98-186: Roller Coasters Week 2: Origins and History Thing of the Week! Last Week... European Origins The Russian Mountains ● Began as winter sled slides near 17th century St. Petersburg ● Usually 21-24m tall ● A form of entertainment resulting from the harsh Russian winters The Russian Mountains ● Eventually began to include “camelback” hills ● Very popular with the elite ● As such, ornately decorated and watered daily ● Wheels began to be added for year-round use The French Connection ● Appeared in France in early 1800’s ○ Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812 ● France had lighter winters, so wheels were necessary The French Connection ● Les Montagnes Russes à Belleville built somewhere between 1812-1817 ● Promenades Aériennes (“Aerial Strolls”) at Beaujon Gardens in Paris, 1817 ● Grooved track ● Locked-in cars ● Up to 30mph The French Connection ● Promenades Aériennes is pretty much the first roller coaster ○ Had a (human-powered) lift hill ○ Track with hills and turns ○ Locked-in cars ○ Amusing :) American Developments Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway ● Early on in railroad history, there were attempts to use gravity as power ● The Mauch Chunk Railway was built in 1827 on Summit Hill, in Mauch Chunk, PA ● Mules went up, cars were loaded up with coal and mules, then they coasted down the hill Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway ● As always, monetization ensued! ● The Railway opened to rider in 1829, for $0.50 (~$10 today) ● The route expanded to 18 miles in 1845 ● Pavilions were built for tourists on the mountains Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway ● In 1872, ceased coal transport for tourist use ● In 1874, 2nd most popular tourist attraction, behind Niagara Falls, with around 35000 visitors a year ● Operated until 1937 LaMarcus Adna Thompson ● Born 1848 near Columbus, OH ● An inventor and businessman ● Originally made fortune in the hosiery business ● Visited Mauch Chunk in the 1870’s, inspiring him to try his hand at making a coaster LaMarcus Adna Thompson ● Opened his Pleasure Gravity Switchback Railway at Coney Island in 1884; the first American roller coaster ● 50 ft tall, ~6 mph, only 600 ft long, and only 5 cents to ride! ● Conflicting statements on how it worked: ○ Switchback on the far end ○ Lifted to top on back tower LaMarcus Adna Thompson ● Very successful, earning about $600 a day (~$14000 today) ● As is common in the amusement industry, a similar attraction was built months later by Charles Alcoke ● This was the Serpentine Railway at Coney Island ○ Continuous circuit, side-facing seats Explosion in Popularity ● Philip Hinkle builds a coaster in San Francisco in 1885 with forward facing seats and a chain lift hill (first to do so) ● Soon after, a wave of coasters erupted in the U.S. The Name of the Game ● In 1887 an ice/roller rink in Haverhill, MA installed a ride ● Figure 8 above the rink with a track made of rollers ● Riders rode sleds down the rollers ● While not very significant, it originated the name “Roller Coaster” ‘Roller Coaster’ Translations ● Romance languages (“Russian Mountains”) ○ Italian: montagne russe ○ Spanish: montañas rusas ● Russian: американские горки ● German: Achterbahn (“Figure-8 Train”) ● Scandinavian (“Mountain and Valley Train”) ○ Swedish: Berg och dalbana ○ Norwegian: Berg og dal bane ● Chinese: Guòshānchē (“Mountain-passing Vehicle”) ● Hawaiian: Ka’a lola (“Roller Car”) Coney Island and the Birth of Amusement Parks Coney Island ● Coney Island was the site of many of the first roller coasters in the U.S. ● Became an entertainment industry hub in the 20th Century Coney Island ● Coney Island’s history involves a lot of corruption by politician John McKane ○ Profiteering from real estate/construction ● His arrest in 1893 opened the area to free enterprise ● Sea Lion Park opened in 1895, the first amusement park ○ Opened by Paul Boyton ○ Featured a Shoot-the-Chutes ride, shows, and a Flip Flap coaster Coney Island ● George C. Tilyou opens Steeplechase Park in 1897 ● Featured a Steeplechase ride and many other odd rides ● Burnt down completely in 1907 ● A major part of Coney until its closed in 1964 Steeplechase Park Rides Luna Park ● Luna Park opens in 1903 on the former site of Sea Lion Park ○ 500,000 light bulbs ○ ~4 million visitors a year The Excitement Spreads ● Frederick Ingersoll made tons of Luna Park copies around the U.S. ○ One of the most common names for amusement parks in the U.S. ● Spread the “amusement park” idea around the country ● Some were also built internationally ● Considered the first amusement park chain, a concept that would take hold soon enough Trolley Parks ● Trolley companies were searching for a way to boost attendance numbers on weekends and summers ● Turn of the 20th-century Americans were beginning to have more expendable income ● Some built amusement parks at the end of their trolley lines ○ This is how Kennywood began ● Most trolley parks did not survive long (<10 years) Other Early Coasters Scenic Railways ● L.A. Thompson followed up on his success at Coney with the Scenic Railway in Atlantic City, NJ ○ Dark ride/coaster hybrid, actually a pretty advanced concept ● So popular that he formed a company for production worldwide ● Most famous one was in Venice, CA ○ Fun fact from Roly Side Friction Coasters ● Ingersoll popularized the side-friction coaster ● Cars ride in troughs with rails on the side ● Typically found in figure-8 layouts ● Popular during early 1900’s Original Scenic Railway style wheelbase, courtesy of Jordan Zink Side Friction Coasters Side Friction Coasters Leap the Dips POV Video John Miller ● Born 1872 to German immigrants ● At age 19, became L.A. Thompson’s Chief Engineer ● Patented over 100 coaster inventions, most concerning safety: ○ Anti-rollback ○ Lap bar ○ Brake improvements John Miller ● In 1919, invented the up-stop wheel ● Led to the wheel structure shown ● This invention allowed coasters to perform more intense maneuvers ● Coasters thus began to increase in intensity throughout the 1920’s John Miller in Kennywood ● Jack Rabbit (1920) ○ 40 ft tall, 70 ft drop, 45 mph, 2132 ft long ○ Double drop (“Bunny hop”) ● Racer (1927) ○ Appears to be a racing coaster, but is actually a Möbius loop with two trains running simultaneously John Miller in Kennywood ● Thunderbolt (1924, 1968) ○ Originally named Pippin ○ Upper portion added 1968 The Beginning of the Loop ● First looping coaster was built 1846 ● An English company made some ● The one shown is from France ● 43 ft high with a 13 ft high loop The Beginning of the Loop ● Sea Lion Park’s Flip Flap coaster had a loop ○ Often gave riders whiplash ● The similar Loop-the-Loop coaster opened in 1901, but patrons were afraid of it :) In Summary ● Coasters originated in Russia in 15th-19th centuries, as giant ice slides ● Spread to France during Napoleonic Wars, adding grooved tracks and wheels ● Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway in Pennsylvania led to other similar attractions ● L.A. Thompson made the first American roller coaster, the Scenic Railway, at Coney Island in 1884 ● Coney Island became a roller coaster/amusement hub ● Trolley companies built parks at the end of their lines to boost ridership ● John Miller was most prolific early designer, inventing up-stop wheels to allow coasters to become more extreme ● 3 of his coasters still remain at Kennywood today Next Week! ● First Golden Age of coasters ● The decline of amusement parks and coasters after the Depression/WWII, and their resurgence ● Disneyland and its impact on future amusement/theme parks ● The development of the first steel coasters ● The beginning of inversions.