Great America

Old Amusement Parks - posted in Other Roadside Business / Attractions: It seems that a good number of my childhood memories come from visiting amusement parks or fairs with midways. My dad taught us how to properly lean to make the Tilt-A-Whirl go fast enough to make us all queasy (and I have passed this along to my kids- it's an important life skill, you know!)By the number of websites I have come across that commemorate defunct parks and show what's up at parks still operati...

Six Flags Great America is just 45 min. northwest of Chicago. The Big Thrill, X Flight and the Grand Columbia Carousel are among the many rides. Top it off with our 20-acre water park!

Great America - American Eagle Roller Coaster in Gurnee, IL Old Picture

The Tidal Wave was the first new roller coaster added to the Marriott’s GREAT AMERICA parks. To lure opening-season guests back for 1977, the Tidal Wave rolled out across Yankee Harbor in San…

Tidal Wave (Six Flags Great America)

This week's #TBT Gallery revisits Great America in the '70s, '80s and '90s

Front Seat Shockwave Roller Coaster Six Flags Gurnee, Illinois

The Edge made its debut in both Gurnee and Santa Clara in 1983. Similar to the case of The Demon roller coaster, The Edge was a major attraction that was not integrated into the theme of its sectio…

Fly like an Eagle Best viewed on black

California's Great America first opened its doors in 1976 and has seen featured in movies such as Beverly Hills Cop III.

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American Eagle under construction Gurnee, Illinois

When Marriott's Great America, now Six Flags Great America, first opened in Gurnee in 1976, it looked a lot different than it does today. For every Whizzer, a coaster that still exists, there's a Tidal Wave, Shockwave or Z-Force, rides existing only in memory.