Knoebels a Throwback to
NOEBELS ISN’T THE biggest amusement park. It
doesn’t have the latest rides. It’s not located in a tourist
mecca. It isn’t affiliated with a movie studio or business
conglomerate. Most of the rides were brought in from other
amusement parks.

And that’s all part of the charm.

Furthermore, the price
of admission is a whopping
zero dollars, as patrons pay
individually for each ride
(unlimited ride passes are
also available). Parking
is free, too. You can even
bring your (leashed) dog.

That’s why Knoebels
remains a must-visit for
Philadelphia-area families.

What follows is an appre-
ciation of a place my family
visited a decade ago.

The park is located in
Elysburg, less than three
hours from Center City.

Depending upon the route
you take, you might con-
sider a detour to Centralia,
where an underground coal
mine fire burning since
1962 has turned the hamlet Knoebels entrance
into a ghost town. It’s an
eerie sight to observe smoke filtering out of cracks in the
ground — ground that might be rather warm to the touch.

Before we talk about Knoebels today, a little history.

Knoebels didn’t become an amusement park until 1926,
but the story dates to 1828, according to knoebels.com.

That’s when the Rev. Henry Hartman Knoebel bought land
known as “Peggy’s Farm.” For years, the land was farmed and
also housed several sawmills. The Knoebel family actually
moved to the property in 1880.

At some point, the idea developed for an amusement
park, and Knoebels Amusement Resort debuted on the
same day as the nation’s sesquicentennial of July 4, 1926.

Folks in Philly surely didn’t notice, as the City of Broth-
erly Love was hosting the Sesqui-Centennial International
Exposition. Meantime, in Nor-
thumberland and
Columbia counties
(the park straddles
both), all Knoebels
had was a merry-go-
round, the Crystal
Pool and a handful of
food stands.

Over the years, the
park expanded, add-
ing a grand carou-
sel (1941), bandshell
(1947), a petting zoo
(1954), a campground
(1963), a
haunt- ed house (1972) and
assorted rides through
the years.

Today, Knoebels is
a full-f ledged attrac-
tion with about 60
FLICKR rides. Some prominent
features include:
• Six rollercoasters, including two of the wooden vari-
ety in the Phoenix and the Twister. Wooden coasters have
their own unique charms and thrills that make up for the
lack of 360-degree loops and 90-degree drops found on
modern rides.

• The Crystal Pool, a large concrete swimming pool on
the site of a one-time swimming hole. The 900,000-gallon
The Twister
The Phoenix
ANDY GOTLIEB | JE MANAGING EDITOR
K 26
JUNE 7, 2018
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