@@dorothyclabaugh1488 We went there in the 80's for about every year for about 4 years. It really was a place of wonder, yet you felt at home. My daughter now lives in Baraboo. When we go visit I like to just stay at her place. Because it just isn't the same.
My mom took me there in '82 when I was 9, & I remember it feeling like I was in some sort of cartoon wonderland...To me, Vegas has nothing on the Dells.
You ain’t lying I Went there In 88 for the first time loved the place it was an ongoing family tradition for 30years now the place is just a shell of itself I hate that Riverview park is gone except for the gokarts and the downtown is dead !
I've been going to the dells all my life, and I can tell you that the old dells lo g gone. It's sad, it's gotten to the point that we don't even go anymore.
So glad to see someone took the time to record a time and place important to my childhood, to my father, and to his family. Like many working class families in Chicago or the Blue 'burbs. The Dells were where we went. Staying in the small indep. hotels which had air conditioning and maybe a simple pool was the height of Summer. I'm glad that my memories were accurate about of how close some of those rides actually were to the road🙄
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful video of past Wisconsin Dells when it was great. 👕👡 When it was family land and all the pools in the motels bought up by Mount Olympus were not cemented over. How sad that they cemented the pools at the Pine Dells. 🌞👓 How sad that they cemented the pools at the Luna. It's so truly sad watching the videos now of all the blue and white of Mount Olympus. The mom-and-pop hotels, motels, and shops was what made Wisconsin Dells Awesome. When we would take the kids there twice each summer 👒👙 we got the indoor and outdoor swimming pools 🏊 to ourselves because everyone was off at Noah's Ark or Family Land or Riverview. I miss the landmark rocket that's stood tall in front of the Shamrock Hotel. It is so sad that Riverview is gone. Thank you thank you thank you for giving us a wonderful reminder of the past Great Wisconsin Dells. 👒👙🌞 👓🏊👕👡 Vacation time has not been the same.
Love seeing this old film footage of the Dells. As a kid growing up, my parents would take me to the Dells every summer. Summer of 1977 or '78, we camped at Roche-A-Cri State Park and would drive into the city each day to visit the attractions and eat. Have fond memories of Fort Dells, Storybook Gardens, the Wonder Spot, and the Tommy Bartlett Water Ski Show. Also went on the outdoor Water Slide!
On the drag down 12 (the intersection by Paul Bunyan's to the east-west turn at Viking Liquor), yeah. On 13 (Kilbourn/Downtown Dells) there's basically no intrusion whatsoever (and thank God). And the innkeepers up there seem determined to KEEP it that way. Because what Laskaris is doing is actually TERRIBLY dangerous for the Dells as a whole. He's already having problems borrowing money to finish stuff and start new attractions and locations. With as his huge block of rooms, he's having to DEEPLY discount his rooms, even on-season as Mt. Olympus gains a slowly growing bad name. And if he goes under, that's HOW many locations that basically just shutter up? And urban blight in a vacation attraction area? That's like a bullet to the head.
Who pretty much came because 1. They are going to the dells soon and want to watch some videos 2. They miss the dells 3. Or they just want to see the old stuff thats still around
I miss the Native Americans that used to be all over town doing their beadwork etc. I also miss the Indian Ceremonial. Used to go there just to see them.
This was so awesome to see. I started working at the ducks in 1977. All the duck people had so much fun back then. I am from the dells and remembering the business's owned by locals. The place was so pure and refreshing and sad to see it look so unfamiliar. We had a 70th anniversary a couple of years age. To see all the duck drivers from the past was the greatest reunion of all time. I worked there eleven years so the stories from long ago really brought it all back to life. Folks today have no idea what they've missed. Thanks for the memories.
We went there in the 80's for about every year for about 4 years. It really was a place of wonder, yet you felt at home. My daughter now lives in Baraboo. When we go visit I like to just stay at her place. Because it just isn't the same.
It's sad. I'm only in highschool, but in the 15 years I've been alive, Wisconsin Dells has changed so much. Mt. Olympus now even has a hotel that gets you tickets to Noah's Ark!
I totally agree. Although the Dells has always been a tourist trap, Mt Olympus has cheapened it and made it stale. Who wants to visit a town where every building is painted the same color? You can blame some of that on other all inclusive resorts too. People used to stay at a motel and then go out and do things, now they just sit at their resort 24 hours a day! I have been going to the Dells since 1980!
Love this video! If only it was still half of what it used to be... Now it's over run by one person and the town is not but any means unique anymore.... When I was young my family would look forward to a dells vacation Every year... Now we don't even think twice about going.. Sad. And we only live 40 minutes from there.
There are portions of Classic Dells still there. Yeah, the Main Drag on 12 has been overrun by Nick Laskaris (his parents ran Big Chief Go Karts) and his Mount Olympus holdings. But his huge holdings seem to be actually hurting him. They're having to MASSIVELY discount rooms to get people in. Add on the fact that all guests have park passes. And they're basically losing money. On top of that, the "villages" get lousy reviews because they've filled in all the motel pools in an effort to make everyone come to the waterpark, and there's no shuttles. So you have to drive over there. The current owners of Noah's Ark also took over several of the motels around their park as a condition of their purchase. Unfortunately, these people generally run entertainment parks. Not hostelries. So, we'll see if they sell off the motels. Thing is, Noah's Ark is pretty much DONE on the land they have right now. They have to take rides out to put new ones in. It might pay in the long run to just shut those motels down (since they don't know what to do with them anyhow) and use the land to expand the park. Now, down the Main Drag (Downtown Dells) on 13, you still have tons of Old Dells there and a lot of the more "retro" motels. Many of the businesses you see in this movie are still there. So if you're just looking to head up there and relax, The Dells is just as awesome as it ever was.
give me a break...the Dells are way better now...I have been going for forty years and love it...great memories...now I take my kids and one day my grandkids...stop trying to be such a Debbie Downer...life is what you make it
Half of this place is run by the guy who runs Mt. Olympus, or pretty close to half. Some of my favorite hotels have been replaced by Mt. Olympus Village buildings. And the former Jungle Rapids at Noah's Ark Waterpark is now a surfing simulator thing.
Willow Lazarski Mt. Olympus used to be good back when the current owners dad ran it. They weren't going bankrupt from buying every small motel. I fear for the Blackhawk Motel. And yeah, about 75%+ of downtown is t-shirt shops, bars, and candy stores.
@@celestiawinters667 As a Wisconsinite i never been to the Dells, but i wanna go there badly sometime. If i go i have been looking at the Blackhawk Motel as a place to stay because it seems quaint, and has all the luxuries i am seeking. I am a retro person, and i do not care for these trendy modern hotels. I love places that have character which help make getaways more memorable. As for the Blackhawk i would not worry too much about a change of ownership in the near future because the current owner is a second generation owner who inherited the motel from his parents. He also renovated the 2 story building in recent years, and purchased another motel down the street which is now called All Star Inn And Suites. The guy seems to have passion for the hotel/motel business. Check out the Blackhawk FB page.
craig1974 Blackhawk is lovely! It's one of the most popular places to stay in the Dells, so it definitely won't go anywhere. I'm planning on returning this or next year, actually!
If the water slide at 8:30 was Sir Goony that is one of my favorite childhood memories. If I ever got rich I was going to buy a property with some hills so I could install an in-ground water slide.
I enjoyed being taken back in time. I was there on a 2 week vacation in 1974 camping with my parents and had a friend with me. We were 15! I am sorry to hear it has changed so much. Thanks for posting this 7 years ago!
Wow, I went there for the 1st time in '82 when I was 9 yrs old.(only 4 years after this!)..It seemed so bright & shiny & modern...This video make it look like this was 70 years ago!!...man I'm gettin old.. :/
I remember that yellow and blue waterslide! How about Fort Dells? I had such fond memories of the glittering neon signs from all the motels down the strip, the Shamrock, Pine Dell, Mayflower I and II, The Flamingo, and so many more. Now it's Mt Olympus this and Mt Olympus that. The place of childhood summer dreams has been ruined by a fat cat mogul gobbling up everything and stripping away the personality that once made the Dells a place of wonderment and joy.
Exactly you couldn’t have said it better maybe it’s about time the people of the town stand up and fight to push back against mtOlympus and try to get back and restore the town back to its former Glory!
Wow. I was all of 4 when this was filmed. But I still remember so damn much of this! My family had been going to Wisconsin Dells for years before I was born. I miss the Old Dells. A lot of it is now bland mega-hotels and a couple water parks... It's still fun and everything, but nowhere near as diverse.
We visited the Dells in 79 or 80 when 1 was 12 or 13 and my favorite parts was Sir Gooney. So glad to find this footage, especially with the 70s ladies.
You can tell this was at the very latest made in 1978 because that was the year US Highway 16 was officially changed to State Highway 16. I noticed the US 16 signs there.
Who is the guy who got into an accident with his motorcycle. They were putting bandages around his head and hands, back then was really dangerous!!!!!!!
My last year of working I the Dells. 1973 to 1978. Man standing on street brandishing a pistol and no one is calling the cops....that being said,,,what was the guy's name that ran old time portraits and went to prison, if I remembered correctly, murdering his mother.
Yep this brings back many memories my Aunts and mom and several of my cousins worked at the Mayflower Motel, they were very close to the owners and were a lot of fun to work for. I still have a cousin or two that lives in the Dells/ Lake Delton area. We were always walking up to Noah’s Ark to just do something while our moms finished cleaning the motel rooms. It was a family affair for all of us. For 2 or 3 years I had three of my Aunts, my mom, my grandma(she did the laundry) at least 4 cousins who helped clean rooms. Some afternoons after all the cleaning was done we would all gather outside by the swimming pool and swim until 8 or 9 in the evening. Go home and do it all over again. It was fun I miss those days I was14 or 15 at the time. Family land Riverview Park, all were good memories for us. I probably have some Polaroid pictures in many photo Albumns. My mom has passed away, so has my dad and my older brother, I live in their house and I have tons of photos packed away. I work at Wally World in Wisconsin Dells, now. Times have changed and sometimes I wish I could turn back the clock, and have the old Dells back.
I remember there used to be a disc that you would sit in and it would spin slowly as it went to the top of a high pole- it would seat about 30 people and you could see all around the dells. I remember the helicopter rides ands would always bug parents to go on but they were too expensive.
There was also a Black Bart thing there where kids got depute badges. Story book gardens when we were really little, the Indian trading post store. All the fudge stores. Slides you would go down using a “buckwheat” bath towel- before the water slides. Tommy Bartlett water shows.
I always wanted to go to Wisconsins but i never got to go it's a shame it looks different now then was it was like 23 years ago my family went around that time and i wasn't even born yet it was around the same year i was born thought.
Great video - that was truly the late 70's with the cars and girls with tube tops! You have footage from the original water slide - most people thought water slides would never become popular in the Dells and it would close in a few years!!! Man, most of us missed that one!! The one observation that really sticks out is the fact that most people are NOT overweight. Great video - please add the "dells original water slide" to your description as I'm not sure how much video is left of thi
I want to know what happened to the Mystery house outside of The Dells? It defied gravity and I visited it several times but now there is Nothing mentioned anywhere I look? Any help would be Much appreciated??
We’ve got one of those in St Ignace, MI to this day. It’s been called “The Mystery Spot” for my entire life. Same gimmick! LOL! But every year when I get over the bridge it’s still there!
Called the wonder spot,,,I worked there for a bit when it was owned by Jim Mattei. Then sold to Billy Carney. BILLY was barb Matteis brother. ( JIMS wife)
The concrete waterslide was "Sir Goony's". It was THE first waterslide in The Dells. There was also a potato sack slide and go karts there, just out back of a restaurant, Uppy's.
Whichever person marketed the Wisconsin Dells as being conveniently located is out of touch with reality because my definition of being conveniently located is when your city or town is within a 2 hour drive of a major airport. The problem is that the airports in Chicago and Minneapolis St. Paul are located too far away from the Wisconsin Dells for people with busy schedules.
Jon, Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport does not offer as many nonstop flights as do the airports in Chicago and Minneapolis do. I live in Boston and my nearest airport offers nonstop flights to many more destinations than Milwaukee does.
You have to understand, the Dells was around before the airplane was even invented. Not every destination was conveniently designed around airports. The cities and towns in the area grew around the Dells,not the other way around. Boston and the northeast is so compacted that everything just happens to be conveniently close to major arteries and airports. That is not so in the Midwest where there is so much area and miles between cities. 🤷♂️
The old dells the place that every Motel/Park was owned by different owners. Todays dells is Owned by mt olympus.
@@dorothyclabaugh1488 We went there in the 80's for about every year for about 4 years. It really was a place of wonder, yet you felt at home. My daughter now lives in Baraboo. When we go visit I like to just stay at her place. Because it just isn't the same.
If you think they owned it all 9 years ago, you'd be saddened to know they've only bought up more spots.
@@project23321 I see it, I live in the dells during the weekend. Sad.
Competition used to be a good thing. Nowadays ,conglomerates ruin everything in the name of the almighty buck!! 💵 😢
It's sad. It is like Las Vegas, even sadder a lot of the independents were named after Vegas hotels
My mom took me there in '82 when I was 9, & I remember it feeling like I was in some sort of cartoon wonderland...To me, Vegas has nothing on the Dells.
Frozen in time! I sure miss the 70s and 80s Dells, was so much better than the Mt Olympus Dells we have now!
You ain’t lying I Went there In 88 for the first time loved the place it was an ongoing family tradition for 30years now the place is just a shell of itself I hate that Riverview park is gone except for the gokarts and the downtown is dead !
I've been going to the dells all my life, and I can tell you that the old dells lo g gone. It's sad, it's gotten to the point that we don't even go anymore.
Whoever put this video up thank you so much it was awesome to see how much Wisconsin progress throughout the years
This is when the dells was cool and fun
So glad to see someone took the time to record a time and place important to my childhood, to my father, and to his family. Like many working class families in Chicago or the Blue 'burbs. The Dells were where we went. Staying in the small indep. hotels which had air conditioning and maybe a simple pool was the height of Summer.
I'm glad that my memories were accurate about of how close some of those rides actually were to the road🙄
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful video of past Wisconsin Dells when it was great. 👕👡 When it was family land and all the pools in the motels bought up by Mount Olympus were not cemented over. How sad that they cemented the pools at the Pine Dells. 🌞👓 How sad that they cemented the pools at the Luna. It's so truly sad watching the videos now of all the blue and white of Mount Olympus. The mom-and-pop hotels, motels, and shops was what made Wisconsin Dells Awesome. When we would take the kids there twice each summer 👒👙 we got the indoor and outdoor swimming pools 🏊 to ourselves because everyone was off at Noah's Ark or Family Land or Riverview. I miss the landmark rocket that's stood tall in front of the Shamrock Hotel. It is so sad that Riverview is gone. Thank you thank you thank you for giving us a wonderful reminder of the past Great Wisconsin Dells. 👒👙🌞 👓🏊👕👡 Vacation time has not been the same.
Love seeing this old film footage of the Dells. As a kid growing up, my parents would take me to the Dells every summer. Summer of 1977 or '78, we camped at Roche-A-Cri State Park and would drive into the city each day to visit the attractions and eat. Have fond memories of Fort Dells, Storybook Gardens, the Wonder Spot, and the Tommy Bartlett Water Ski Show. Also went on the outdoor Water Slide!
So glad I had a chance to visit the dells in 80s & 90s. So sad to see it today. Its charm completely lost & a shell of its former self
Were the old rides torn down?
my wife is 1 of those girls going down the water slide lol she was 17 years old now she will be 62 years old time flys
Now its all one big MT Olympus! F U Laskaris!
Couldn't agree more. I miss the Copa Cabana.
Not all. But yeah. Mt. Olympus' "villages" are just too damn numerous.
Hyperstrike I'd say almost half is Mt. Olympus territory now.
On the drag down 12 (the intersection by Paul Bunyan's to the east-west turn at Viking Liquor), yeah.
On 13 (Kilbourn/Downtown Dells) there's basically no intrusion whatsoever (and thank God). And the innkeepers up there seem determined to KEEP it that way.
Because what Laskaris is doing is actually TERRIBLY dangerous for the Dells as a whole.
He's already having problems borrowing money to finish stuff and start new attractions and locations.
With as his huge block of rooms, he's having to DEEPLY discount his rooms, even on-season as Mt. Olympus gains a slowly growing bad name.
And if he goes under, that's HOW many locations that basically just shutter up?
And urban blight in a vacation attraction area? That's like a bullet to the head.
Who pretty much came because
1. They are going to the dells soon and want to watch some videos
2. They miss the dells
3. Or they just want to see the old stuff thats still around
+All New Episodes i came to this video because reason 1
Mackenzie Horath Same
when are you going im going Saturday
🙋🏻♂️
1 and 2
I miss the Native Americans that used to be all over town doing their beadwork etc. I also miss the Indian Ceremonial. Used to go there just to see them.
Ho Chunk Indians still have ceremonial dances every year in August just west of the Casino.
This was so awesome to see. I started working at the ducks in 1977. All the duck people had so much fun back then. I am from the dells and remembering the business's owned by locals. The place was so pure and refreshing and sad to see it look so unfamiliar. We had a 70th anniversary a couple of years age. To see all the duck drivers from the past was the greatest reunion of all time. I worked there eleven years so the stories from long ago really brought it all back to life. Folks today have no idea what they've missed. Thanks for the memories.
We went there in the 80's for about every year for about 4 years. It really was a place of wonder, yet you felt at home. My daughter now lives in Baraboo. When we go visit I like to just stay at her place. Because it just isn't the same.
Bob,
We or anyone out there who sees this, does anyone remember a motel called the Palaya Rita Motel on the strip? Wish I could find a pic of it.
Kitty Forman in that 70s show is what prompted me to google what the Wisconsin Dells were. This is a very satisfactory internet search result.
Kkkkk
This is the Dells As It was and still should be...now the Greeks have monopolized and ruined it.
Couldn't agree more ! ! ! You said it ! ! !
It's sad. I'm only in highschool, but in the 15 years I've been alive, Wisconsin Dells has changed so much. Mt. Olympus now even has a hotel that gets you tickets to Noah's Ark!
I totally agree. Although the Dells has always been a tourist trap, Mt Olympus has cheapened it and made it stale. Who wants to visit a town where every building is painted the same color? You can blame some of that on other all inclusive resorts too. People used to stay at a motel and then go out and do things, now they just sit at their resort 24 hours a day! I have been going to the Dells since 1980!
I miss Fort Dells, Riverview Park, Family land, and Story Book Gardens.
@@goodtimestodd I remember Riverview Park but I do like the wildlife park that replaced it.
@davidhowell, it was called The Wonder Spot. It no longer exists.
So many memories,used to go there almost every year.
Wow, I was there in 1978. Just as I remember. Thanks for the blast from the past. It is just not the same today.
This is an amazing video. Thank you
Love this video! If only it was still half of what it used to be... Now it's over run by one person and the town is not but any means unique anymore.... When I was young my family would look forward to a dells vacation Every year... Now we don't even think twice about going.. Sad. And we only live 40 minutes from there.
There are portions of Classic Dells still there.
Yeah, the Main Drag on 12 has been overrun by Nick Laskaris (his parents ran Big Chief Go Karts) and his Mount Olympus holdings. But his huge holdings seem to be actually hurting him. They're having to MASSIVELY discount rooms to get people in. Add on the fact that all guests have park passes. And they're basically losing money. On top of that, the "villages" get lousy reviews because they've filled in all the motel pools in an effort to make everyone come to the waterpark, and there's no shuttles. So you have to drive over there.
The current owners of Noah's Ark also took over several of the motels around their park as a condition of their purchase. Unfortunately, these people generally run entertainment parks. Not hostelries. So, we'll see if they sell off the motels. Thing is, Noah's Ark is pretty much DONE on the land they have right now. They have to take rides out to put new ones in. It might pay in the long run to just shut those motels down (since they don't know what to do with them anyhow) and use the land to expand the park.
Now, down the Main Drag (Downtown Dells) on 13, you still have tons of Old Dells there and a lot of the more "retro" motels. Many of the businesses you see in this movie are still there. So if you're just looking to head up there and relax, The Dells is just as awesome as it ever was.
give me a break...the Dells are way better now...I have been going for forty years and love it...great memories...now I take my kids and one day my grandkids...stop trying to be such a Debbie Downer...life is what you make it
I seen MTO loss a few hotels/ rv parks a year or 2 ago
Wonderful Wisconsin Dells Vintage Video from 1978. Great music choices for the Video too.
I was born in ‘76, and my earliest memories are of The Dells as my grandpa was a dispatcher at the Lower Dells. This was just wonderful. ❤️
The Dells was way better back then it's a shame what its become
How is it different now? Obviously the Kalahari and Wilderness resorts are relatively new, but what else has changed?
@@jmdavison62 He posted that comment 4 years ago, so maybe it was different 4 years ago but not now.....?...lol.
Who’s here because of Automotion
We still stay at the shamrock every year. Looks like it hasn’t changed a bit
I miss 1978
Half of this place is run by the guy who runs Mt. Olympus, or pretty close to half. Some of my favorite hotels have been replaced by Mt. Olympus Village buildings. And the former Jungle Rapids at Noah's Ark Waterpark is now a surfing simulator thing.
Mt Olympus is not even a good water park the Wisconsin dells used o be really good but Mt Olympus ruined it
also all there is now is t shirt stores
Willow Lazarski Mt. Olympus used to be good back when the current owners dad ran it. They weren't going bankrupt from buying every small motel. I fear for the Blackhawk Motel.
And yeah, about 75%+ of downtown is t-shirt shops, bars, and candy stores.
@@celestiawinters667 As a Wisconsinite i never been to the Dells, but i wanna go there badly sometime. If i go i have been looking at the Blackhawk Motel as a place to stay because it seems quaint, and has all the luxuries i am seeking. I am a retro person, and i do not care for these trendy modern hotels. I love places that have character which help make getaways more memorable. As for the Blackhawk i would not worry too much about a change of ownership in the near future because the current owner is a second generation owner who inherited the motel from his parents. He also renovated the 2 story building in recent years, and purchased another motel down the street which is now called All Star Inn And Suites. The guy seems to have passion for the hotel/motel business. Check out the Blackhawk FB page.
craig1974 Blackhawk is lovely! It's one of the most popular places to stay in the Dells, so it definitely won't go anywhere. I'm planning on returning this or next year, actually!
If the water slide at 8:30 was Sir Goony that is one of my favorite childhood memories. If I ever got rich I was going to buy a property with some hills so I could install an in-ground water slide.
I enjoyed being taken back in time. I was there on a 2 week vacation in 1974 camping with my parents and had a friend with me. We were 15! I am sorry to hear it has changed so much. Thanks for posting this 7 years ago!
Wow, I went there for the 1st time in '82 when I was 9 yrs old.(only 4 years after this!)..It seemed so bright & shiny & modern...This video make it look like this was 70 years ago!!...man I'm gettin old.. :/
I remember that yellow and blue waterslide! How about Fort Dells? I had such fond memories of the glittering neon signs from all the motels down the strip, the Shamrock, Pine Dell, Mayflower I and II, The Flamingo, and so many more. Now it's Mt Olympus this and Mt Olympus that. The place of childhood summer dreams has been ruined by a fat cat mogul gobbling up everything and stripping away the personality that once made the Dells a place of wonderment and joy.
you just hate new stuff do u?
Exactly you couldn’t have said it better maybe it’s about time the people of the town stand up and fight to push back against mtOlympus and try to get back and restore the town back to its former Glory!
Two friends and I went there as our high school graduation trip. Was memorable, and so much different than today - unrecognizable.
I was there in 78 and yup I felt loved by the giant mosquitoes in the area
I wish I could of had a chance to get the wax museum before it shut down..
The city still look the same till this day lol
Would love to talk to you about using this video in a project I'm doing...
WOWWWWW THANK YOU SOO MUCH IT IS AMAING MEMORIES FOR ME I GREW UP GOING THERE AND IT IS NOTHING LIKE IT USED TO BE AND NOT NECESSARILY IN A GOOD WAY
I was 6 years old with my family we were camping in the Dells in 1977. I just remembered riding the boat around the Dells.
My God!! Sir Goonie waterslide. Went there many times.
That was the bomb, we would spend days there never seemed crowded like the water slides now! Some would say it was lame but it was fun and refreshing!
Wow. I was all of 4 when this was filmed. But I still remember so damn much of this!
My family had been going to Wisconsin Dells for years before I was born.
I miss the Old Dells. A lot of it is now bland mega-hotels and a couple water parks...
It's still fun and everything, but nowhere near as diverse.
I wish I got to see the Dells in the 70's it was such a wonderful place.
now days it's all Mt Olympus.
Reminds me of one big carnival spread over several square miles.
at 9:15 amazing water slide, worth the drive from Chicago.
I feel love by Donna Summer great 70's song.
We visited the Dells in 79 or 80 when 1 was 12 or 13 and my favorite parts was Sir Gooney. So glad to find this footage, especially with the 70s ladies.
The suits sucked but they all had sweet lil' bods 🤪
You can tell this was at the very latest made in 1978 because that was the year US Highway 16 was officially changed to State Highway 16. I noticed the US 16 signs there.
Who is the guy who got into an accident with his motorcycle. They were putting bandages around his head and hands, back then was really dangerous!!!!!!!
My last year of working I the Dells. 1973 to 1978. Man standing on street brandishing a pistol and no one is calling the cops....that being said,,,what was the guy's name that ran old time portraits and went to prison, if I remembered correctly, murdering his mother.
Yep this brings back many memories my Aunts and mom and several of my cousins worked at the Mayflower Motel, they were very close to the owners and were a lot of fun to work for. I still have a cousin or two that lives in the Dells/ Lake Delton area. We were always walking up to Noah’s Ark to just do something while our moms finished cleaning the motel rooms. It was a family affair for all of us. For 2 or 3 years I had three of my Aunts, my mom, my grandma(she did the laundry) at least 4 cousins who helped clean rooms. Some afternoons after all the cleaning was done we would all gather outside by the swimming pool and swim until 8 or 9 in the evening. Go home and do it all over again. It was fun I miss those days I was14 or 15 at the time. Family land Riverview Park, all were good memories for us. I probably have some Polaroid pictures in many photo Albumns. My mom has passed away, so has my dad and my older brother, I live in their house and I have tons of photos packed away. I work at Wally World in Wisconsin Dells, now. Times have changed and sometimes I wish I could turn back the clock, and have the old Dells back.
Clark Griswold’s family truckster is in front of the Indian Trading Post at 10:50 mark
I remember there used to be a disc that you would sit in and it would spin slowly as it went to the top of a high pole- it would seat about 30 people and you could see all around the dells. I remember the helicopter rides ands would always bug parents to go on but they were too expensive.
I was 4 yrs old then, probably pass through the Dells on my way up to my gran parents in Rudolph, in Wood county.
Amazing...
There was also a Black Bart thing there where kids got depute badges. Story book gardens when we were really little, the Indian trading post store. All the fudge stores. Slides you would go down using a “buckwheat” bath towel- before the water slides. Tommy Bartlett water shows.
I wish that I was an adult in the 70’s instead of a kid. Was 13 in 78’. No doubt I was in the Dells that Summer.
Back when bush was king 🦚. Bring back the bush!!
Excellent 1978 Wisconsin Dells home video!!
Old upper dells building is still there. Amazing area
Great summer vacations growing up 60s through 70s. It seemed like every summer my family would drive up from the south suburbs of Chicago.
I went with parents/grandparents in 1983... seems about right except for the Disco music 🤣
Video is also a tribute to the American Gas Guzzler, so many tanks on the road.
is that all you do is complain
@@dogdayz3821 that wasn’t a complaint-observation. we all drove those tanks back then, including me.
I just might have been in that video somewhere!
I always wanted to go to Wisconsins but i never got to go it's a shame it looks different now then was it was like 23 years ago my family went around that time and i wasn't even born yet it was around the same year i was born thought.
this has become one of my favorite repeat watches on yt
wow so cool to see!
Great video - that was truly the late 70's with the cars and girls with tube tops! You have footage from the original water slide - most people thought water slides would never become popular in the Dells and it would close in a few years!!! Man, most of us missed that one!! The one observation that really sticks out is the fact that most people are NOT overweight. Great video - please add the "dells original water slide" to your description as I'm not sure how much video is left of thi
at 3:34 motorcycle gang reunion at the Dells? In the back of a pick-up truck?
I want to know what happened to the Mystery house outside of The Dells? It defied gravity and I visited it several times but now there is Nothing mentioned anywhere I look? Any help would be Much appreciated??
We’ve got one of those in St Ignace, MI to this day. It’s been called “The Mystery Spot” for my entire life. Same gimmick! LOL! But every year when I get over the bridge it’s still there!
I remember the pamphlet for it! Core memory unlocked lol no idea what it was called
@@HappiestGirl69 there is one in Santa Cruz, Calif in the mountains.
Called the wonder spot,,,I worked there for a bit when it was owned by Jim Mattei. Then sold to Billy Carney. BILLY was barb Matteis brother. ( JIMS wife)
Fun times
What version of this song is this? I absolutely love it
The original blue / yellow water slides were called " Sir Gooney's ".
Later was torn down and became Emerald City . . . Now Mt. Olympuss.
It was Big Chief Go Cart World in between in the 1990's
Good ol days👍🏻
The summer 78 I was 7 my first time there.
Fun seeing all the old images
Had to turn the volume all the way off because, oh my God no...
I'm gonna go there one of these months.
my family went there 3 months before Kurt Cobain death around that time and i was born 11 months later.
My parents were there that summer for their honeymoon.
The attraction sure hasn't changed.
Thank you for this
I miss the helicopter ride.
I went on the helicopter ride. What an experience! Lasted about 1 minute total but man what a view. Cost 15 dollars.
Very nice video thank you!
I like the big tuff biker guy hopping up in the truck like Tim Conway
They look like the guys from Every which way but lose. With Clint Eastwood.
Gotta love the original dells! where were the inground water slides? I don`t remember those!
Near the water tower in 6:03 on the south slope of the rise that the trojan horse stands on today. Thanks for the memories!
dodgeguyz They were actually where "Mykonos Village" sits now, I believe, they were actually there, but unused several years ago.
The concrete waterslide was "Sir Goony's".
It was THE first waterslide in The Dells.
There was also a potato sack slide and go karts there, just out back of a restaurant, Uppy's.
I think I saw a Ennis
I’d love to see a video like this of the dells in the 80’s and 90’s!
this video is great wish they had more of them
Yea, that is us,
>>>>> HEY ! VISIT THE DELLS BETWEEN SEPTEMBER, & APRIL, YOU'LL HAVE IT ALL
TO YOUR SELF,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Awesome!! The good ole days. I went this past week, I've never seen so many Muslims in my life. Butting in lines, and just flat out ignorant.
U have never been to the twin cities than?
The music made me want to rip out my speakers. Ugh, the 70's and 80's music...
Skip the first five minutes unless you want to watch cars drive back and forth.
Whichever person marketed the Wisconsin Dells as being conveniently located is out of touch with reality because my definition of being conveniently located is when your city or town is within a 2 hour drive of a major airport. The problem is that the airports in Chicago and Minneapolis St. Paul are located too far away from the Wisconsin Dells for people with busy schedules.
2 hours from Milwaukee's Gen. Mitchell International Airport
Jon, Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport does not offer as many nonstop flights as do the airports in Chicago and Minneapolis do. I live in Boston and my nearest airport offers nonstop flights to many more destinations than Milwaukee does.
lol ok
Idk it’s conveniently located for me….sort of! I live about an hour away!😁
You have to understand, the Dells was around before the airplane was even invented. Not every destination was conveniently designed around airports. The cities and towns in the area grew around the Dells,not the other way around.
Boston and the northeast is so compacted that everything just happens to be conveniently close to major arteries and airports. That is not so in the Midwest where there is so much area and miles between cities. 🤷♂️
Looks the same a tourist trap