Powder Keg" is a significant modification and extension of the park's former Buzzsaw Falls water coaster.
ThuNderaTion1993Arrow DynamicsMine Train Coaster
Time Traveler2018Mack RidesXtreme Spinning Coaster
Wildfire2001Bolliger & Mabillard Sitting CoasterBased on an 1880s Ozarks tale of Dr. Horatio Harris, an inventor who was working on a flying machine. "Wildfire" was the name of the fuel he created for this machine.

Rides

RidesOpenedManufacturerModelNotes
American Plunge1981Barr EngineeringLog Flume
Electro Spin2006ZamperlaMega Disk'O
Elephant March2006Zamperla
FireFall2015S&S SanseiDouble ShotRelocated from Celebration City.
Fireman's Flyer2015
Fire Spotter2015
Fire Wagon Frenzy2015
Flooded Mine1960Silver Dollar CityIndoor Float-Through
Frisco Silver Dollar Line Steam Train1962Orenstein & Koppel, Ceskomoravska Kolben-Danek2 ft Narrow-Gauge Steam Train RideEngine 43 was built by Orenstein & Koppel in 1934. Engines 13 and 14 were built by Orenstein & Koppel in 1938. Engine 76 was built by Ceskomoravska Kolben-Danek in 1940. Engine 504 was built by Ceskomoravska Kolben-Danek in 1941. Engines 14 and 504 were purchased by Silver Dollar City from an estate in Northfield, Minnesota in 2016 and restored to operating condition.
Giant Barn Swing2007S&S SanseiScreamin' Swing
Grandfather's Mansion1960Silver Dollar CityAnti-Gravity House
Happy Frogs2006ZamperlaJump Around
High-Low Silos2007
Ladybugs2006ZamperlaJump Around
Magnificent Wave Carousel2006ZamperlaFlying Carousel
Mystic River Falls2020RES, Barr EngineeringRiver RapidsTallest rapids drop in western hemisphere. This new ride will be replacing the former Lost River of the Ozarks rapids ride and is currently scheduled to open in the summer of the 2020 season.
Racing Regatta2006ZamperlaRegatta
Royal Tea Party2006ZamperlaTea Cups
Mighty Galleon2006ZamperlaGalleon
Roundabout2015
Tom & Huck's River Blast2010Mack RidesRiver Battle
Up the Ladder2015
Wings of Wonder2006ZamperlaJump Around

Other attractions

Throughout the operating season Silver Dollar City hosts eight different festivals:
Throughout its operation, Silver Dollar City has hosted different festivals that have since been replaced.