American Adventures was a small family-oriented amusement park that was previously located in Marietta, Georgia, just north of Atlanta. The park was designed by R&R Creative Amusement Designs and was the sister park to Six Flags White Water which was located next door. American Adventures opened on May 26, 1990, by the management of White Water Atlanta following a reported investment of $8.5 million.
American Adventures was aimed at young children and families and was more akin to a traveling fair; containing fairground-style rides, carnival games, mini golf, an arcade, and a restaurant. It also didn’t feature an open gate allowing for riders to choose the attractions they wanted to visit from the start at the car parking spot. The attraction initially used a ticket-based system for rides, but was later swapped out for a single admission price. At one point, an entrance to White Water Atlanta was constructed, allowing visits to any of the parks.
Admission to American Adventures was always free and the park was cross-promoted with White Water waterpark. The largest ride at American Adventures was an electric-powered steel rollercoaster named Ridgeline Racer. The park had 14 rides; including the Super Slide, Bumper Cars, and the Swinging Pirate Ship, which were mainstays. In 1991, American Adventures added a swinging pirate ship and a tilt-a-whirl, a popular staple of carnivals and traveling fairs.
In 1998, Six Flags Over Georgia, Ltd., the limited partnership that operates the nearby Six Flags Over Georgia, purchased White Water Georgia from Silver Dollar City, Inc. and Premier Parks (later Six Flags Theme Parks) took over the operation, renaming it as Six Flags White Water. American Adventures was included in the sale but did not transition to the Six Flags brand or use its name due to the park’s size and the company’s lack of interest in the venue. American Adventures removed its indoor miniature golf and added an interactive theater. The original indoor carousel was also replaced with a Foam Factory – a foam ball pit and play structure where you could shoot foam balls at one another from multiple levels.
In 2008, Six Flags leased the park’s operation to independent company Zuma Holdings LLC. With this, the park was separated from Six Flags White Water in marketing and soon afterward removed its admission charges. Within 2009, the park began to see issues with its management and suffered from a lack of maintenance. The park closed “until further notice” in February 2010, and then the park’s permanent closure was announced the following March citing “circumstances beyond their control.” Zuma sold back the lease to Six Flags and the park grounds were used for employees and storage. Almost all the rides were left abandoned, with the exception of the Scrambler which was relocated to Six Flags Great Adventure for the 2012 season. The remaining rides were removed from the grounds in 2017.
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Interesting. Thank you! 💖
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I remember passing this place many times while entering White Water. I am surprised they stayed open as long as they did. I never could imagine somebody going to American Adventures instead of White Water. To enjoy the water park required a full day. American Adventures looked like it would take a half hour.
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My wife and I took our young children there many times. At the time, they were too young for most rides at 6 Flags, so American Adventures was perfect for them. Eventually, things stopped being maintained (rides were closed) and my kids got old enough for 6 Flags and we stopped going. I sent a link to this article to my kids and they all responded with fond memories of the place.
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I remember this place from when I was a kid. My dad took me and my brother here when I was around four/five regularly. It was probably my favorite amusement park. My dad and my brother loved the Egg Scrambler ride but the Fun House was my favorite. Shame it’s closed.
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First off I would like to say terrific blog!
I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you do not mind.
I was curious to find out how you center yourself and clear your
head prior to writing. I’ve had a difficult time clearing
my mind in getting my thoughts out there. I do enjoy writing however it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are generally lost just trying to figure out how to begin.
Any suggestions or hints? Cheers!
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I find it easier to list out the talking points in order before I begin writing. It helps me give flow to the story I am trying to tell through the photos. Thanks for reading.
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My wife and I took our young children there many times. At their age, they were too young for most rides at 6 Flags, so American Adventures was perfect for them. We’d spend about a half day there as part of a weekend trip to Atlanta (usually with a few museums and a hike up Stone Mountain). Eventually, things stopped being maintained (rides were closed) and my kids got old enough for 6 Flags and we stopped going. I sent a link to this article to my kids and they all responded with fond memories of the place.
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Having read this I thought it was very informative. I appreciate you finding the time and energy to put this short article
together. I once again find myself personally spending a significant amount
of time both reading and leaving comments. But so what, it was still worth it!
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Really loved this post, my colleague Stefanie and I were talking about
this stuff only last month. Just forwarded it via Email!
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Thank you!
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Thanks for the great post
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Thanks for the post! My family and I lived very close to White Water/American Adventures in the late 1980s through the 90s. We had passes to both of the parks every summer and loved them. It was nice especially in the fall to take my kids to American Adventures in the late afternoons…could ride everything and have dinner all in 2-3 hours. Went to many birthday parties at American Adventures too. One really nice thing is that it was open during the day all year long so after school had started back for my older kids, I could take my preschoolers there in the late morning and enjoy the park before heading home for naps…it was virtually empty that time of the day! Great memories!
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How dare you take away the only park that safe for my grand children! The almighty dollar at work!!
The fact that anyone that could pay for parking could pay all day long with there large or small family awsome! We both know you made money!!
The kids matter then your pay checks. I will not only not support six flags! Everyone that I come into contract with will not either!
Enjoy your money!
Amanda simmons
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Literally what makes you think this photographer had anything to do with the park closing..?
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Excellent post, I found this when looking for abandoned theme parks to visit and photograph near me. Do you happen to know if there is still anything there– any remnants of rides or other parts of the park? I would very much like to go visit, but I would hate to show up to a totally empty lot.
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Thank you. Last I heard it was all removed. I haven’t been by there in years, so I don’t know for sure if everything is gone.
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My kids LOVED going to American Adventures because the rides were made for their size… Now I have grandchildren and I wish I had a place like that to take them too… I hope one day someone will think of the kids instead of how much MONEY they can make.. I dont like Six Flags or white water so I dont support them in any way…
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Is it still there? I just looked on Google Maps and can see Six Flags White Water but next to it looks like a couple low rise office buildings.
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The rides were dismantled and removed several years ago. The buildings that remain were repurposed for White Water employees.
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I had more fun at this place with my two small girls more than I have ever had in any other amusement park. It was just perfect for them. The park was small enough to go through the whole thing and ride multiple times. We could get off the ride and get right back in the line and get back on again. We didnt ride every ride. We loved the giant slide and the paint-splattered Tilt-A-Whirl was our favorite. It was a brave day when we finally decided at the end of one season to go ahead and try the scrambler. I am so glad we have that memory. My girls were concerned in the line, but I had been on one before and I told them we would be okay. We were happy even though my youngest got squashed a bit on the end. A Scrambler does throw centrifugal force. It makes me sick that it is all gone. The foam factory was also so much industrious fun. Does anyone know if the Tilt-a-whirl went to a new home?
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Awesome blog Leland! Im in Atlanta and googled this – a place I went to a lot in my elementary/middle school days – out of curiosity. Interesting stuff!
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Thank you! I appreciate it.
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I loved American Adventures. Had season passes. The best ride by far was the go-karts.
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Thanks for the blog! I worked at AA the summer of 1993. Such a fun time between the kids and coworkers. Hurts that it’s no longer around for kids to experience.
A few highlights from the rides…
Spinning Apples- basically an enclosed teacups ride. Drains on the bottom of the apple doubled as handles, so if kids couldn’t get them spinning, and the parents were ok with it, I’d use the handles to whip the apples til kids were stuck to the walls of the apple. Fun for all…and a serious workout for me.
Chuck Wagon- mini ferris wheel. Basic ride, but I made a joke of blowing my whistle at kids for waving at their parents or laughing to liven things up. Tormenting kids went over well, for whatever reason. I’d play the authoritarian and they’d crack up. I did the same on a few of the other little kids’ rides to keep things interesting.
Scrambler- classic that flings you in a five-point star pattern. It’s really disorienting, catapulting you from fence to fence, and kids/parents would spend the whole time trying to get their bearings. All the ride operators had a broom and I’d use mine to brush floating arms from a few feet away. Always got a big reaction. There was a throttle on this one and just slightly loosening it up could place you in Alabama.
Galleon- the rocking ship. We gave an announcement before each ride that it couldn’t be stopped once started (it could be stopped once started). Otherwise it’d never run a complete ride because someone always yelled to stop it. There’d be 30 smiling faces for the first 4-5 rocks and a couple faces would suddenly crack into absolute panic. “Sorry, I can’t stop it!”
There was a ride for every kid. The bumper cars, the roller coaster, the flying balloons, the spinning high chairs, the ferris bus, the trucks, the ladybugs….the one I’m blanking on the name of that runs you over a circular, hilly track and, depending on your momentum, either does nothing for 3min or spins your brain out your ears. Later on they redid the inside to include a huge ball pit and maze tower. My nephews went nuts in there. Sucks AA wasn’t more profitable and it’s just a memory now, local kids are missing out…
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Thank you for sharing these! My kids LOVED this place! The Foam Factory was the absolute best!!
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