Since welcoming its first guests on May 29, 1976, Great America has been a cornerstone of summer fun, family memories, and coaster thrills for nearly 50 seasons. What began as Marriott’s Great America has grown into one of the Midwest’s most beloved theme parks — a place where first roller coaster rides, birthday traditions, high-speed dives, and unforgettable laughs come to life.

Although Demon is still speeding up and down the track, and Columbia Carousel spins as it did 50 years ago, the Park has gone through many changes.

Learn More About Six Flags Great America Year-by-Year:

Great America’s Beginning

1974: On June 14, ground breaks for Marriott’s Great America, starting a two-year construction project. The project brought together around 700 construction workers as the property began its transformation into what would become one of the Midwest’s most iconic amusement parks.

1975: Whether the site was wet and muddy, covered in snow, or baked by the summer sun, construction pushes forward as crews continued building Marriott’s Great America toward its 1976 debut.

1976: Marriott’s Great America officially opens to the public on May 29, with six unique areas for guests to explore Carousel Plaza, Hometown Square, Orleans Place, Yankee Harbor, Yukon Territory, and County Fair. The park debuted with a lineup of early attractions that included multiple flat rides and three coasters, offering families a wide variety of experiences from day one.

1977: Marriott’s Great America opens for its second season with several additions. Sky Trek Tower, a 330‑foot Intamin gyro tower that opened on June 28, 1977 and immediately became — and still remains — the tallest free‑standing structure in Lake County, Illinois. Southern Cross, a high‑altitude Von Roll skyride that carried guests between Orleans Place and County Fair. Southern Cross and Hay Baler added even more variety to the guest experience.

1978: Marriott’s Great America opens for its third season and debuts a thrilling new shuttle loop roller coaster Tidal Wave. Tidal Wave was the first coaster to be added since the park’s opening and was manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf and Werner Stengel who also created Whizzer.

1979: The Pictorium opens as one of the world’s largest IMAX theaters, later hosting beloved park‑produced films and becoming a staple of the park’s entertainment offerings.

Developing Record-Breaking Coasters

1980: Great America entered the 1980s with a bold transformation. The park reimagined its original roller coaster, Turn of the Century, into the newly named Demon. By replacing the ride’s two bunny hills with two vertical loops and repainting the track a striking black, the Demon ushered the park into a new era of modern thrills and set the tone for the decade ahead.

1981: Great America unveiled American Eagle, the world’s tallest, fastest, and longest wooden roller coaster. The dueling coaster soars to heights of 127 feet, reaches speeds of 66 mph, and quickly became a park icon, cementing Great America’s reputation as a major player in the coaster world.

1983: White Water Rampage, now known as Roaring Rapids, brought adventurous river‑rafting fun, delivering a refreshing family experience that remains a guest favorite.

1984: Great America joins the Six Flags family, granting access to beloved Looney Tunes characters and embarking on an exciting chapter of growth.

1985: In its second season under Six Flags, the park captured national attention with Z-Force, a one-of-a-kind Intamin Space Diver roller coaster. Its intense layout and vertical drops made it a headline attraction and showcased Six Flags Great America’s commitment to pushing thrill boundaries.

1986: Splashwater Falls opened in County Fair, adding another water attraction to the park’s growing lineup.

1987: Power Dive and an expanded Bugs Bunny Land continue enhancing thrills and family fun across the park.

1988: ShockWave opens with seven inversions and record‑setting height, immediately becoming one of the country’s most talked‑about coasters. This coaster quickly became one of the park’s most talked-about attractions.

1989: Rolling Thunder, a swinging thrill ride, was added between Demon and Whizzer, filling out the ride lineup and enhancing the mid-park experience for guests seeking classic carnival-style excitement.

1990: Six Flags’ strong partnership with Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) resulted in a groundbreaking addition: Iron Wolf. As the world’s first stand-up roller coaster, Iron Wolf made history and delivered a completely new ride experience. Located in County Fair, its station would later be reused for future coaster development.

1991: Tidal Wave found a new home at Six Flags Over Georgia, continuing the trend of ride relocations across the Six Flags park network.

1992: History was made when B&M introduced the world’s first inverted roller coaster, BATMAN™: The Ride. Opening on May 9, the coaster flipped the industry on its head—literally—and was immediately hailed as a massive success by both guests and the manufacturer.

1993: A new amphitheater expands the park’s entertainment offerings, later evolving into the Southwest Territory Amphitheater.

1994: Space Shuttle America, a motion simulator attraction, opened and offered guests a high-tech, immersive experience that reflected the growing popularity of simulator rides in the 1990s.

1995: Construction began on Viper, a wooden roller coaster inspired by the Coney Island Cyclone. Notably, Viper became the only roller coaster built in-house by Six Flags Great America rather than by an outside manufacturer.

1996: An expansive new 11-acre themed area, Southwest Territory, opens to guests. The immersive land introduced three new attractions—River Rocker, Chubasco, and Trail Blazer—and marked a major step forward in themed environments at the park.

1997: Thrills escalated in Southwest Territory with the addition of Giant Drop, one of the tallest drop towers in the world at the time. Meanwhile, Dare Devil Dive opened in the County Fair section, further diversifying the park’s ride mix.

1998: Construction began on Raging Bull, a massive hypercoaster that would redefine thrills at the park. That same year, Camp Cartoon opened, introducing five new family-friendly rides and strengthening the park’s appeal to younger guests and families.

1999: After months of anticipation, Raging Bull officially opened. The towering hypercoaster quickly became one of the park’s signature attractions, known for its speed, airtime, and dramatic first drop.

Great America Celebrates a New Millennium and New Experiences

2000: Six Flags Great America was gearing up to celebrate its 25th anniversary. As the park looked toward the future, two attractions were removed, signaling another shift in the park’s landscape.

2001: The skyline changed once again with the debut of The Flash™: Vertical Velocity (originally known as Vertical Velocity or V²). The inverted shuttle coaster delivers forward and backward launches that thrilled a new generation of guests. Guests this year could also experience Déjà Vu, a Giant Inverted Boomerang coaster.

2002: ShockWave was removed following public discussion surrounding the possible removal of Whizzer. That same year, Power Dive was also removed, making room for future development.

2003: SUPERMAN™: Ultimate Flight opened, becoming the Midwest’s second flying roller coaster. The ride allowed guests to experience the sensation of flying.

2004: It was partying in the streets of Six Flags Great America when the park debuted its brand-new section Mardi Gras replacing a section of Orleans Place. New Flat rides in this area would be, King Chaos, Jesters Wild Ride, and Big Easy Balloons.

2005: Hurricane Harbor Chicago debuted with 25 water slides, a 500,000-gallon wave pool, and Skull Island, marking another step in expanding the theme park experience and reinforcing Six Flags Great America as a full-day destination for thrills, family fun, and water attractions.

2006: The pool party did not end in the 2005 season with Hurricane Chicago adding Tornado, a 75-foot attraction propelling four people through a chute into the heart of the Tornado. Riders will move side-to-side and reach maximum speeds of 30 mph as they travel to the bottom of the attraction.

2007: The beginning of the American Eagle’s ride queue was removed to make way for an all-new kids' area- Wiggles World- now known as KIDZOPOLIS. This area would introduce five new attractions as well as a stage show and play area.

2008: THE DARK KNIGHT™ Coaster arrives, delivering an immersive, story‑driven indoor thrill experience. The coaster themed after the film which ran a similar storyline with Batman and the Joker in the cities train station.

2009: Buccaneer Battle, a Mack Rides Pirate themed boat ride, with interactive water blasters allowing rides to battle with fellow boats and guests on the midway throughout their ride.

New Rides, Big Thrills & the Future of Great America

2010: The Little Dipper, a junior coaster designed by Philadelphia Toboggan Company and opened in 1950, was relocated from Kiddieland in Melrose Park to Great America. The Little Dipper’s relocation was a wonderful success story of roller coaster preservation.

2011: Riptide Bay expands Hurricane Harbor with luxury cabanas, new slides, Monsoon Lagoon, and unique water attractions like the Surf Rider and Wipeout.

2012: Six Flags Great America adds another B&M coaster to its collection with the introduction of X Flight. X Flight is a cutting‑edge wing coaster, creating a thrilling sensation of flying on the outside of the track.

2013: Six Flags Great America broke ground to mark the beginning of construction of Goliath, a new roller coaster for 2014. The park’s fourth wooden roller coaster, Goliath features new technology, whereas the American Eagle, Viper, and Little Dipper are built with traditional wooden roller coaster technology.

2014: Goliath opened to the public on June 19, 2014, as the largest, steepest, fastest wooden coaster in the world and made Six Flags Great America the theme park with the most Wooden Rollercoaster track in the entire world.

2015: The park re-introduced three kiddie rides in a new area named Hometown Park, located between Hometown Square and County Fair. This was in preparation for its 40th anniversary named “40 Seasons of Thrills”.

2016: On May 26, Justice League™: Battle for Metropolis opens, combining interactive gaming with storytelling and cutting‑edge ride technology.

2017: An S&S 4D Free Spin coaster, THE JOKER™ Free-Fly Coaster, opens May 27. As a result of this coaster being built, East River Crawler would change locations in the park and renamed to its original name The Lobster.

2018: Six Flags Great America debuted Mardi Gras Hangover, a Larson Fire Ball Giga Loop, opens in the Mardi Gras section of the park. The season extends with the addition of Holiday in The Park, featuring decorative Holiday lights along with live entertainment and running from November to January.

2019: Great America launches into the season with Maxx Force, which had the quickest acceleration in North America and the fastest inversion in the world.

2020: Only Hurricane Harbor Chicago opened for the season due to the coronavirus pandemic. Holiday in the Park opened as a driveway allowing guests to see the park in a way never seen before.

2021: As the world learned more about the Covid-19 Pandemic, Six Flags Great America would reopen in April and Hurricane Harbor Chicago would reopen in late May both with safety guidelines set in place.

2022: Yankee Harbor would get a full retheme that would debut in May of 2022 now being named DC Universe. Vertical Velocity transformed to The Flash: Vertical Velocity, Whirligig turned into DC Super-Villains™ Swing, and park original Yankee Clipper became AQUAMAN™ Splashdown.

2023: The park begins preparing for future expansions with updates that set the stage for new thrills.

2024: Sky Striker, a Zamperla Discovery pendulum ride, opened as the tallest of it’s kind in the Midwest.

2025: Six Flags Great America unleashes the most inverted and steepest dive coaster in the world, Wrath of Rakshasa.

2026: The park celebrates 50 seasons with a 50 Anniversary Celebration running June 20 – August 9. This milestone event features exclusive merchandise, a legacy museum, and an all‑new nighttime spectacular. To learn more about this season’s offerings, visit here. And if you need inspiration for planning your visit, be sure to check out 50 Reasons to Visit Six Flags Great America in it’s 50th Season.