Roller coasters have been a hit since
the early 1800s in France.
The first roller coaster in America
opened in 1884 on Coney Island in Brooklyn.
Hold that thought.
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| First roller coaster - Coney Island |
LaMarcus Thompson built that wooden wonder and called it the “Switchback Railway.” Basically, the cars started at
one end of a slightly elevated track, rolled 600 feet to the other end, and
then rolled back to the starting point. The ticket price was a nickel. That
baby traveled at 6 mph. Ladies, beware!
Nevertheless, it was a big hit and by
1900 there were hundreds of bigger and faster coasters in operation around the
country.
Today, the highest roller coaster in
the U. S. is Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey. It’s 456
feet high and top speed is 128 mph. Gee willikers.
Copyright © Richard Carl Subber 2016
All rights reserved.
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