Next on our tour of abandoned amusement parks is Joyland in Wichita, Kansas. First founded in 1933 to display a miniature train, then moved locations in 1949 to the place it still stands today. In the early 1970s, the Ottaway family sold the park to Stanley and Margaret Nelson, who added the majority of the rides that still stand today.
Joyland closed in 2004 for both economical and safety concerns. It briefly reopened for the 2006 season when the T-Rex Group leased the park and did some renovations. It has sat empty since 2006, with only vandals and arsonists and urban explorers visiting the site. Locals have started an aggressive campaign to raise funds to restore the park, and were recently granted tax-exempt status. The park includes many historical relics, including the last standing wooden roller coaster by the famous Philadelphia Toboggan Company; the last Wacky Shack to be built by designer Bill Tracy (only months before he died); and one of two Mammoth Military Band Organs from the Wurlitzer Company (and it was played by a terrifying clown named Louie).
But of course, you are here for the pictures of a once-happy place that now looks like it has been taken over by zombies.
For more abandoned amusement parks, check out Miracle Strip in Florida; Disney World's Abandoned Parks; Prehistoric Forest in Michigan; and Okpo Land in Korea.
Photos courtesy of Imgur