BGW Costumed Characters and other scenes from 1976

[Rothbury]

I have digitized and archived slides from Busch Gardens - The Old Country from 1976. I live in the area and have been going to BGW since it's opening. I have hundreds of slides and came across these. As I get more done I'll add to this. There are several from the park in general and even though I'm not ready to post them there was a time when they had deer adjacent to the railroad tracks roaming free. I vaguely remember the trains having to stop when they were on the tracks.
Anyway, here is the first 6:

 

[Celticdog]

Great photos. I remember all the trees in New France. I have a vague recollection of the Eagle.

 

[halfabee]

Man, those trees. New France really bakes now during the VA midday summer heat. I had forgotten how much partial shade there was long ago. Makes a big difference.

No willow by the Hastings bridge. Confirms a statement made during the early stretch of the Finnegan's Flyer conversation. I don't recall who it was, but they were spot-on.

Terrific pics, thank you for sharing them @Rothbury. I have no memory at all of the costumed characters.

 

[Rothbury]

I deleted the first picture from New France. As usual, when working with slides it's sometimes hard to tell which way is the right way. Anyway, I flipped it and from what I can tell it looks like I took the picture after exiting the train. The building to the left is hamburger place that no longer exists. This was before the smokehouse and Festhaus so there weren't too many places to eat.

Also, here are a few more. I have found about 10 or 12 more but I'll piecemeal them in, instead of doing it all at once.





Not many people will remember this but at one time this was the location for the beer handout.



This was taken from the boat looking back. There was No Italy. Therefore, there was no bridge.





Probably be interesting to identify these people. This is 45 years ago.

 

[Zachary]

That photo from the Rhine River Cruise is incredible! I can safely say I’ve never seen a pre-Italy angle like that before. Brilliant find @Rothbury!

 

[warfelg]

You all got me wanting to find my photos and hard disk from my 2003 trip to BGW!

Wonderful pictures @Rothbury and to everyone that took these, if they are from your childhood visits, I'm slightly jealous you got to see the park in that iteration!

 

[Jonesta6]

Incredible to see Le Scoot without the huge reservoir pool at the bottom line we see now.

 

[Merboy]

God I adore the fashion of the 70s. Whenever I see old photos like this of everyday people I turn into Myrtle Snow and just lose my shit.

Also, of course, it's magical to see our same, beloved park in the entirely different context of someone else's generation.

 

[Zachary]

God I adore the fashion of the 70s. Whenever I see old photos like this of everyday people I turn into Myrtle Snow and just lose my shit.

gonna tell my kids this was 70s fashion

View attachment 22231

 

[The Quist]

1470s fashion, hmmmm? (Sorry, stupid Stephen Lynch reference)

 

[halfabee]

Le Scoot heavily framed by trees... Alpengeist and Invadr really changed that. I'll take the new lineup over the old, but seeing logs emerge from the underside of what seemed (to a kid) like a tucked-away treetop hideout was just way beyond cool.

 

[Rothbury]

I guess this will be the last of the pictures for now. never say never but I think the rest of my BGW stuff would be video and I'd have to find it. So, here goes:









This would have been taken as the train past over the trestle. There wasn't even a Loch Ness at this point.

 

[Jonesta6]

I'm having trouble placing where the 3rd photo down was taken - my guess is either the split path to EfP or in line for the skyride.

Didn't recognize the last photo for a moment before realizing the turrets have been reshaped and are currently covered in vines...

 

[Rothbury]

Third picture down is a shot into German Shops. The clock shop is on the right and the "old" fudge shop is the bay window. Now there is a wall and a gate and you don't get this view.

 

[Lord Robert]

Amazing photos Rothbury. I would really love the Old Country costumes like what those people wore to make a comeback; then again Virginia heat is an issue. The old costume characters are always neat to see from old photos or footage, it's funny to see the AB eagle wearing a Colonial Williamsburg outfit in a European theme park.

 

[BGW Family]

That isn't a Colonial Williamsburg outfit in a European theme park. Williamsburg and England were all British citizen at the time before the American War for Independence. The colonies wore the same clothes as the Crown and of the style for that period. So, it is proper British attire. The Banbury area has always seemed to be an amalgamation of periods with beef-eaters, knights, Elizabethan/Renaissance/Victorian, and colonial period dress.