Silver Dollar City

Silver Dollar City

File:Sdc50 logo.jpg
Location	Branson, Missouri
Coordinates	36.6671°N 93.3389°W / 36.6671; -93.3389
Opened	1960
Owner	Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation
Operating season	March - December
Area	55 acres
Attractions
Total	22
Roller coasters	5
Water rides	4
Website	http://www.bransonsilverdollarcity.com

Silver Dollar City is a theme park in the state of Missouri. Opened on May 1, 1960, the park is located between Branson and Branson West, Missouri, on Highway 76. 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 the Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation, which owns, operates or partners in 25 properties in 10 states and includes the nearby water park, White Water; water excursion and theatre, the Showboat Branson Belle and water and land tour attraction Ride the Ducks.

History

Marvel Cave

Entrance and rubble pile viewed from within.

Silver Dollar City has developed into one of the most successful theme parks in the United States. Situated at the site of one of the Ozarks' oldest attractions, Marvel Cave, Silver Dollar City literally sprang from the ground. The cave, which has been designated a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior, is important not only because of its subterranean features but also because of its role in the origins of Silver Dollar City.

The first oral record of Marvel Cave comes from the Osage Nation, while the first written record dates from an 1869 expedition. Henry T. Blow of St. Louis, a lead mining magnate, explored the cave with six miners. They found no lead before returning to St. Louis, but 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 another group of entrepreneurs, led by Mr. T. Hodges Jones and Truman S. Powell of Barton County, entered the cave in hopes of finding lead. Jones and Powell found huge amounts of bat manure, or guano, and the flat wall, which they also believed to be marble. Two years later Jones bought the property and, with several of his friends, formed the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company to mine the cave. 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. Although a few lots in the new town were sold, little development seems to have taken place.

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, which had developed so quickly, ceased operation.

The history of the cave took another turn in 1889 when 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 with a grand celebration and a few visitors. 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 Indian tOMLINSONdied in 1927, ownership of the cave passed to his daughters. Shortly there after, 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 99-year lease on the cave.

After Hugo Herschend's death, five years after he began managing the cave, his wife, Mary, took over the day-to-day operations of the venture. With the aid of her two sons, Jack and Peter, Mary Herschend was able to make vast improvements to the cave, including a train which pulled visitors a distance of 218 feet, from the depths of the cave up to the surface.

Once the train was in operation the Herschends felt the development of the cave was complete and immediately began to search for ways to expand their growing attraction. Anticipating additional tourists to the Ozarks, they wanted to create an attraction which would attract even more tourists to the cave.

New theme park

Following Hugo's death in 1955, Mary, Jack and Pete began building the 1880s Ozark village. Mary was committed to authenticity and preservation—there would be no cheap storefronts. She also insisted on preserving the natural beauty of the area, particularly the trees. 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 new attraction was named by Ozark Jubilee script writer and publicist Don Richardson after the promotional idea of giving visitors silver dollars in change (he was hired as the park's public relations director after the show ended). The scenic designer for much of the original attraction was Andy Miller, who had been the set designer for the Jubilee in Springfield. Opening day, May 1, 1960, included appearances by Uncle Cyp and Aunt Sap Brasfield and announcer Joe Slattery from the Jubilee, three Springfield TV personalities, and 18,000 visitors. 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.

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Silver Dollar City’s first employees pose for a photo in 1960.

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Jack, Mary and Pete Herschend in front of the stagecoach.

In 1969, Silver Dollar City drew national attention when producer Paul Henning brought the cast and crew of the popular Beverly Hillbillies television show to the park to film five episodes.

The attraction continued to grow, adding stagecoach rides and a steam train. Ingenuity in handling challenges led to some of the park's long-standing traditions. When the steam train needed a stop to build up enough steam to make the final run up a hill to get back to the station, the rest period was turned into interactive theater. Comedic train robbers would come out of the woods to hold up the passengers while the boilers churned up the necessary steam to complete the ride.

The first craft festival held at the park in 1963 had native craftsmen demonstrating 19 crafts including woodcarving, tie hacking, shingle splitting, blacksmithing, weaving, lye soap making and candlemaking. Visitors were so interested in the demonstrations that more resident craftsmen were added, including a glass blower, a weaver, a potter and a silversmith. That year 500,000 people visited the park and Silver Dollar City became Missouri's number one tourist attraction.

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.

Recent history

Silver Dollar City now encompasses more than 50 acres, showcasing America's heritage crafts with a demonstrating colony of 100 resident craftsmen - woodcarvers, glassblowers, potters, basket makers, leather crafters, candle makers, knife makers and more. Rides include themed coaster rides such as "Fire in the Hole" and Thunderation, an authentic steam train, and water rides. By 1998, visitors were topping two million.

More rides have been added in the past decade, including the explosive launch roller coaster PowderKeg, named the Best Family Thrill Coaster on the Planet by Thrillride.com; the multi-looping roller coaster WildFire, and the Giant Swing that launches riders more than seven stories in the air and nearly upside down at roller-coaster speeds. The Grand Exposition area of the park has 10 family rides that recreate the era of the World's Fairs and Expositions of the late 1800s. Attractions such as The World's Largest Treehouse at Geyser Gulch provide interactive play areas for kids and families, and entertainment is showcased in on-park theaters ranging in size from 150 seats to 4,000 seats.

Six festivals offer a variety of entertainment and activities throughout the year. The season opens with international performers from countries around the globe for World-Fest in April and May. Bluegrass & BBQ brings together some of the top performers in American bluegrass music and the aromas and flavors of a huge all-American barbecue, running mid-May through early June. America's largest kids' festival, Kids' Fest, brings in shows and activities, June through August. Southern Gospel Picnic is the largest gathering of Southern Gospel artists, late August through early September. The National Harvest Festival, September through October, presents visiting craftsmen and visiting musicians, foods from around the country, and special exhibitions and entertainment. An Old Time Christmas in November and December, nationally recognized by media from the Travel Channel to Good Morning America as one of the best holiday light shows in America, dazzles with the acclaimed 5-story, special effects Christmas tree and an all-encompassing sound and light show on the Square. Plus, the festival features a Holiday Light Parade, holiday shows and more than four million lights.

Along with Silver Dollar City's growth and the addition of high-quality production shows and high-tech rides—themed to keep an old-fashioned look -- "high-touch" elements remain. Visitors join the activities of an 1800s homestead at the McHaffie Cabin. Kids are deputized by the town marshal. Gospel singing beckons from the door of the 155-year-old Wilderness Church. One can smell the aromas of succotash cooking on an outdoor skillet and feel the waxy bars of freshly made cakes of lye soap. The ringing of the blacksmith's hammer on the anvil invites visitors to watch his work at an open-air forge. The craftsmen show their techniques, share the history and answer questions, such as why hewing the logs for a cabin make it strong enough to stand for centuries.

The vision of the Herschends nearly five decades ago to showcase the natural beauty of the Ozarks and to bring to life the colorful history and heritage of the area led to the development of a theme park which is today an industry leader. Silver Dollar City won worldwide recognition with the 1999-2000 Applause Award, the theme park industry's top award of excellence based on management, operations, creativity and ingenuity. The park was also the 2001 recipient of the prestigious Thea Classic Award from the Themed Entertainment Association, recognizing worldwide excellence and outstanding achievement in themed entertainment.

From natural wonder to international attraction, it all started with a hole in the ground.

Pop culture

The park gained much public notice when 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 (Irene Ryan) attempting to find a husband for Elly May (Donna Douglas) back in the hills, while Uncle Jed (Buddy Ebsen) socialized with hotel clerk Shorty Kellems (Shug Fisher). They visited the blacksmith Shad Heller, soapmaker Granny Ethel Huffman, and woodcarver Peter Engler, and Miss Hathaway (Nancy Kulp) 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", was eventually shot in the park.

In 1999, Silver Dollar City was the site for the 14th annual Stihl Timbersports Series Championships. Jason Wynyard, 26 of Auckland, New Zealand topped the field of 12 of the world's best axemen for the 3rd year in a row.

4000 spectators were on hand at the Echo Hollow Amphitheater to view the most recognized logging competition worldwide. This was the 4th year that the Stihl Finals were hosted in Branson. "Timber" Tina Scheer of The Great Maine Lumberjack Show was the host for all of the action.

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, according to GMA.

The park was featured as part of the show’s segment called “Good Morning America Lights Up the Holidays”.

On July 5, 2007, Silver Dollar City was featured in an episode of the soap opera As The World Turns.

July 6, 2009, the park hosted ACE’s big national summer convention, and welcomed coaster enthusiasts from around the country.

Layout, attractions and general information

Districts

SDC is divided into ten distinct districts.

• Park Entrance
• Main Street
• Homestead Ridge
• Midtown
• Valley Road
• The Grand Exposition
• Riverfront
• Wilson’s Farm
• Tom Sawyer’s Landing
• Hugo’s Hill Street

Attractions

• Marvel Cave-The cave offers two types of tours. The Traditional Cave Tour: a one hour guided tour through a half mile of passageway. Throughout the tour geological and historical information is explained. The Lantern Light Tour: a one and a half hour guided tour through a little over a half mile of passageway. There are two historically dressed guides who offer information. This tour has an emphasis on folklore and mystery. Both tours end with a cable-train ride to the surface.
• Homestead Barnyard
• McHaffie's Homestead
• Oak Trail Schoolhouse #3
• The Train Depot
• Wilderness Church

Demonstrations

• Brown's Candy Factory
• Carrie's Candles
• Cut Glass
• D. Ellison's Basket Shop
• Duplicating Lathe
• Hazel's Blown Glass
• Heartlad Home Furnishings
• Hillcreek Pottery
• Mountain Leather
• Mountain Outfitter's Knives
• Valley Road Woodcarvers
• Wilderness Road Blacksmith
• Sullivan's Mill

Rides

Wildfire

• American Plunge
• Buzz Saw Falls was a steel roller coaster closed in 2003 to be remodeled into Powder Keg: A Blast into the Wilderness. While operational, crew members often referred to it as "Buzz Saw Falls Apart," due to constant mechanical problems.
• Electro Spin
• Elephant March
• Fire in the Hole
• Flooded Mine
• Frisco Silver Dollar Line
• The Giant Barn Swing
• Grand Exposition Coaster
• Grandfather's Mansion
• Happy Frogs
• The Ladybugs
• Lost River of the Ozarks
• Magnificent Wave Carousel
• Mighty Galleon
• Powder Keg
• Racing Regatta
• Royal Tea Party
• Tom Sawyer's Sand Station
• Thunderation
• Waterworks Waterboggan
• Wildfire
• Wings of Wonder

Festivals

Throughout the operating season Silver Dollar City hosts six different festivals:

• WorldFest (April - May): An international event showcasing different cultures and performers from around the world.
• Bluegrass & BBQ Festival (May): Is a celebration of bluegrass music and BBQ from across the nation.
• National Kids' Fest (June - August): Is a summer festival featuring popular children's characters such as VeggieTales, along with other activities that appeal to children.
• Southern Gospel Picnic (August - September): Gospel music is showcased during this festival along with picnic style dinners.
• National Harvest Festival (September - October): Is a salute to an old time harvest celebration featuring visiting-craftsmen and autumn cuisine, along with a showcase of American music.
• An Old Time Christmas (November - December): Is a traditional holiday Christmas Celebration with special shows, foods, and other attractions. In addition, the park is decorated with nearly 4 million Christmas lights and a five-story special effects Christmas tree.

Restaurants and eateries

• Aunt Polly's Fried Chicken
• Big Jack's Sandwich Shop
• Buckshot Annie's Chicken Shack
• Buckshot Annie's Skillet Cookery
• Eva & Delilah's Bakery
• Farmer's Market
• Flossie's Fried Fancies
• Frank's Hot Dogs
• Hannah's Ice Cream Factory
• Jim Owen's Fish Camp
• Lumbercamp Hamburgers
• Mary's Springhouse
• The Mine Restaurant
• Molly's Mill Restaurant
• Riverside Rib House
• The Tater Patch
• Tom Sawyer's Fun Food
• Wagon Works Grill

Specialty shops

• Allen's Backyard Stained Glass
• Apple Butter Shop
• Ashley's Tintype Photography
• Aunt Molly's Quilts & Lace
• Benjamin's Pen & Ink
• Brown's Candy Factory
• Book & Print
• Carrie's Candles
• Christmas Hollow
• Cowboy Jepp's
• D. Ellison's Basket Shop
• The General Store
• Hand Cut Coin Jewelry
• Hazel's Blown Glass Factory
• Heartland Home Furnishings
• Hill Creek Pottery
• Hospitality House
• Gill Wire Jewelry
• Grandma Lena's Honey Heaven
• Granny's Lye Soap
• J.J. Fiddlesticks Toy Shop
• Love My Country
• Mission Metals
• Moon Valley Waxworks
• Mortimer's Magic Box
• Mountain Leather Shop
• Ozark Marketplace
• Phoebe Snapp Taffy
• SDC U.S. Post Office
• St. Louis Jewelry
• Sullivan's Mill
• Valley Road Woodcarvers
• White River Mercantile
• White River Wildflowers
• Wilderness Road Blacksmith Shop

Recurring shows

• American Kids
• Championship Cloggers
• Cajun Connection
• Horsecreek Band
• Old-Time Story TIme
• The Homestead Pickers
• Sons of the Silver Dollar

Stages, multipurpose buildings and theaters

• The Gazebo
• Carousel Barn
• Dockside Theater
• Riverfront Playhouse - The “Deep Woods” area increased the park's size by 25%. The district eventually introduced the 600 seat Court House Theatre in 1979. The inaugural production was The Chicken Thief, a comedy depicting the trial of a strange man named Melvin. The theatre’s name has changed over the years from Courthouse to Gaslight and on to its current name. Past shows have included, Timothy Turnbuckle’s Traveling Time Machine, Hoedown, and Hatfield’s Haint.
• The Frisco Barn
• McHaffie's Homestead Front Porch
• Silver Dollar Saloon - The saloon opened to the public in 1973 with can-can dancers and singing bartenders. Carry Nation brought her temperance union to the City to shut the house of ill repute down for good. Unfortunately for Ms. Nation she never won. The show has changed throughout the years to include, Mean Murphy, the saloon’s arch enemy; Miss. Tilly the loveable yet dim-witted dance hall girl; and Choctaw Charlie and his Wild West show. The show is billed as, “Good clean fun.” There is no cursing, chewing or spitting at the Silver Dollar and root beer is served as an alternative to beer.
• Echo Hollow Amphitheatre - Is an amphitheatre with seating for 4,000. The amphitheater opened in 1983 as a dinner theatre encouraging guests to stay once Silver Dollar City closed for the day. Featured shows within the amphitheater have included, Harmonies from the Hollow, Echo Hollow Jubilee, Hotrods and Hair-dos, and GAC Country Nights. Each Spring SDC’s Young Christian Youth Rally is held at Echo Hollow. This Rally features ministers, speakers and musical guests like Newsboys, Kutless and Sixpence None the Richer. The amphitheater also hosts nationally known musical artists such as, Gladys Knight, Peter, Paul and Mary, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Ricky Skaggs.
• The Boatworks Theater
• The Opera House - The 1,000 seat performance venue opened in 1994 with the Broadway-style production, Listen to the River. Since its opening the theatre has played host to other large scale in-house productions including American Spirit, a patriotic musical; For the Glory, a Civil War drama; Headin’ West, a musical drama about Western expansion; and A Dickens’ Christmas Carol, a high-energy, musical telling of Charles Dickens’ Christmas classic.
• Pickin' Shead
• Red Gold Heritage Hall - To commemorate SDC’s 40th anniversary this 25,000 square-foot multipurpose building opened in 2000. Themed after a turn-of-the-century tomato canning factory, the hall is capable of hosting exhibitions and shows with seating up to 1,800 guests. Festival food fills the building during events and the town of Bethlehem is recreated each Christmas season.

Former rides

• Buzz Saw Falls - This was a roller coaster that incorporated a water type boat for the vehicle. The ride was largely promoted, however it was constantly plagued with mechanical difficulties. It was closed in 2003 and construction began to modify the ride into Powder Keg, which opened in 2005.
• Rube Dugan's Diving Bell - An attraction that simulated a Jules Verne-style fantasy submarine ride, the first simulation ride of its kind. Disney World engineers told Silver Dollar City that it could not be done. It was removed in the mid-1980s to make room for the Lost River of the Ozarks, a ride that could run more people through per hour. Slim Pickens was the voice of Rube Dugan. [1]
• Jim Owens Float Trip - was an outdoor boat ride around a man-made river with animatronics. SDC removed this ride after the 1980 season and remodeled it into the American Plunge log flume.
• Stagecoach - In the early years of the park, an authentic stagecoach took guests on a bumpy ride around the perimeter of the town square pulled by sturdy draft horses. It was removed five years after the park opened.
• Runaway Ore Cart - A small children's roller coaster that was removed after the 2004 season.
• Tom Sawyer's Landing - Added to the park in 1984, the play area featured rope towers and new rides with Becky's Carousel as its center piece. SDC craftsmen hand carved each horse on the carousel. The most notable aspect of the structure were the large rope nets upon which visitors bounced and climbed.
• Huck Finn's Hideaway - Huck Finn's Hideaway was a large play house built several stories above the ground on stilts. Visitors entered the attraction via a tiny spiral staircase built into a fake hollow tree. They had to crawl on hands and knees across a narrow bridge from the top of the hollow tree to the tree house.

See also

• List of amusement parks

References

• Brothers, Michael A. "'Ozark Jubilee': a Musical Legacy" (March 2, 2003), Springfield News-Leader, p. 1C

External links

• Silver Dollar City (Official Website)
• Dollywood (Official Website)
• (A fan website for SDC)