Semi Defunct Theme Park Offers Nostalgic & Design Filled View Into A Wonka Type Destination In North Carolina
“Follow The Yellow Brick Road” has been an idiom of American Culture for over 80 years and permeates the imagination of all, young and old. Seeing an embodiment of L.Frank Baum's world in the real world brings the experience into a physical realm. Land of Oz, located in Banner Elk, NC is a “Wizard of Oz” themed amusement park that opened in 1970. While it is now described as “abandoned,” or “defunct”, the reality is quite the opposite. Once fully operational, The Land of Oz is now a modern day relic with its own sense of magic and mystery regarding all the unanswered questions about the park’s history.
Jana Greer, otherwise known as “Dorothy”, is part of the logistics team at Land of Oz. She has been leading tours of Oz for over 10 years. She is active in Ashe County, NC Little Theatre. She explains, “The Land of Oz is a place like no other. Once you arrive at the top of Beech Mountain (Banner Elk, NC)...you step back into time [to] the Fountain of Youth and a grand view of the mystical mountains of the High Country. Guests [can] stop over at the Gale Farm, escape the terrible twister, and enter into the magical Land of Oz, complete with Yellow Brick Road and your favorite characters.”
The Land Of Oz is the perfect destination for Wizard of Oz enthusiasts, children, and children at heart.
The creator of The Land of Oz was Grover Robbins who also created a Wild West theme park, Tweetsie Railroad that is located just down the road in Blowing Rock, NC. Sean Barrett, is part of the artistic design team at the Land of Oz. He has been heavily involved with the Land of Oz and studied the history. Barrett played the “Scarecrow” for 13 years. He explains,“Robbins passed away a couple months prior to opening in June of 1970, and the park had a successful lifespan after that. A relatively short one, but one none-the-less. [The] park’s history is [literally] divided between two ‘eras’. [The first was] the pre-fire, 1970-1975 time period where it was run by Carolina Caribbean Corporation (CCC). Everything was in great working order and the quality was above and beyond. Then there's the post fire years from 1976-1980 where Oz went under new management. I think the real "downhill" moment for Oz was after the fire. It held on for about five years, but it never recovered.”
There is a lot of folklore surrounding Land of Oz. One story relates that Dorothy’s Dress (the real costume that Judy Garland wore) was destroyed [at the park] in the fire of 1976. Sean says that is impossible, “Dorothy's dress was housed in the park's museum which was a building that was not near the Emerald City. The fire was not started in or near this building, but many of the original MGM film costumes were stolen -- including Judy Garland's dress.” “We may never know what caused the fire that destroyed many original Wizard of Oz pieces,” Barrett continues.
Jack Pentes, the designer who created the park, was inspired by motifs and TV shows that were popular at the time.“Mushrooms were a huge motif throughout the park,” Barrett explains. “Hundreds of styrofoam mushrooms [that were] painted wild colors [like polka dot, red, green and orange]. They were like their own character and had more presence than the poppies! The Wicked Witch was more comical [in the beginning] and the early costume and makeup designs looked very similar to Witchiepoo from H.R. Puf N Stuff. Jack [Pentes'] imagination was incredible. He designed the park by getting down on his knees and walking the path that would become the yellow brick road. [He looked] at everything from a child's perspective.”
Before Barrett became part of the “Land of Oz” team, he was a huge fan, “I came across the park in one of the many books (The Wizard of Oz Collector's Treasury by William Stillman and Jay Scarfone) This was back in 1998. Somehow, I found out about the Autumn at Oz Party (the one time a year that the park is reopened for guests). My mom and I traveled from NJ to NC to go to the event. I was hooked.” Barrett on how he got involved with Oz, “When I was in high school, I wrote an article on the Land of Oz for the International Wizard of Oz Club based magazine - the Baum Bugle. I travelled back down, met with Cindy Keller, who is the current property manager, to interview her. She invited me to go back to play a character if I ever wanted to... and I took her up on the offer.” He might even be one of the performers on the next tour since that love never goes away. I played the Scarecrow for 13 years and [at times] I would bring some of my friends down from NJ/NYC to [play the other character].The biggest piece of folklore that Barrett would like to dispel is that “The Land Of Oz” is abandoned.
Those rumors are false. “It’s far from it!” Barrett iterates. “Unfortunately, internet-articles that have blown up [saying it was abandoned]. [So] over the last two years, the park has had an increase in break-ins and trespassing [as well as increased] damages.”
While visitors can visit The Land Of Oz only specifically in the fall, Dorothy's cabin [on site is available] for most of the year. “It's a structure that wasn't originally intended for someone to live in,” Barrett states. “It was a set piece. [But], over the years, they added amenities.” The house sleeps 4 and includes a fully equipped kitchen and down comforters with overlooking views of the Yellow Brick Road. Guests can checks availability and book through Emerald Realty and Rentals.
The key though is experiencing the sense of nostalgia and wonder that the park still possesses. “This magical land is about a journey,” Barrett concludes. “Either one you felt when you read Baum's books, or dreamed of living when you watched the MGM movie. Children of all ages [still come in and] dress up as characters, laugh and take pictures”.
The Land Of Oz allows visitors to step back into the past, if only for an afternoon. The nostalgia of such a park can fuel the imagination as it did for Jack Pentes all those years ago. Ruby slippers optional.