Ghost Town In The Sky
Deadwood
"Ghost Town In The Sky" sits atop Buck Mountain, with a top elevation of 4,650 ft (1,420 m), in Maggie Valley, NC. Ghost Town is promoted as "North Carolina's mile-high theme park."
Before I get into the history and my photos I need to warn y'all if y'all may be thinking about visiting it yourself and trespassing. Though I do not condone trespassing, this location was just too good to resist. I did a risk-benefit analysis of this adventure and decided it was worth the risk to me. I was lucky. I have heard from my fellow 'Bando Photographers' that the polices WILL be called and they will issue citations and prosecute.
This is one of the many signs greeting people on the road to the top of the mountain.
I tried on three different occasions to get in this park but each time I got scared off. The roads are watched by local residents and one caretaker who also lives nearby. Also they have a few mannequins holding replica guns hidden in the trees to scare people off. They did make my heart jump a few times when I stumbled upon them. I successfully visited in the fall of 2020, while the pandemic was still happening but nothing else was happening. I was in a serious funk and I needed a does in energy, inspiration and creativity. I really just needed to get out there and shoot. Luckily I did not get seen nor caught during my photo-shoot on the day I made it to the top.
Red Dog Saloon
"Red Dog Saloon" featured live country and bluegrass music performances throughout the day.
Ghost Town was the brainchild of R.B. Coburn, a Covington, VA native who moved to Maggie Valley, North Carolina. Originally, it was planned that the park would be placed between the towns of Waynesville, North Carolina and Clyde, North Carolina, but future owner Alaska Pressley suggested the mountain top locale. Local investors provided much of the needed capital for the park in the form of debenture bonds, beginning in 1959. The name of the park was provided by the child of one of the investors. [1] The park was designed by Russell Pearson and constructed for approximately $1 million in 1960, and inspired by Coburn's trips to the western United States. Over two hundred locals help construct the 40 replica buildings that comprised the Western Town, located at the Mountain’s peak. About 120,000 square feet of building were constructed, using 300,000 feet of lumber, 200,000 feet of plywood, and 20,000 pounds of nails. [2]
Ghost Town In The Sky
West World
Open Bar
The Song Remains The Same
The park opened on May 1, 1961 and quickly became one of Western North Carolina's most popular tourist attractions. It showcased a double incline railway to bring park visitors to the top of Buck Mountain, a journey of more than 3,300 feet. The park added a two seat chair lift, which at the time was the longest in North Carolina and the second longest in the USA.[2] In the early 1960s, the park hosted several stars of TV Westerns, such as Laramie and Wagon Trail. as well. [3]
This chairlift was one of the two ways you could get to the top of the mountain and into Ghost Town In The Sky
A double incline railway, called a funicular, was also constructed to bring its passengers to the top of Buck Mountain, located more than 3,300 feet up the mountainside. The incline was created with a 25-ton bulldozer attached to a winch secured to another bulldozer, which pulled the bulldozer up the mountain. This impressive feat created an exciting ride to the top of Buck Mountain. The incline carries 48 passengers up and down with varying grades of 30 to 77 percent. [2]
Ghost Trolly
A funicular! HA! What a word!
At one point, 620,000 people visited Ghost Town each year.[4] It averaged about 500,000 per year, with the chairlift moving 1,200 people per hour.[5] The park became a major economic driver for the town.
Hourly staged gun fights on the main street were a big draw
By Tupelo the typo fixer - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=113146715
Bank Robberies!
Gunfights!
Different 'towns'
within Ghost Town
These 6 amazing
photos are courtesy of
Alicia Randazzo.
(Thank you!)
The park is divided into several "towns" located at different elevations of the mountain, each with a different theme. Among these are the "Indian Village", "Mountain Town" and "Mining Town.". The heart of the park is the recreated Old West town, complete with two saloons, a schoolhouse, bank, jail and church and various other businesses. Each hour, a gunfight was staged in the street, with visitors lining up to watch on the board sidewalks. The "Silver Dollar Saloon" featured hourly shows of Old West can-can dancers, while the "Red Dog Saloon" featured live country and bluegrass music performances throughout the day, Reba McEntire even performed there once! "Indian Village" featured shows about Indian life in Old West days, including a deer hunt and a raid on a frontier settlement. "Mining Town" had areas where people could pan for gold and silver. It also had shows about life in mining settlements. "Mountain Town" featured shows about life in the Smoky Mountains.
At the terminus of the chairlift and incline railway is the "Heritage Town Square," a 2007 addition to the park. This area featured a museum chronicling the history of "Ghost Town", a restaurant, the Freefall, the casino and the Cliffhanger.
That area can be seen in the beginning of this short video I shot that day!
Sorry for the loud beep in here, I was trying to hide my location
Originally opened in 1988, Red Devil was renamed Cliffhanger in 2007 and given a new paint job.[38] The coaster is unique in that rather than boarding the train and being towed up the lift hill, its boarding station is at the top of the hill. Cliffhanger's reopening was pushed back through the 2007 and 2008 seasons because of necessary major repairs.
The Red Devil/Cliffhanger was the one of the first attractions I saw when I finally reached the top of the mountain, and it took my breath away. This was not just because I was out of breath from the climb but also because the coaster was BUILT AT THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN! This coaster was unique in that you boarded the coaster by a platform that was higher than the first hill. Most coasters need some sort of 'lift' to get the cars to the top of the first hill. Once riders boarded, the train rolled out of the station, around a 90-degree curve and then over the main drop and into its one inverted loop. The rest of the track extends over the edge of the mountain with great views of the surrounding mountains.
Here are just a few photos of this super-cool coaster....
Ghost Coaster
It opened on June 30, 2009, but was closed less than two days later after a ride operator detected something wrong with one of the train's seats. State inspectors on site discovered a hairline crack in the seat's frame next to a bolt that attached the seat to the rest of the car. Rotational Motion, who built the custom cars for Ghost Town, was tasked with finding a solution. The coaster began operating again during the last few weeks of the 2009 season with no reported problems.
During a test run the day before Ghost Town's 2010 season began, there was a problem with one of the train's wheel chassis. Contrary to reports, the train did not derail, but came to an abrupt halt. Owners said that Cliffhanger would be closed until a new train was purchased.
That never happened.
Ghost Riders
Ghost Riders
The other roller coaster operating at Ghost Town is a children's small coaster, Tumbleweed. It was originally named Lil Devil, but received a name change along with Red Devil/Cliffhanger.[39]
Above Ghost Town, a section of the park hosts a variety of standard amusement rides and the "Mountain Top Music Hall" and "Indian Dance Hall." All of the rides are situated at the edge of the mountain, with one ("The Gun Slinger") that swings out over the mountainside.
A new feature in 2009 was "The House of Terror," a haunted house open during the Halloween season.
House Of Terror
House Of Terror was added in 2009
Enough words for now, here are some more of my photos.........
Ghost Town & Southern
The Silver Dollar Saloon
Silver Dollar Saloon
Curtain Call
A performance from inside the Silver Dollar Saloon
Moonshine Manor II
Moonshine Manor
Moonshine Manor, a themed 'shootin' gallery'.
There was even a great old church on site that once held actual church services.
Frontier ChurchFrontier church of this abandoned theme park.
Let This Heart Be Still
Inspirational Service
In Another Time
The Quite Place, B&W
The Quiet Place
Birthday Party
Game Over
Ghost Writer
It Doesn't Add Up
In its later years under Coburn's ownership, the park suffered from mismanagement and a lack of maintenance. The Red Devil, Goldrusher, Sea Dragon, Monster, Mountain Town Swings, Undertaker, Dream Catcher, Casino, Round Up, Lil Devil and Silver Bullet rides were regularly breaking down and rarely opened, causing many visitors to tell others not to go. The chairlift and incline railway also required constant maintenance and repair. Coburn spent thousands of dollars maintaining them.[9] The attendance number declined to 340,000 by 2008.[10]
On July 16, 2002, the chairlift stopped, stranding passengers for over two hours. With fewer people visiting Ghost Town because of the bad condition of the park, Coburn closed Ghost Town a few days after the chairlift failure and put the park up for sale. The park remained closed and unmaintained for the next four years, leading many to believe that nobody would buy the park because of the bad condition of the rides
*************************
Attempted re-openings
2010
On February 5, 2010, a massive mudslide occurred when retaining walls on the Ghost Town property gave way. Although there were no injuries, more than 40 homes had to be evacuated and three homes were damaged around the mountain. The park itself sustained damage, but to what extent is not publicly known. This led to speculation that the park would not open at all for the 2010 season.[16][17] Shiver announced on a local news program that the park was still slated to open on Memorial Day weekend, but this did not happen. Federal funding was granted to the park in the amount of $1.3 million for the clean-up of its main access road, Rich Cove, which was buried in the slide.
In early March, 2010, a judge ruled in favor of the park's largest creditors, SunTrust and BB&T, to proceed with foreclosure on Ghost Town and sell the property to begin paying off the park's $9 million debt to SunTrust and $5 million debt to BB&T. Ghost Town partners negotiated a separate deal with SunTrust and BB&T which gave them until May 31 to come up with an alternate plan to allow the park to continue operating if funding was obtained. On May 4, a judge approved a takeover bid by American Heritage Family Parks, who pledged to pay SunTrust $7 million of its debt, BB&T its entire $5 million of debt and pay $100,000 in back taxes to Haywood County. The park was said to be allowed to open for the season while details of the sale were worked out.[18] Instead, the park remained closed.
2011
In April 2011, the bankruptcy administrator recommended dismissing the case, citing the failure of Ghost Town partners to submit a sufficient reorganization plan to pay its debts. This allowed foreclosure proceedings to continue as the park was no longer protected under Chapter 11.[19]
2012
In February 2012, the park was purchased at public auction by Alaska Presley for $2.5 million.[20] Presley, a Maggie Valley businesswoman involved with the park since its beginning, hoped to have at least a portion of the park open for the end of the 2012 season.[21]
On June 29, 2012, the park's A-frame entrance opened to the public for the first time in four years for gifts to be sold. The chairlift was also open and tours of the town could be taken.
2013
A limited opening of the park was planned for 2013. During the four years the park was idle and without security, the property was subject to vandalism and theft. In addition, damage from the 2010 retaining wall failure had to be repaired.
New laws required millions of dollars to be spent on labor and time lost due to state inspections. Wells for private water were condemned because they were too close to potentially unacceptable objects. Four new wells were drilled and all were failures except one of limited output. The option of city water was decided and virtually every piece and part of an old system had to be replaced.
During the Winter, Presley began plans for Resurrection Mountain, a replica of the Holy Land
2014
In February, Presley attempted to develop a winter attraction for the area but funding was an issue.
In July, the park opened later than planned after having issues with ride inspections.
In November 2014, Ghost Town was listed for sale with an asking price of $3 million by Action Creak Realty. The sale of the lower half of the property, which housed the Western theme park, was placed up for sale to attract investors for Presley's redevelopment of the upper portion of the property as a "Holy Land replica theme park." On January 24, 2015 the property was taken off the market, prompted by major progress in the redevelopment of other parts of the property.[22]
2015
Despite a planned opening, many issues including water pressure problems as well as issues with the chair lift prevented the park from opening. [23]
On October 22, 2015, the park announced the rebranding of the park to Ghost Town Village with a planned opening on June 1, 2016. The rebranded park was to feature gunfights, the chairlift, Appalachian themed gift shops, ziplines, a museum, a paintball course, arcade and horseback riding.[24] According to park management, the rebranding was due to the park's inability to reopen any of its former roller coasters and rides as the repair costs were too high.[25] On June 2, 2016, park management announced that the park would not open in 2016 and was again being offered for sale.[26]
2016
The planned reopening failed to materialize as issues were reported with vendors and staff. [27]
2018
As of July 2018, the park was being called Ghost Town Adventures and planned to reopen in fall 2018, after renovation and work on the skylift. Lamar Berry and his partners were working on a purchase agreement for the park property from Alaska Presley.[28] Investors however bailed on the project. [29]
An unaffiliated group attempted to purchase the park, Ghost Town Maggie Valley LLC. (Some of the members had also worked with Berry) but they failed to get funding as well. [30]
2019
Later, a reopening was planned for spring 2019, with a planned expansion and a renaming to Appalachian Village,[5] but as of July 2019, it was being sold again, with an asking price of $5.9 million. Vandalism was one of the reasons the park had not reopened.[31]
As of October 2019, new investors had a contract and were completing due diligence with an eye to reopen the park.[32]
2020
As of July 2020, work at the site and purchase of the property is still proceeding.[33]
2021
With the purchase of the park complete, the new owners plan a $200 million investment to revitalize the park, in addition other upgrades for Maggie Valley are planned to help accommodate the expected increase in tourism. These plans include niche retail, a hotel and a Biltmore Village style housing area.[34] The goal of the new owners is to preserve the original experience.[35] The plan includes a Broadway at the Beach style attraction at the base and an RV resort. The plan includes local businesses to enhance the entire area. It was hoped that at least a portion opens late 2021, although the COVID pandemic and local concerns about the impact of increased tourism combined to Delay the opening.[36][37]
2022
On April 4, 2022, Ghost Town owner Alaska Presley died at the age of 98. Following her passing, the future of Ghost Town as far as ownership of the property is concerned, is uncertain as Presley was still the titled owner of the park property at the time of her death.
================
Sources
- "Ghost Town: A love story".
- ^ Jump up to:a b "History of Ghost Town in the Sky".
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ Jump up to:a b Bill Studenc, "Maggie Valley Considers Loan for Ghost Town," Asheville Citizen-Times, May 14, 2009.
- ^ Jump up to:a b "This 'Ghost Town in the Sky' is up for Sale". 20 January 2019.
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ Jump up to:a b Themountaineer.com, Retrieved on 2009-03-13.
- ^ Jump up to:a b Andre Rodriguez, "Ghost Town Back in Business," Asheville Citizen-Times, May 28, 2009.
- ^ Jason Sandford, "Ghost Town in the Sky, one of WNC's most unique tourist attractions comes back to life", Asheville Citizen-Times, July 7, 2012.
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ Andre Rodriguez, "Struggling Ghost Town Files for Bankruptcy," Asheville Citizen-Times, March 12, 2009.
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ Morrison, Clarke; Ball, Julie; Ostendorff, Jon; Fraser, Thomas (2010-02-06). "Maggie Valley residents recall horror of landslide". Asheville Citizen-Times. Retrieved 2010-02-27.[dead link]
- ^ Ostendorff, Jon (2010-02-14). "Maggie Valley landslide leaves more questions than answers". Asheville Citizen-Times. Retrieved 2010-02-27.
- ^ "Company makes bid to buy Ghost Town," Asheville Citizen-Times, 2010-05-04.
- ^ Johnson, Becky (2011-04-20). "Ghost Town bankruptcy hits dead end". Smoky Mountain News. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
- ^ "Resurrecting a ghost town: Alaska Presley hopes to revive Maggie Valley by reopening the once-popular Ghost Town amusement park". Smokymountainnews.com. 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
- ^ Morrison, Clarke (2012-02-10). Asheville Citizen-Times http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20120211/NEWS/302110025/Ghost-Town-Sky-sold-auction. Retrieved 2012-02-12.
{{cite news}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "UPDATE: Ghost Town may be Reopening".
- ^ themountaineer.com/news/many-have-tried-and-failed-to-revive-ghost-town/article_1d8b7238-91b0-11eb-8707-773972806da4.html
- ^ "ghosttownvillage.com". www.ghosttownvillage.com. Archived from the original on 2015-12-23. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
- ^ "Log In or Sign Up to View". www.facebook.com.
- ^ "Ghost Town announces decision to sell". The Mountaineer. 2016-06-03.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ Barnes, Sandra (2018-07-11). "Preview opening of revived Ghost Town anticipated this fall". The Mountaineer. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ "Many have tried — and failed — to revive Ghost Town".
- ^ "'Cursed' North Carolina theme park, Ghost Town in the Sky, up for sale for $5.9M". WTVD. 2019-07-08. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
- ^ "Ghost Town under contract again".
- ^ "Economic development boom in Maggie Valley".
- ^ "Ghost Town developers reach major milestone".
- ^ https://www.themountaineer.com/news/new-plans-emerge-for-ghost-town/article_3e6c779a-bbe5-11eb-9c72-7f1df9b036cc.html
- ^ "Ghost Town developer outlines vision".
- ^ "Ghost Town plans coming into focus for Maggie Valley, but still some hurdles to clear". 13 December 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-09-28. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
- ^ Jump up to:a b "Tumbleweed - Ghost Town Village (Maggie Valley, North Carolina, USA)". www.rcdb.com.
