History of Rollercoasters

The origin of roller coasters began with the Russian ice slides. Riders would climb up on the wooden ladder and descend a piece of lumber covered with a sheet of ice.

Russian ice slide

The first American rollercoaster was the Mauch Chunk Switchback railway. It was completed in 1872 in Pennsylvania where it would bring coal down a mountainside. Pretty soon, it brought business people down the mountain too, where they could enjoy the scenic view and a fun ride.

Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway

In the twenties, one of the first amusement parks opened, Luna Park. It was surrounded by rides, acts, and concessionaires. Many attribute Luna Park to the upstart of many amusent parks in America.       In the late sixties, the theme park was born. The first main "theme" park was the Six Flags chain.It was built in Texas and it featured the areas of Spain, France, Mexico, and the United States. One of the rides made was called the Run-A-Way mine train. It is one of the oldest rides in Six Flags and it has paved the way for rides with loops.

Run-A-Way mine train

The years 1974-1980 saw the most rollercoasters built since the 1920's. In 1976 they opened the first 360-degree looping rollercoaster of the new coaster era. It was called the Great American Revolution and it was located in Six Flags. Its giant loop became an icon to vistors from all over the country.       The sevnties had seen a re-birth and new interest growing in the amusement industry, which brought some major changes to the design of modern roller coasters. The suspended, stand-up, and the hypercoaster made their debut during the eighties, changing the way people thought about roller coasters forever.        A large number of steel coaster was built in the nineties. Steel coasters could be divided into three groups: different forms of sit-down steel coasters, hypercoasters and wild mice, and a third section for inverted and stand-up rollercoasters. Wooden coasters also came back with a vengeance in the nineties. This was because older designers created some of their best work and newer companies took the helm of wooden coaster design.         Coaster lovers that lived through the 70's and 80's would have never belived that so many roller coasters sprang up in the 1990's. Custom Coasters and  Great Coasters International have revolutionized what rollercoasters can do, and their coasters have helped give family parks a new lease on life.