Camden Park is an amusement park located in Huntington, West Virginia

Huntington, West Virginia

Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...

. The park first opened in 1903 as a picnic spot along the Camden Interstate Railway street car line between Huntington and Ashland, Kentucky

Ashland, Kentucky

Ashland, formerly known as Poage Settlement, is a city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States, nestled along the banks of the Ohio River. The population was 21,981 at the 2000 census. Ashland is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of the 2000 census, the...

. It is traditional park home to over 30 rides and attractions. The park features two of the three remaining roller coasters built by National Amusement Devices. The Big Dipper, a wooden roller coaster

Wooden roller coaster

A wooden roller coaster is most often classified as a roller coaster with laminated steel running rails overlaid upon a wooden track. Occasionally, the structure may be made out of a steel lattice or truss, but the ride remains classified as a wooden roller coaster due to the track design...

 constructed in 1958, features the original Century Flyer cars complete with headlights and detail work http://www.coastergallery.com/2000/cam06.html. The coaster is classified as an ACE Coaster Classic by the American Coaster Enthusiasts

American Coaster Enthusiasts

The American Coaster Enthusiasts is an organization dedicated to the enjoyment and preservation of roller coasters. Membership is open to anyone with payment of yearly dues, and membership benefits may include discounted admission to certain amusement parks...

 http://www.rcdb.com/installationresult.htm?column=1,2,3,26,4,5&order=1,2&category=107. The park's second coaster, the Lil' Dipper was completed in 1961 and is also an ACE Coaster Classic. The Whip at Camden park is an original built by Coney Island, New York's William F. Mangels

William F. Mangels

William F. Mangels , amusement manufacturer and inventor, worked at Coney Island and was a major player in the development of American amusement parks at the turn of the twentieth century...

. It is one of a handful of these classic flat-rides still in existence. The park is also home to several entertainment events which take place throughout the year: Children's Festival, Hot Summer Nights Concert Series, Coca-Cola Days, and Halloween Spooktacular.

West Virginia Adventure Golf

For the 2008 season Camden Park added an 18 hole mini golf course. West Virginia Adventure Golf is designed by the world-renowned Castle Golf. The course features fountains, pounds, a gristmill, coveredbridge, cabin, chapel, animatronic figures and settings with various West Virginian themes. The course is complete with a Hatfield Field McCoy shootout by the Twelvepole Gristmill and a man who fishes while his dogs snacks on a catch. The putt putt course is a welcomed addition to an area of the park that has been considered an eyesore. The area once housed the decaying Thunderbolt Express. Also, the new resort style course replaces the smaller, mediocre course on the other side of the park.

New for 2010

For the 2010 season, the park added a new flat ride. The ride is called "Camden Princess", and is a Zamperla

Zamperla

Zamperla is a designing and manufacturing company in Vicenza, Italy. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The company also makes smaller coin operated rides commonly found inside shopping malls....

 "Rockin' Tug" ride. The ride features a half-pipe track design and friction wheels

Friction

Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and/or material elements sliding against each other. There are several types of friction:...

.

Current rides & attractions

• Big Dipper
• Lil' Dipper
• Haunted House
• Log Flume
• Bull's Eye
• Hot Cat
• Rockin' Tug
• Train
• Kite Flyer
• Tilt-A-Whirl
• Spider
• Scrambler
• Flying Scooters
• Dodgems
• Carousel
• Skyliner
• The Whip
• Kiddie Land
• Paratrooper
• Adena Indian Mound
• Discovery Center (Science Center)
• Mound Builder Pavilion (Show Stage)
• Midway Stage
• Midway Games of Chance
• Several Classic Drink and Food Concessions
• Mini Golf
• Swan Lake
• Penny Arcade

Defunct rides

• Enterprise - a fast, looping, and inverted "Ferris wheel" like ride that featured a mural of the Star Trek The Next Generation's starship Enterprise behind it. The ride was closed after 50 people were injured on the ride after a hydraulic malfunction. http://www.herald-dispatch.com/communities2/camdenpark/camden1.htm
• Thunderbolt Express
  Thunderbolt Express
  The Thunderbolt Express was a looping shuttle roller coaster located at Camden Park. Originally named the Screamin' Demon, it was designed by Arrow Dynamics for Kings Island. It operated there between 1977 and 1987, when it was sold and moved to Camden Park in 1988...
  
  - a shuttle roller coaster
  Shuttle roller coaster
  A shuttle roller coaster is any roller coaster that ultimately does not make a complete circuit, but rather reverses at some point throughout its course and traverses the same track backwards...
  
   once operating at Kings Island
  Kings Island
  Kings Island is a amusement park located northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio. Opened in 1972 by Taft Broadcasting Company and now owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, Kings Island is the most visited seasonal amusement park in the U.S...
  
   as the Screamin' Demon. It was moved to Camden Park in 1988. The ride fell into disrepair soon after and was closed in 1999. It was dismantled in 2004. http://www.rcdb.com/id314.htm
• Skydiver
  Skydiver (ride)
  The Skydiver is a carnival ride produced from 1965 to 1987 by Chance Rides Manufacturing, Inc., an American manufacturer of amusement rides based in Wichita, Kansas....
  
  - a "looping ferris wheel" type of ride. Replaced with the Rockin' Tug, although in a different location, for 2010.
• Hurricane
  Hurricane (ride)
  The Hurricane is an amusement ride first manufactured by Frank Hrubrtz & Co. The Hurricane was first created in 1972, and is directly based on the older Saturn 6 ride, which first operated in 1948. Frank Hrubrtz & Co was the sole distributor of the ride until 1992, when construction was taken over...
  
  - a Hurricane ride manufactured by Dartron Industries.
• Tip-Top - a flat ride in which six tubs with a wheel in the center of each tub to control spinning of the tub, the ride starts spinning, and bounces upwards by compressed air.
• Camden Park Zoo - The zoo was located North of the train station. It was removed in the early 1970s.

External links

• Official Website of Camden Park
• Photos of Camden Park