It opened in and is considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the US behind Lake Compounce. Cedar Point's normal operating season runs from early May until Labor Day in September, which is followed by weekend-only operation through Halloween during an annual event known as HalloWeekends.
The park has reached numerous milestones over the years, including one in which Cedar Point became the only amusement park in the world with five roller coasters that exceed feet 61 m in height β Magnum XL , Millennium Force , Valravn , Steel Vengeance , and Top Thrill 2 β as well as the only park with roller coasters in all four height classifications. In addition, several of its buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In the lateth century, the south shore region of Lake Erie became a popular vacation destination for the emerging middle-class in the United States.
The Lake's islands, such as Kelleys Island and South Bass Island , were gaining a reputation for their freshwater bathing resorts. Local fishermen leased land and built living quarters there. In the s during the American Civil War , housing for a battery of four field artillery pieces was constructed at the tip of the peninsula. It was used to defend a prison for Confederate soldiers on nearby Johnson's Island. Louis Zistel, a German immigrant, built two boats to transport the prisoners.
In , he began to ferry locals to the Cedar Point peninsula, which opened as a public bathing beach. In , James West opened a group of bathhouses near the beach. Dwelle and Captain William Slackford, who leased land on the peninsula in and built eight new bathhouses, a dance hall, and wooden walkways on the beach. The building was recognized for its unusual architecture and still stands in the park. Electricity was installed at Cedar Point in It stood 25 feet 7. The Switchback Railway was designed as two identical tracks side-by-side β one for the ride down and the other for the train to be hauled back to the top by the ride attendant.
Boeckling , a businessman from Indiana, as the park's new manager. Under his tenure, the peninsula was transformed from a picnic ground into a nationally recognized amusement park and resort destination.
