When the country celebrated its 241st birthday on July 4, a beloved San Diego, California, landmark did the same—although it is much younger than the nation.
Belmont Park’s Giant Dipper, a wooden roller coaster, turned 92 this year. According to a spokesperson for the park, the Dipper is one of only two remaining wooden coasters in the state.
The ride opened on July 4, 1925, in what was then called Mission Beach Amusement Center. At the time, the cost of the coaster was $150,000, which included two trains that carried 18 passengers each. The park was the brainchild of John D. Spreckels, a sugar tycoon, who was selling land in the Mission Beach neighborhood of the city. He added the coaster to provide amusement to potential buyers.
By the end of the 1960s, the roller coaster was in disrepair, and the ride was shut down in December, 1976, and plans were made to raze it. However, a Save the Coaster Committee formed, determined to save the coaster from demolition. The committee was successful in having the ride named as a national landmark, and was also able to persuade the San Diego Coaster Company to restore the roller coaster. After $2m in renovations, the Giant Dipper reopened in 1990.
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