originally posted on 11/12/2021
Photo: David Lipnicky. View full-sized image.
In very welcome news on November 4, the Bell family made an official announcement on the site of a new Bell’s Amusement Park in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.
The original park began on two acres leased from the Tulsa State Fairgrounds in 1951. It grew to the size of 10 acres as it expanded in its early years. During the 10-day run of the fair, Bell’s Amusement Park was adjacent to the Tulsa State Fair midway, making for an L-shaped corridor of rides that was a real treasure trove for fans of flat rides. A Von Roll Sky Ride stretched the length of the midway, originating at Bell’s and extending to the far end of the fair.
Bell’s true claim to fame was Zingo, a John Allen roller coaster built in 1968. It was the last wooden coaster built in the 1960s, and it wouldn’t be until the theme park boom of the 1970s that the need for new attractions would keep Allen from retiring and Philadelphia Toboggan Company from building a handful of newer and bigger rides in the 1970s.
Zingo
Photo: Wayne Stuber. View full-sized image.
Zingo's first drop plunged right next to the station.
Photo: Michael Horwood. View full-sized image.
Bell’s was forced to close and remove all rides from fair property when the Tulsa State Fair board chose not to renew the park’s lease after the 2006 state fair. Local residents were devastated. The whole affair was shrouded in controversy.
Although it has taken some time, plans are now confirmed for a bigger and brighter future for Bell’s.
Third-generation owner Robbie Bell said at the announcement, “In the fall of 2017, I asked a dear friend of mine where he thought we should relocate the park. We agreed northeast Oklahoma was filled with wonderful communities and wonderful people. He said Broken Arrow without question was the place to go.”
The process was started in 2018. Broken Arrow is a city of almost 100,000 people. It is located less than 20 miles from downtown Tulsa.
“My father looked at six locations in Broken Arrow. It so happens his favorite location is the one we’re at today,” Bell said at the announcement from the site location.
“This property is unique. It has no utilities; it is basically untouched. It has been allowed to grow wild. As a result we have a beautiful piece of property to work with,” Bell said. “I don’t know how many trees are on the land, but we’re going to try to keep every single one of them.”
At the time the park was forced to remove all its assets, reports surfaced that Zingo had been stored to be re-erected elsewhere. After 15 years it is uncertain whether some, all or any of the former woodie will be used; however, Bell confirmed that Zingo would be coming back, along with the log ride and Phantasmagoria dark ride.
Photo: Gary Slade. View full-sized image.
Photo: Michael Horwood. View full-sized image.
When Bell’s Amusement Park closed, it was on a 10-acre site at the fairgrounds. The new site will be 102 acres, 10 times the size of what it was before. The site offers countless trees and a natural creek, which Bell’s intends (with help from the city) to beautify. Plans are for the new, larger site to have four components: the amusement park, a separate kiddie park, a water park and an indoor park that will feature virtual reality entertainment and a wide range of electric go-karts. Plans are for the park season to run 10 months out of the year with opportunities to now do Halloween and Christmas at the park.
“We had so many restraints on us when we were at the fairgrounds, mainly space, but many others,” said Bell. “We were hamstrung when it came to putting in some of the things we wanted to do. We will now have the freedom and tools to put in an entertainment facility that will be second to none to this region of the United States.”
Photo: Jason Knutson. View full-sized image.
Enthusiasts will be delighted to see Bell’s return, particularly Zingo, but the good news doesn’t stop there.
“We will be able to put in new roller coasters and exciting rides we could not when we were at the fairgrounds,” he said.
In its former home, a court order forced Zingo to close at 9 p.m. each night. No neighborhoods are adjacent to Bell’s, so park management will not have to contend with noise complaints.
Photo: Jason Knutson. View full-sized image.
Bell’s was a cohost of the 1991 ACE Spring Conference. If and when the park is completed, it would certainly make an ideal location for a future Preservation Conference. No year was given as a target date for the reopening.
— Tim Baldwin, ACE News Editor
@#$%&!
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