Morey's Piers

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Spencer Avenue pier as seen from the boardwalk, with the Great White roller coaster on the end. In 1996, this became known as "Morey's Wild Wheels" or Fun/Adventure Pier.

The rides of Schellenger Avenue Pier as seen from the Giant Wheel ferris wheel ride, with the boardwalk and city of Wildwood in the background.

Morey's Piers is an Amusement Park located in Wildwood, New Jersey. It has over 100 rides and attractions among its five facilities. The parks sit on top of three piers, and on the beachfront ends of Surfside pier and Mariner's landing contain Raging Waters water parks.

Morey's/Surfside Pier is home to the Giant Slide, Morey's Piers' first attraction. The 25th Avenue Pier is also home to the multi-level Zoom Phloom, the inverted suspended looping coaster The Great Nor'Easter, and the colossal AtmosFEAR drop tower. Dante's is a scary dark ride that was added to the pier in 1981 and renovated.

Mariner's Landing houses the Sea Serpent, the first 'Boomerang' roller coaster to operate in the United States, and is the second oldest coaster of its type in the world. Towering behind the Sea Serpent is the tallest ferris wheel on the east coast, The Giant Wheel. In addition to these thrills, the Schellenger Avenue Pier hosts Pirates of the Wildwoods (a 3-D Dark Ride), Rollie's Coaster, and a large assortment of children's rides.

Wild Wheels/Fun/Adventure pier is "for the extremist in all of us." With the Great White wooden roller coaster, the Screamin' Swing which clears the White's track by feet, and the Skycoaster and Spring Shot, make the Spencer Avenue Pier a small, but action packed pier for the serious thrillseekers. From 1957 until the mid-80's, this pier was known as Fun Pier and was owned by Joe and Pete Barnes then by William and Helen Howard from 1978-1984. Fire destroyed Castle Frankenstein, Lost World, and Crazy House attractions in 1984, putting the pier out of business.

Both Raging Waters waterparks have slides such as the Cliff Dive, Sky Pond Voyage, and Shotgun Falls. There are also interactive fun-filled children's areas like Bonsai Beach, Shipwreck Shoals, and Camp Kid'Tastrophe.

A fourth pier, most recently known as Dinosaur Beach, was purchased in 1999 and is used mostly as a support facility. The pier holds the oldest surviving ride on the Wildwood Boardwalk, The Golden Nugget. Morey's Piers is studying the feasibility of restoring and reopening the ride in the near future. This pier was once known as Hunt's Pier and was home to unique themed rides. The original owners sold the pier late 1985 (William "Bud" Hunt, Vince Kostek). Hunt died 1991, and Vince Kostek died June, 11, 2006. Kostek was the manager of Hunt's Pier from the opening in 1957 until late 1985.

Nickels Midway Pier is located across from Mariner's Landing and was home to the scary Castle Dracula attraction which housed a walk-through and Dungeon boat ride, it was built in 1976, (old mill boat ride built 1919) opened in 1977, and burned down January 2002 when two teens skipped school and decided to explore the Castle with torches, which caused the fire. Nothing currently occupies the former location of Castle Dracula, except a seasonal volleyball court and moon bounce. There are no current plans to rebuild Castle Dracula or a similar attraction, although the Nickels brothers proposed plans after the fire but are in legal battle with the Splash Zone water park which occupies the space that was the amusement ride pier, and prior to 1985 the location of the wooden roller coaster, built in 1919 as Jack Rabbit and renamed Dracula's Screem Machine arond the time of Castle Dracula's opening in the late 70's. The coaster was torn down fall 1984 due to high maintenance costs.

[edit] History

Morey's Piers was established in 1969 by brothers Bill and Will Morey.After Will died, the Pier was passed on to Will's sons Will and Jack Morey. The small pier only included a slide, a miniature golf course, and a restaurant at 25th Avenue in North Wildwood. By the middle of the 1970s the pier expanded, adding new rides and attractions. Later, Morey's Piers made a deal that would help turn their small business into an empire when they acquired the Schellenger Avenue Pier. The pier was renovated, a water park was erected, and in 1984 the Sea Serpent roller coaster, the largest attraction to have been built on the boardwalk, was added to the Schellenger Avenue Pier. By 1988, the 25th Avenue Pier received a water park and in 1993 the third pier, the Spencer Avenue Pier, was purchased. 1995 saw the opening of The Great Nor'Easter. On August 14, 1995 a 36-year-old maintenance worker was killed after being struck in the head by the foot of a passenger riding the Great Nor'Easter. The passenger was also injured. A year later the Great White debuted on the Spencer Avenue Pier. Since then, Morey's Piers has expanded and grown, adding the latest in new rides and technology usually every year.