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From news articles to pictures and stories of times gone by. I would like to thank the Howard County Historical Society
( Mike Walczak ) and especially the Harrison's, without which this site would not exist, and this site is therefore dedicated
to them and the memory of The Enchanted Forest. ALL images are property of the Harrison Family. If you want to get involved by sending in a story or a picture to share, then email kipp
The Enchanted Forest Preservation Society (EFPS) has been around for quite some time doing their bit to preserve and restore this popular attraction. Help support them by visiting their link; where one can find out more about The Enchanted Forest, donations and when events will take place on Clark's Elioak Farm (the new site of The Enchanted Forest).
And for all of those who remember and have been to the Enchanted Forest - This is for you, so enjoy!
Kimco, who is the 3rd owner, owns the land that the remaining forest sits on. They agreed to let Martha Clark of Clark's Elioak Farm, http://www.clarklandfarm.com/ , take whatever she could at her expense and relocate everything she could to her farm so that future generations, along with us die hard EF vetrans, could enjoy the creativity the EF was known for. (Much of the forest was destroyed when the original owners sold the property, and stores replaced many of its attractions. The original owners had been promised that the forest would not change. For personal reasons, they decided to sell, believing it would be in good hands. It has been a very bittersweet experience for those of us who love the original Enchanted Forest. But, I for one, am at least extremely grateful that kimco has allowed Clark's farm to take whatever it can. So, the Enchanted Forest remains closed. Nan Sherman has a wonderful site dedicated to current news and also wonderful pictures and facts of the EF while it was open in her attraction museum, http://www.websitesamerica.com/WebsitesAmerica/Pages/EF-Attractions.htm , and on this part of her site, http://www.websitesamerica.com/WebsitesAmerica/index.htm you can see the items that have been relocated, returned, and replicated. What has been saved can be seen now at the farm. Over the years, figures and items from the original Enchanted Forest have been given, sold, or stolen. They've been seen on Ebay, at yardsales, and antique stores. We are asking people to return these items, no questions asked. The farm only wishes to honor as much of the original EF, and does not care how these items were obtained. If returning them is not an option, then the farm is asking, that pictures may be taken of various angles of the item, along with measurements, so these items can at least be replicated by our talent artists.
The Enchanted Forest in Ellicott City , Maryland was the first Theme Park in Maryland and the East Coast, and the second oldest Theme Park in the USA, Disneyland being the oldest. It opened Monday, August 15, 1955. Admission was $1 for adults and 50¢ for children
The park began on 20 acres, later expanded to 52 acres and then it reduced to 32 acres after Bethany Woods was built. It featured no mechanical rides or spectacular special effects, and in its heyday it hosted some 300,000 visitors annually. Opened in 1955, it thrilled and delighted generations of families from far and wide throughout the next three decades. Sadly, the park closed in 1988, when the original owners sold the property, and construction of the Enchanted Forest Shopping Center began. In 1994 the park was re-opened by JHP Development, 1997 Mid-Atlantic Realty Trust (MART) became the owners and in late 2003 Kimco Realty Corporation merged with MART making them the current caretakers for The Forest.
The statue of Old King Cole, who once greeted visitors, now beckons shoppers at the original park gate, guarded by a dragon, warns trespassers away. Behind it, on the park's remaining few acres, sit the remnants of nursery-rhyme displays in various stages of disrepair.
As recently as last year (2005) though, a number of items were moved to Clark's Elioak Farm , and restored. For those of you that can remember those magical days then these names should make sence:
Mother Goose and her Gosling, the Black Duck, the six Mice that pulled Cinderella's Pumpkin Coach, Papa Bear, the giant Mushrooms, the bell-shaped Flowers, two giant Lollipops, a number of Gingerbread Men, a large Candy Cane, the Little Red Schoolhouse, the Crooked House and the Crooked Man, the Easter Bunny's House, the Beanstalk with the Giant at the top and the beautiful Birthday Cake. |
