Oaks Amusement Park
Abstract— This article presents facts and general information about Oaks Amusement Park in Portland, Oregon, USA, one of the most beloved Portland stops and includes useful information such as history, descriptions, and popular attractions.
Introduction
Three and a half miles south of downtown Portland, Oaks Park is Oregon’s oldest amusement park and one of the oldest continually operating parks in the entire country. Other parks opened earlier, but have had periods of stoppage. Oaks Park has opened every season since its commencement.
History
Also known as “The Oaks” at that time, Oaks Park was a trolley park intended as the destination of streetcar riders on the weekends. The park opened to the public on May 30, 1905, and during its that season it attracted 300,000 visitors.
Later in the 1920s, one of the park’s managers, John Corday, bought the property. After Corday’s death in 1925, the Oaks Park’s superintendent Edward Bollinger purchased almost all land except that owned by the Portland Electric Power Company, which was later obtained by Bollinger in 1943.
Some of the park earliest features and attractions included a funhouse with screaming skeletons, rides (also a boat ride), a maze of mirrors, and dead-end hallways.
The Vanport flood in 1948, inundated the park for thirty days. The flood caused significant damages in the rink that took five months to repair. In the next year, in 1949, Edward Bollinger’s son Robert Bollinger owned the park after his father’s death. The 1948 damages forced the owners to rebuild the rink floor. Now on iron barrels, the rink floor would float in case of another flood, preventing further losses. The floats worked successfully during the Christmas flood of 1964 and the Willamette Valley flood of 1996.
On May 30, 2005, the establishment celebrated 100 years of continuous operation, making it among the oldest parks in the United States.
As you would expect, to stay open for all these years (114 years to be more precise) the Oaks Amusement Park had to change with the time. Last year, a new extreme roller coaster called “Adrenaline Peak” was opened to the public of Portland.
Description and Current Attractions
For people seeking for adrenaline, Oaks Amusement Park will fulfill the expectations. The park’s attractions include hair-raising rides such as Zero Gravity (added in 2017), the Tree Top Drop, the “Adrenaline Peak” roller coaster and the “Scream’n Eagle” stomach-clencher. At the park’s roller rink, you can participate in skate sessions, take skate classes, make skate rentals, and involve yourself in other events. You can also try your luck in the carnival and traditional arcade games such as basketball toss, skee ball, balloon darts, and others.
Over 900,000 people visit this fun-filled park every year, so you should expect crowds and lines.
Resources
Travel Oregon: Oaks Amusement Park
