Originally posted: 3/2/2003

Last updated: 8/7/2005

  
Six Flags Over Georgia

 By Chris Cowan
 themeparks@insightbb.com

Special thanks to SFZIP for additional park information.

Long-time park employee Bob Armstrong sent in several corrections to the timeline.  Thanks Bob!
 

1965 – Angus Wynne's Great Southwest Corporation purchases 3,000 acres of land near Atlanta, Georgia.
 

1967:

Six Flags Over Georgia, built for $12 million and covering less that 80 acres, opens on June 7th.

The six areas are:

• Britain, with a Colonial theme and Hanson cars (Antique cars).
   
• Confederate, home of the Dahlonega Mine Train (Arrow steel roller coaster), the children's Mini-Mine Train (Arrow steel coaster originally named Yahoola Hooler), the Tales of the Okefenokee dark ride, the Astro Lift (sky ride) to the USA section, the Crystal Pistol theater, a Mule-Go-Round ride (with live mule) and a train station for the Six Flags Railroad.
   
• Spain, with the Castillo De Soto (a building themed as a fort), which houses the Casa Loco (tilt house), the Casa De Fritos restaurant, a candle shop and a poster shop.
   
• France, which consists of Jean Ribaut's Adventure (riverboat ride with animated scenes), a train depot for the Six Flags Railroad, Lafayette's Shooting Gallery, the Watermelon Waterloo picnic area, the Gaslight on the Green restaurant, and a souvenir shop, The French Trading Post.
   
• USA, featuring the Happy Motoring Freeway (car ride), Petsville (petting zoo), MoMo The Monster ("Spider"-type ride), the Krofft Puppet Theater, the Chevy Show and the Animal Fair store.
   
• Georgia, a section with only one attraction, the Log Jamboree (log flume).

Admission for the first season is $2.75.

1968:

• A new area, Lickskillet, is added, which is themed to resemble a Georgia coalmining community.  It includes the Spindletop (Rotor) ride, the Wheel Barrow (Chance Tumbler), several craft shops and a "shootout" show performed in the street.
   
• A second sky ride, named Sky Buckets, is added between the Confederate and Lickskillet sections.
   
• All of the scenes in the Tales of the Okefenokee ride are changed prior to the season.
   
• The Casa Loco tilt house is moved outside the Spanish fort and renamed Casa Magnetica.
   
• The Horror Cave, a walk-through haunted-house type attraction with animated scenes, debuts inside the fort in the former spot of  the tilt house.
   
• A second flume is added to the Log Jamboree.

1969 – The Sky Hook is added to the USA section after having been relocated from Six Flags Over Texas.

1970 – Wheel Barrow is removed.

1971:

• Drunken Barrels (tilting, spinning tea-cups-like ride) is added in Lickskillet in Wheel Barrow's former location.
   
• The parking lot is expanded and a "back" entrance gate is added.

1972 – The Riverview Carousel (purchased from the closed Riverview Park in Chicago) is added in a new area north of the Spanish section.

1973 – The Cotton States Exposition, themed as a "classic amusement park", is added around the Riverview Carousel and includes the Great American Scream Machine (PTC wooden roller coaster), bumper cars and several game booths.
 

1974 – MoMo the Monster is added.
 

1975:

• Phlying Phlyrpus (flying planes with steer-able rudders) is added.
   
• The Happy Motoring Freeway is removed at the end of the season.

1976 – The Great Gasp (Intamin Parachute Drop) is added in the area vacated by the Happy Motoring Freeway.

1977 – Wheelie (Schwarzkopf Enterprise) is added.

1978 – Mind Bender (Schwarzkopf steel looping roller coaster) is added to the USA section.

1979 – Highland Swings (Chance Yo-Yo) is added.

1980 – Jolly Roger's Island, a new pirate-themed area connected to the USA section, is added, featuring the Flying Dutchman (pirate ship).

1981:

• The Tales of the Okefenokee dark ride is remodeled and renamed as The Monster Plantation.
   
• Jean Ribaut's Adventure riverboat ride is removed at the end of the season.

1982:

• Thunder River (white water rafting ride) is added in the area formerly occupied by Jean Ribaut's Adventure.
   
• Astro Lift is removed at the end of the season.

1983 – Free Fall (Intamin first-generation drop ride) is added in the USA section.  Skylift's former station is used as the queue house for Free Fall.

1984:

• The Great Six Flags Air Racer (Intamin Air Racer) is added.
   
• Drunken Barrels is removed at the end of the season.

1985:

• Looping Starship (Intamin) is added, but is removed at the end of the season.
   
• Wheelie is relocated to Lickskillet.
   
• The Horror Cave is removed at the end of the season.

1986:

• Splashwater Falls (shoot-the-chutes water ride) is added.
   
• The Spanish Fort is turned into a Looney Tunes interactive play area.
   
• Casa Magnetica is removed at the end of the season.

1988:

• Z-Force (Intamin steel Space Diver roller coaster) is added after being relocated from Six Flags Great America.
   
• The Bullfrog Review puppet theater is added in the former area of Casa Magnetica.
   
• The Mini-Mine Train is removed at the end of the season.

1989:

• Looping Starship is re-added to the park after a 3 season absence.
   
• Dahlonega Mine Train is refurbished by the O.D. Hopkins corporation, replacing wooden bracing with steel pole supports and re-profiling the final tunnel.

1990:

• Georgia Cyclone (Summers/Dinn wooden roller coaster patterned after the Coney Island Cyclone) is added.
   
• The Hanson Cars are relocated near "Carousel Hill".
   
• One flume is removed from Log Jamboree at the end of the season.

1991:

• Ragin' Rivers (a slide complex with 4 wet/dry slides) is added.
   
• Z-Force is removed at the end of the season and relocated to Six Flags Magic Mountain as Flashback.

1992:

• Ninja (Vekoma steel looping roller coaster) is added after being purchased from Conko's Party Pier (Wildwood, NJ) where it  had operated since 1989 as Kamikaze.
   
• Road Runner Convoy (truck ride) is added in the area vacated by the Mini-Mine Train.

1993 – The Batman Stunt Show is added.

1994:

• Looney Tunes Land is redesigned as Bugs Bunny World.  Changes include:

  o  Henry Hawk Happy Worm is renamed Toro Toro,
  o  Elmer Fudd Fewwis Wheel is renamed Fiesta Wheel,
  o  Tweety's Swing is renamed Swing Sevile,
  o  Road Runner Convoy is renamed Convoy Grande,
  o  Flying Tasmanian Devil Planes is renamed The Little Aviator,
  o  Yosemite Sam's Buccaneer Boats are renamed Santa Maria and
  o  Road Runner Runaround is removed.

1995:

• Viper (Schwarzkopf steel launched shuttle loop roller coaster) is added after being relocated from Six Flags Great America, where it operated as Tidal Wave.
   
• UltraZone (indoor Laser Tag) is added.

1996:

• Fearless Freep's Dare Devil Dive (skycoaster) is added.
   
• Flying Dutchman pirate ship is removed at the end of the season.

1997:

• Jolly Roger's Island is transformed into Gotham City and Batman: The Ride (B&M steel inverted roller coaster) is added.
   
• Mindbender gets new green/black paint scheme.
   
• Highland Swings is removed at the end of the season.

1998:

• The park's front entrance is totally remodeled.
   
• The back park entrance is closed.
   
• Ragin' Rivers is removed at the end of the season.

1999:

• Georgia Scorcher (B&M stand-up steel roller coaster) is added.
   
• Goldtown Race (Go Karts) is added in the former location of the back entrance.

2000 – The Great Six Flags Air Racers are removed at the end of the season.

2001:

• Acrophobia, an Intamin 161-foot stand-up gyro drop tower, is added.
   
• Tweety's Clubhouse (S&S Frog Hopper) is added in Bug's Bunny World.
   
• Deja Vu (Vekoma steel Giant Inverted Boomerang roller coaster) is added but doesn't open until September 1st.
   
• Log Jamboree is renamed Deer Park Plunge.
   
• Viper is removed at the end of the season.

2002 – Superman - Ultimate Flight (B&M steel flying roller coaster) is added in the area vacated by Viper.

2003:

After spending all of the 2002 season laying dismantled in the employee parking lot, Viper is relocated to Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, where it is renamed Greezed Lightnin'.

The Bullfrog Review puppet theater is removed at the end of the season.

Admission this year is $42.00.  Parking is $10.00

 

2004:

• Five new family rides are added:

o       Wile E. Coyote Canyon Blaster (extended custom Chance Rides Big Dipper kiddie coaster) added in the old Spanish Fort in Bugs Bunny World.

o       Gotham City Crime Wave (Zierer Wave Swinger) added in Gotham City section (replaces Ultrazone lazer tag building).   This ride was purchased from Thrill Valley Amusement Park in Japan along with the 4 rides Six Flags New Orleans received in 2003.

o       Shake Rattle & Roll (1950’s themed indoor Eli Bridge Scrambler) added inside the USA Theater/Chevy Show dome in the USA section.

o       Up, Up & Away (Zamperla Balloon Race) added on “Carousel Hill”.

o       Rockin’ Tug (Zamperla Rockin’ Tug) added on “Carousel Hill”.

• New pedestrian bridge added to connect Bugs Bunny World to “Carousel Hill”.
   

• Parking tram service returns to the park.

• Admission this year is $42.99.

2005:

• Skull Island (Koala Play Group Discovery Treehouse/WaterColors with slides from Proslide Technology Inc.) is added.
   
• Georgia Cyclone gets some re-tracking.
   
• Looping Starship and The Great Gasp are closed and removed during the season.
   
• Admission this year is $43.99.