Knott's Berry Farm

History

Origin

The park sits on the site of a former berry farm established by Walter Knott and his family who moved to Buena Park in 1920. Around 1923, the Knott family began selling berries, berry preserves, and pies from a roadside stand called Knott's Berry Place along State Route 39. In June 1934, the Knotts began selling fried chicken dinners in a tea room on the property, later named "Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant." The dinners soon became a major tourist draw, and the Knotts built several shops and other attractions to entertain visitors waiting for a seat in the restaurant. In 1940, Walter Knott began constructing a replica Ghost Town on the property, the beginning of the present-day theme park. Ghost Town was Walter Knott's tribute to the pioneers, which included his own grandparents who came to California in a covered wagon from Texas in 1868 (when his mother was two years old). The idea of an amusement park picked up in the 1950s when Walter Knott opened a "summer-long county fair."

Paul von Klieben was Walter Knott's key employee in the creation of the Ghost Town at Knott's Berry Farm and the restoration of the ghost town of Calico, California. In 1941, he joined Knott's as a staff artist, then served as art director there from 1943 to 1953. He traveled to ghost towns in the West, conducted research, and designed most of the Ghost Town section of Knott's Berry Farm. He created concept art for most of the buildings that were built there. He also drew up floor plans, oversaw the construction of buildings, and even spent some time painting concrete to look like natural rock. His Old West paintings and murals adorned the walls of many structures in the park, and a number of them still do. His art was also used extensively in Knott's newspapers, menus, brochures, catalogs and other publications.

In 1956, Walter Knott arranged with Marion Speer to bring his Western Trails Museum collection to Knott's Berry Farm. Speer had been an enthusiastic supporter of Walter Knott's efforts to create Ghost Town, and had written articles for Knott's newspaper, the Ghost Town News. In 1956, twenty years after creating his museum, Marion Speer (at age 72) donated the carefully cataloged collection of 30,000 items to Knott's in return for Knott's housing it, displaying it and naming Speer as curator. Speer continued in that position until he retired in 1969 at the age of 84.

The museum was once housed in a building (which has since been razed) at Knott's Berry Farm between Jeffries Barn (now known as the Wilderness Dance Hall) and the schoolhouse. The Western Trails Museum at Knott's is now just south of the saloon in Ghost Town.

New owners

In the 1990s, after Walter and Cordelia died, their children decided to sell off their businesses.

In 1995, the Knott family sold the food specialty business to ConAgra Inc, which later resold the brand to The J.M. Smucker Company in 2008. In 2024, Smuckers discontinued sale of the Knott's Berry Farm jams in grocery stores.

On December 29, 1997, the Knott family sold the amusement park operations to Cedar Fair. Initially, the Knotts were given an opportunity to sell the park to The Walt Disney Company. The park would have been amalgamated into the Disneyland Resort and converted into Disney's America, which had previously failed to be built near Washington, D.C. The Knotts refused to sell the park to Disney out of concern that most of what Walter Knott had built would be eliminated.

In the late 1990s, Cedar Fair also acquired the Buena Park Hotel, located at the northwest corner of Grand and Crescent avenues. It was then brought up to Radisson standards and branded Radisson Resort Hotel as a franchise. In 2004, the park renamed the Radisson Resort Hotel the Knott's Berry Farm Resort Hotel.

Post-Cedar Fair acquisition

Since being acquired by Cedar Fair, the park has seen an aggressive shift towards thrill rides, with the construction of several large roller coasters and the addition of a record-breaking Shoot-the-Chutes ride named Perilous Plunge. Perilous Plunge had the record of being the tallest and steepest water ride in the world until September 2012 when it was closed and removed. In 2013, Knott's Berry Farm announced that one of the most popular rides at the park, the Timber Mountain Log Ride, would be closed for a significant five-month refurbishment, led by Garner Holt Productions, Inc.

On May 25, 2013, Knott's Berry Farm added three new family rides on the site of the former Perilous Plunge, including a wild mouse called Coast Rider, a scrambler flat ride called Pacific Scrambler, and Surfside Gliders. All three were constructed in the Boardwalk section of the park. An old bridge that connected the exit of Coast Rider and the Boardwalk became the entrance to Surfside Gliders and Pacific Scrambler. Following the 2013 season, Knott's Berry Farm removed Windseeker and moved it to Worlds of Fun, where it reopened in 2014. For the 2014 season, the historical Calico Mine Ride underwent a major refurbishment completed in six months.

During the fall of 2019, Knott's Berry Farm announced the return of Knott's Bear-y Tales as an interactive 4D dark ride as part of the park's 100th anniversary in 2020 with the name Knott's Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair. However, the park was indefinitely shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic at the end of its operating day on March 13, 2020. Knott's Bear-y Tales and other planned changes to the park were postponed to 2021. In June 2020, Knott's Marketplace reopened with health guidelines in place. The following month, the park introduced Taste of Calico, an outdoor food festival on weekends located in the Ghost Town section of the park. The event evolved over the season, becoming Taste of Knott's when it expanded into Fiesta Village and the Boardwalk, Taste of Fall-o-ween during the fall season, and Taste of Merry Farm for the Christmas holiday season which was canceled in December 2020 due to the regional stay at home order issued by California Governor Gavin Newsom. Amusement Today recognized the Taste Of events in its annual Golden Ticket Awards, awarding the park under the category "Industry Leader: Amusement/Theme Park" for its innovative approach.

Knott's Berry Farm returned to normal operation on May 6, 2021, including the debut of the delayed Knott's Bear-y Tales attraction originally planned for 2020. On July 1, 2024, Cedar Fair merged with Six Flags, and the combined Six Flags Entertainment Corporation took over Knott's Berry Farm, making them part of the same company as longtime rival Six Flags Magic Mountain. Cedar Fair still has controlling shares of the company.

Annual park events

The park's annual Knott's Scary Farm has drawn crowds since 1973. The idea for this event was presented at one of the regularly scheduled round table meetings for managers by Patricia Pawson. The actual event was created by Bill Hollingshead, Gary Salisbury, Martha Boyd and Gene Witham, along with other members of the Knott's Berry Farm Entertainment Department as documented in the DVD Season of Screams. Initially, fake corpses and other static figures were rented from a Hollywood prop house, but Bud Hurlbut, the creator/concessionaire of the Mine Ride, Log Ride and other rides at Knott's, decided that this wasn't enough. He dressed up in a gorilla suit and started scaring guests on the Mine Ride. Halloween Haunt was an instant hit, and by the next year, the event sold out nightly. During this special ticketed event, the entire park (or major portions of it) re-themes itself into a "haunted house" style attraction in the form of mazes and "scare zones" in the evening. Over a thousand specially employed monsters are also scattered—often hidden out of view—throughout the park at this time. Some of the characters have become well-known, such as the Green Witch, which was portrayed by Charlene Parker from 1983 to 2017, the longest of any performer. Several attractions are decorated for the event including the Timber Mountain Log Ride and Calico Mine Train and there are 13 mazes of various themes. Elvira (actress Cassandra Peterson) was introduced into the Halloween Event in 1982 and was prominently featured in many Halloween Haunt events until 2001. According to postings on her My Space page, Cassandra was released from her contract by the park's new owners due to their wanting a more family-friendly appeal. She returned for one night in 2012 for the 40th anniversary of the event then again featured in her nightly show from 2014 to 2017. During October, Knott's Scary Farm generates half the revenue for Knott's Berry Farm's fiscal year.

Season of Screams is a DVD produced by an independent company that traces the beginnings of Halloween Haunt and the story behind how it all got started back in 1973. Season of Screams also highlights recent Halloween Haunts.

Winter Coaster Solace is an event that takes place on the first or second weekend of March every year when roller coaster enthusiasts can come before the park opens and stay after the park closes to ride the rides and eat at the Chicken Dinner Restaurant. It is intended to provide "solace" to visitors from other parts of the country where theme parks and roller coasters are seasonal, not year-round operations like the Southern California parks. Knott's Berry Farm also used to give attendees behind-the-scenes tours of the rides.

Areas and attractions

The park consists of four themed areas:

Ghost Town

Fiesta Village

The Boardwalk

Camp Snoopy

Ghost Town

Ghost Town is based on the ghost town of Calico, California and other real ghost towns in the Western United States. Walter Knott inherited his uncle's silver mill and land, then bought more of the actual ghost town in 1951 and developed it. In 1966, he donated that property to the corporate-municipal County of San Bernardino which then made the town of Calico into a public historic park, for which it charged an entrance/parking fee.

Craftsmen in Ghost Town demonstrate the arts of the blacksmith, woodcarver, glassblower, sign cutter, and spinner. Demonstrations of narrow-gauge railroading and farm equipment hobbyists accompany additional merchant stalls of cottage-craft fairs seasonally at discounted admission which is restricted to Ghost Town only.

The Ghost Town area has a few other notable attractions. The Bird Cage Theatre is an old-fashioned theater in Ghost Town. It only hosts two seasonal entertainments—during "Knott's Merry Farm", which includes two small productions: "Marley's Wings" and "A Christmas Carol", for the 2021 season, and "The Gift of the Magi" and "A Christmas Carol" for the 2022 season, and as well as a Halloween Haunt thrill show. The Calico Stage, a large open-air stage in Calico Square, hosts a variety of shows and acts, big and small, from "Home for the Holidays", a Knott's Merry Farm Christmas skit with singing, those of elementary school students, Gallagher, a local band, and the summer-spectacular All Wheels Extreme stunt show featuring youthful performers demonstrating aerial tricks with acrobatics, trampolines, and riding ramps with skates, scooters, skateboards, and freestyle bikes to popular music. The Calico Saloon recreates the revelry of music, singing and dancing, with Cameo Kate hosting a variety of acts. Jersey Lily, Judge Roy Bean's combination courthouse/saloon, offers certified comical "genuine illegal hitchin'" alongside pickles, candy, and sports/soft drinks.

The park formerly featured a 5th area. Formerly known as Wild Water Wilderness, now part of Ghost Town, the area features two major rides: the Pony Express, a horse-themed family roller coaster installed in 2008 and Calico River Rapids, which opened in 1988 and was refurbished with a new theme for the 2019 season. Near Pony Express is Rapids Trader, a small merchandise stand. It is also home to Mystery Lodge, a multimedia show based on an Expo 86 pavilion featuring a Native American storyteller.

Western Trails Museum, relocated between the candy store and the General Store to accommodate Calico River Rapids (formerly Bigfoot Rapids), still features historical western artifacts large and small, from a hand-powered horse-drawn fire engine to a miniature replica of a borax hauling "Twenty Mule Team" and utensils necessary to survive the prairie and wilderness.

Fiesta Village

Fiesta Village was built in 1969 under the pretense of a Mexican theme. It was built to pay tribute to California's Spanish and Mexican heritage. It was the second area constructed after the completion of Ghost Town. Stores like Casa California, restaurants like Pancho's Tacos, La Papa Loca, and La Victoria Cantina, games like Shoot If Yucan, and themed rides like La Revolución, Jaguar!, and MonteZOOMa: The Forbidden Fortress, along with the former attraction Tampico Tumbler, all contribute to the Mexican and Aztec theme of the area. In 2013 colorful string lights were added for the summer season. In July 2022, Fiesta Village underwent a major renovation and reopened on May 26th, 2023.

The Boardwalk

Boardwalk Games include physical challenges such as a three-point challenge, baseball, and test your strength. Hawkers pitch a variety of traditional games as well, such as water racers, bucket toss, whack a mole, and ping pong toss. In September 2012, Perilous Plunge – one of Knott's major thrill rides – closed for an expansion of the Boardwalk. The boardwalk reopened a year later with two flat rides and a new family roller coaster taking the place of Perilous Plunge. The Boomerang roller coaster was repainted in green and yellow. Boomerang was removed in 2017 to make way for HangTime.

At the south end of the boardwalk is the family interactive dark ride: Knott's Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair. The world's largest Johnny Rockets restaurant was located at Knott's Boardwalk, featuring over 5,900 square feet (550 m2) of indoor dining space for more than 260 guests, before being closed to make way for Crafty's Kitchen. Also located in The Boardwalk is the 2000-seat Walter Knott Theater hosting seasonal offerings, notably the ice-skating show "Snoopy's Night Before Christmas", with several different ice shows in the past, one of which, "Merry Christmas Snoopy!" relocated to California's Great America, another Cedar Fair park. It was renamed in 2020 from the Charles M. Schulz Theater to the Walter Knott Theater, as part of a refurbishment of the exterior for the park's 100th anniversary, which also included new LED signage to the theater's marquee.

Camp Snoopy

Camp Snoopy is home to the park's family and children's rides, with many of the rides and attractions being built specifically for children and guests who cannot ride the park's more aggressive attractions. Its theme is Charles M. Schulz' "Peanuts" comic strip characters. Snoopy has been the mascot of Knott's Berry Farm since 1983, and the characters can now be seen at some of Six Flags' parks. For guests who cannot ride the park's more aggressive and thrilling rides, Camp Snoopy contains a good number of rides for guests of all ages including infants, children, and seniors. Except for Sierra Sidewinder, the rides are relatively tame.

Knott's Berry Farm also built the Mall of America's indoor theme park, which itself was originally called Camp Snoopy. (In fact, Charles M. Schulz hailed from St. Paul.) However, today the park is no longer affiliated with Knott's or Cedar Fair and is now called Nickelodeon Universe.

On November 22, 2013, Knott's Berry Farm announced major improvements in the area of Camp Snoopy. Camp Snoopy received a makeover for its 30th anniversary. In summer 2014, Knott's Berry Farm opened up new rides in Camp Snoopy.

The 2 ft (610 mm) narrow-gauge Beagle Express takes guest on a four-minute train ride through the reflection lake. The ride was made shorter with the construction of Silver Bullet. As part of the 30th Anniversary makeover, the train ride received a series of Peanuts vignettes (made by Garner Holt Productions) along the track and narration by the character Linus.

Knott's has portrait artists, as well as face painters and caricature artists in two different locations in Camp Snoopy operated by Kaman's Art Shoppes. Portrait artists have a long history at Knott's, dating back to 1951. Claude Bell, who created the concrete characters on the benches at Knott's, operated the portrait concession from 1951 to 1986. Bell also sculpted the minuteman statue on display at Independence Hall.

Indian Trails

Located next to the Bottle House in Ghost Town, Indian Trails is a small area sandwiched between Camp Snoopy, Ghost Town, and Fiesta Village, showcasing Native American art, crafts and dance.

Public area

Many of the original attractions are outside the gates of the current-day theme park along Grand Ave. at the California Marketplace, mostly things that would no longer be considered interesting to today's audience, or things that were merely decorative. Near the restrooms behind Berry Place are the waterfall overshooting the water wheel and historic gristmill grindstone, a replica of George Washington's Mount Vernon estate fireplace hearth, and what remains of the visible beehive. Some attractions still exist, but have been incorporated into backstage areas, such as the Rock Garden, now an employee smoking area. Other attractions have been removed, such as the historic volcano, and the cross-section of giant sequoia with age rings denoting historic events such as Christopher Columbus visiting America.

The east side of the property, divided by Beach Blvd., features the main parking lot, Knott's Soak City, a seasonal water park that requires separate admission, the picnic grounds rental areas, complimentary admission to Independence Hall and gift shop, and the Church of Reflections which was moved outside the theme park in 2004 and held non-denominational Sunday services until 2010. A tunnel and pedestrian underpass beneath Beach Blvd. connects the main parking lot to the shops, restaurants and theme park.

Former attractions

FearVR: 5150 controversy

For Halloween Haunt in 2016, Knott's Berry Farm introduced FearVR: 5150, a virtual reality attraction that was met with controversy from the mental health community regarding its perceived negative portrayal of mental illness. The ten-minute-long attraction immersed guests inside of a chaotic hospital haunted by a supernatural central character named Katie and zombie-like patients. The initial controversy came from the attraction's name, with 5150 referring to Welfare and Institutions Code section 5150, the California law that allows a law enforcement officer or clinician to involuntarily commit a person suspected of having a mental illness and determined "a danger to themselves or others". It also referenced the fact that guests experiencing the attraction had their arms strapped to a chair as part of the experience. The backlash was focused on Cedar Fair's use of painful experiences suffered by those dealing with mental illness and to have it "transmogrified into spooky entertainment". In response, Cedar Fair removed "5150" from the name, and after continued opposition, permanently closed the attraction on September 28, 2016, six days after its debut. A petition was signed by more than 2,000 people hoping Cedar Fair would bring it back, with the petition's organizer stating that Cedar Fair should not be "forced to shut down an attraction based on the words of people who had not even experienced the attraction".

Knott's Soak City

Knott's Soak City is a water park. It opened on June 17, 2000, as Soak City U.S. It requires separate admission from Knott's Berry Farm. In addition to the water park across the street from the main theme park, Cedar Fair also formerly owned two other Knott's Soak City Parks, in Palm Springs and Chula Vista.

Private police force

For much of the park's early history, Knott's Berry Farm had a unique arrangement with the Orange County Sheriff's Department where the park's security officers were sworn special deputies vested with full police powers. The Security Department, however, did not answer to the county sheriff, but rather to the park's Chief of Security (who for many years was Steve Knott, the grandson of Walter Knott). Knott's Berry Farm maintained a completely private police force, vested with full police powers, and overseen by park management.

Before the City of Buena Park was incorporated, Knott's Berry Farm's Security Department even provided police services to the nearby unincorporated area that would eventually become known as Buena Park, including writing traffic tickets. Then, in the early days of the incorporated City of Buena Park, Knott's Berry Farm Security provided vital mutual aid assistance to the Buena Park Police Department (formerly Buena Park Public Safety) during emergencies since Knott's Berry Farm's 34 sworn Special Deputies outnumbered, and were better equipped than the city's four-man Department of Public Safety.

The Orange County Sheriff Department discontinued this arrangement in the late 1980s but Knott's still maintains its own private (albeit unsworn) security force, and its "Station-K" public safety radio designation.

Fast Lane

Fast Lane is a limited-access line queue system offered for an additional charge at Six Flags amusement parks. Visitors can purchase a wristband that allows them to bypass standard lines in favor of shorter ones at many of the parks' most popular attractions.

Food products

The J.M. Smucker Company continued to sell the jam and preserves made famous by the Knott family for several years; however, other products, such as the syrups, were phased out due to low demand.

In November 2013, Knott's Berry Farm began selling its "Berry Market" brand of preserves at the park. The Berry Market brand is all-natural. They are unable to use "Knott's" on the label since Smucker's owns the rights to the name.

In January 2024, Smucker's discontinued the rest of the Knott's Berry Farm brand after low sales.

Public transportation

Knott's Berry Farm can easily be accessed by various public transportation services. Service is available by the Los Angeles Metro and the Orange County Transportation Authority. Bus routes serving the park include Metro Express Line 460 which provides direct express service between Downtown Los Angeles and Disneyland and OCTA bus routes 29, 38 and 529.