The Swinging Bridge

[Parson B Ready]

At what point in time was The Swinging Bridge the entrance to the city.  I know at one point you could park where the "square" is now, was The Swinging Bridge before or after this period.

[Zephon]

I may be wrong but....from what I've been able to gather from looking at pictures from the very early days of SDC, I believe that Indian Point Road originally took a route that brought it up Hill Street and along what is now the west side of the square.  That might have been even before SDC's opening (May 1960), back when it was just Marvel Cave Park.  Parking at that time was on the square.  The Swinging Bridge as an entryway to the park happened after that, sometime in the early to mid sixties.  I remember having to cross it on my first visit to the park.  It was probably around that time that Indian Pt. Rd. was rerouted to the east side of the park, the first of several reroutes.

[Junior]

I'd have to agree with Zephon on this. I have only cloudy memories of that period as I was under 10 years old. My stepfather told me the first time he visited SDC he parked in the area that the Flooded Mine sits and walked across the swinging bridge. That would have been mid 1960's. The first time I visited the park in 1970, the current entrance area was being used. We parked right next to the administration building/ticket office one day, and on another day we parked in what was called "A" lot, which at the time for my short 8 year old legs, seemed a long way out!

[KBCraig]

Way before my time. I consider myself an "early discoverer" of SDC, starting c.1973. I'm jealous of those who enjoyed the really early days.

[saladdays]

That would mean that the road divided the entrance to the cave from the rest of the park, though, right?

[betamike]

I can confirm that at least by 1968 (just before my parents wedding), you took the swinging bridge into the park as the entrance. 

[Duelist]

I went first in 1969 and you entered through the front gates (just like now if you need to buy tickets).

[saladdays]

What would they do with someone who was in a wheelchair?

[Junior]

That was a different time and era...family or friends probably pushed the person in a wheelchair across the bridge. Not much thought initially went into things like that back then.

[saladdays]

That was a different time and era...family or friends probably pushed the person in a wheelchair across the bridge. Not much thought initially went into things like that back then.

Yeah, I know things weren't as accessible for handicapped people back then.  I just wondered if there was some other entrance that they would allow people to use.  But pushing someone across the bridge on a wheelchair could very well be what they did.