Defunct theme park in British Columbia
Dinotown
was a dinosaur theme park in
British Columbia, Canada
, which operated from 1975 to 2010. Originally located in the lower
Cultus Lake
area and close to
Bridal Falls
in
Chilliwack, B.C.
, Canada, it opened under the name
Bedrock City
and based around
The Flintstones
licensing. It reopened in 1995 under non-licensed dinosaur theming,
[1]
and closed in 2010. From 2011 onwards, some temporary Dinotown exhibits operated in other locations. As of April 2021, they are "currently in discussions with multiple lower mainland locations including
Vancouver
,
Surrey
,
New Westminster
and
Richmond
to re-open the park on a permanent basis.
History
[
edit
]
The Ell family opened Bedrock City in 1975. Buildings were based on the Bedrock city, featured in the
Hanna-Barbera
animated television series
The Flintstones
. Three other themed attractions held a
Flintstones
license, aside from the Kings Entertainment Company parks.
[1]
The park acquired large pipe, angle-iron and cement dinosaurs from
Dyck's Dinosaur Park
in Maple Ridge.
[2]
The park included a "Jurassic Exhibit" on loan from the
Royal Tyrrell Museum
, a
paleontology
museum in
Drumheller
,
Alberta
.
[3]
As of 2000, the park had a
White Spot
hamburger and casual dining restaurant, dubbed
White Spot Dinersaurus
.
[4]
The attraction would have a promotional
Kids Playce
at the
Pacific National Exhibition
some years, to preview their attraction.
[5]
Further abroad, the characters appeared with
Katie Couric
on NBC's
Today Show
, and appeared at the
American Museum of Natural History
's Inaugural Trick or Treat with the Dinosaurs.
[6]
The park closed on September 6, 2010.
[7]
The site of Dinotown is to become an 18-acre (7.3 ha) stratified manufactured home park, developed by
Tri-R Development Group
.
[1]
Talks were held with the
Greater Vancouver Zoo
, in
Aldergrove, British Columbia
, but they did not proceed further.
[8]
Talks with the Pacific National Exhibition did not work out. The City of Surrey Economic Development Office approached Ell about relocating. Also listed were locations in South Surrey, Burnaby, and the "largest Ostrich farm in China".
[1]
[9]
In 2012, Dinotown Live was created and set up on the
Cloverdale Fairgrounds
for the summer and 2013 at
Bridal Falls
. For the summer of 2014, 2015 and 2016 Dinotown Funland operated at Cultus Lake, B.C. on 5 acres (2.0 ha), across from the Cultus Waterpark.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
Ferguson, Dan (25 August 2010).
"Surrey wants Dinoland"
.
Peace Arch News
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
- ^
Erin Chester.
"Dyck's Dinosaur Park"
(PDF)
.
Maple Ridge Historical Society Newsletter, May 2010
. Maple Ridge Historical Society. Maple Ridge Museum & Archives
. Retrieved
12 April
2015
.
- ^
"New"
.
Dinotown
. Dinotown Productions Inc. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (
link
)
- ^
"Menu"
.
Dinotown
. Dinotown Productions Inc. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (
link
)
- ^
"Dinotown"
. Dinotown Productions Inc. Archived from the original on April 7, 1997
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (
link
)
- ^
"Dinotown closing forever"
.
PRP
. 22 August 2010. Archived from
the original
on 12 August 2011
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
- ^
Lloyd, Mike (19 August 2010).
"Dinotown going extinct"
.
Vancouver Sun/News 1130
. Archived from
the original
on 17 July 2011
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
- ^
Claxton, Matthew (3 September 2010).
"No to Dinotown"
.
Langley Advance
. Archived from
the original
on 27 September 2011
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
- ^
"New location"
.
Dinotown
. Dinotown Productions Inc. Archived from
the original
on 19 January 2011
. Retrieved
26 April
2011
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Only
Flintstones
-only parks, currently operational
| |
---|
Only
Flintstones
-only parks, defunct
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|
Theme parks, previously using Flintstones brand
|
- Bedrock City
(Chilliwack, British Columbia; 1975-1994, closed 2010)
- Calaway Park
(only in 1982, open)
- Canada's Wonderland
(1981-2002, open)
- Carowinds
(1975-1990s, open)
- California's Great America
(1975-2003, open)
- Hanna?Barbera Land
(1984-1985, closed 1985)
- Kings Dominion
(1975-1997, open)
- Kings Island
(1972-2005, open)
- Universal Studios Florida
(1990-2002, open)
- Universal Studios Hollywood
(1994-2014, open)
- Wonderland Sydney
(1985-1990s, closed)
|
---|
Dates listed are for years where
Flintstones
theming appeared, not necessarily the general years of park operation.
|
49°04′27″N
121°58′24″W
/
49.07419°N 121.97322°W
/
49.07419; -121.97322