Funland Haunted Mansion P.1 Rehoboth Dark Ride

The Funland Haunted Mansion
46 years Old and Terrifying as Ever!

Sit back, my friends, and hear
A tale of a most sinister mansion, born out of fear.
You see, this mansion sits right on the coast,
And for 46 years it has scared even the bravest the most.

In the fog, and behind some rides,
The Mansion's secrets it always hides.
But ashes to ashes, dust to dust —
After 46 years, a final visit's a must.

Despite its haunted presence, its ghosts and its ghouls,
It's time for this Mansion to give up its rule.
So come along now for a ride or two;
The graveyard welcomes even "you!"

The final season is now upon us — step up and take a last ride in its most hallowed halls.
For every ending comes a new beginning,
but is this true for the Mansion's possible second coming?

About 40 years or so ago, I had the pleasure of getting a first-hand walk-through tour of what has become one of my favorite dark rides of all time: the Rehoboth Beach Funland Haunted Mansion. Park owner and Mansion project designer Al Fasnacht took the time to have family member Brad Grinder show a young 18-year-old all of the Mansion's secret inner workings. I took paper notes and many photos, not even knowing what I would do with them, but knew they were important.

In an age when most amusement park fanatics were traveling to the country's ever-growing theme parks to ride the bigger and badder roller coasters, yours truly was hitting, walking, and riding as many dark rides as possible.

Many years later, about 26 in fact, a group of fellow dark ride fanatics formed an enthusiasts group. We all felt that these classic attractions needed to be historically documented. It was decided to present our stories, photos, memories and articles on the then-new internet, and Laff In the Dark was born. One of the first articles I would write was "Terror Came a Calling: The Rehoboth Beach Haunted Mansion." What's sad is that the majority of those first articles' rides are now defunct, save for a few.

This past summer, I had some free time, so I went back to Rehoboth Beach with family to both relax and revisit the Mansion for an updated article. Al, park owner and family patriarch, had just passed away a few months prior, and knowing firsthand both his passion and love for his park's wonderful dark ride, we dedicate this article to Al, who set the standard for a small park to have a big ride.

The Haunted Mansion is now open for business on a hot summer's night in late August, as a heavy, wet fog rolls in from the Atlantic Ocean. The boardwalk is full of vacationing families and Funland is busy. I make my way past games and the arcade to my left, and there the Haunted Mansion sits. I also see my longtime friends, the Buzzard and Ghoul in the upper window, and both are amused that I am back to see their most terrifying home yet again. Inside the doors shall we go?

But first, some history on our most hallowed house of spooky terror. Al Fasnacht was looking for a dark ride for his family's amusement park. Pretzel rides would have been a choice, but as Pretzel had just been sold from longtime owner Bill Cassidy, that was not a strong option. Another consideration was the former West View Park's haunted house in Pennsylvania but Mr. Cassidy talked them out of this ride, claiming it was in such bad shape that a mechanical fault had sent a car crashing through the exit doors and down the midway on a wild ride. Due to space constraints, the family decided they needed to build up and not out.

Possibly inspired by a suspended dark ride at the defunct Magic World in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, called "Land of the Arabian Knights", this attraction had cars and suspended track built by Jerry Barber of Venture Rides in Greer, SC. Jerry stated in a recent interview that he had built four or five other variations of a suspended track design, including a portable model with circular-shaped cars and another portable model called "The Swamp Fox", which was a fair circuit staple hauled by two large semi-trucks. Venture Rides was a staple for years in the amusement industry and designed the rare Turbo ride that Chance Rides would later sell, as well as kiddie rides and both the Cobra and Scat rides.