Marineland of Florida facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Marine Studios
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 Location in Florida
Location in the United States
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| Location | Marineland, Florida |
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| Built | 1937 |
| Architect | John Walter Wood and M.F. Hasbrouch |
| Architectural style | Moderne style |
| NRHP reference No. | 86000831 |
| Added to NRHP | April 14, 1986 |
Marineland of Florida, often called Marineland, is one of Florida's first marine mammal parks. It's known as "the world's first oceanarium". Marineland offers fun activities and allows visitors to swim with dolphins. It reopened on March 4, 2006, charging its original 1938 admission price of one dollar. In 2011, the Georgia Aquarium bought the park.
Contents
History of Marineland
How Marineland Started
Marineland was first imagined by W. Douglas Burden, Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, Sherman Pratt, and Ilya Andreyevich Tolstoy. They wanted to create an oceanarium where they could film marine life. They chose a spot on the Atlantic Ocean south of St. Augustine. This area later became the town of Marineland.
Building Marineland was a big challenge because no one had ever captured and kept sea creatures like this before. But they overcame these problems. On June 23, 1938, "Marine Studios" opened. It was later renamed "Marineland of Florida." Its main attraction was a bottlenose dolphin. More than 20,000 tourists came to visit the new park on its opening day!
For many years, Marineland had not only its oceanariums but also a motel, restaurants, snack bars, a marina, and gift shops. The entire property covered about 125 acres between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway.
The park had two large tanks, called oceanariums. The circular oceanarium, nicknamed the "circ tank," was home to dolphins. It held 400,000 gallons of water. The rectangular oceanarium, called the "rec tank," held 450,000 gallons. It was home to many different fish, sharks, eels, and turtles. This tank was heated in winter to protect the tropical fish. Visitors could walk through hallways below the tanks and look through many portholes to see the marine life up close.
Growing and Changing
In 1952, a "porpoise stadium" was added with a show tank and bleachers. This stadium featured "Flippy" the educated porpoise. At that time, dolphins were often called porpoises locally. A roof was added to the stadium in 1961. Around this time, the name Marineland began to be used more in marketing.
In 1968, large arches with giant letters spelling out MARINELAND were installed. This made the park visible from far away. Marineland also built an administration building and a proper laboratory.
Marineland used a special system to get salt water for its tanks. Pipes ran 50 feet out into the ocean, pumping water to a filtration plant. This clean seawater then circulated through the oceanariums. Marineland scientists also discovered how to use copper sulfate to reduce algae growth, which was a big step forward.
Because Leo Tolstoy's grandson was involved, Marineland became a very popular place. Famous writers like Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Ernest Hemingway even visited. The park was also used for movies, including Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954).
The world's first dolphin trainer, Adolph Frohn, started training dolphins and created "dolphin shows" in the early 1950s. These shows made Marineland one of Florida's top attractions. The park attracted over 900,000 visitors each year in the mid-1970s. During this time, more areas were added, like a playground, gift shops, a shell museum, and a 3D theater. A statue of King Neptune with dolphins was a central feature.
Divers in hard hats would feed fish, eels, turtles, and dolphins by hand. Trainers would put on dolphin shows six times a day. The shows started with dolphins leaping high out of the water. Then, visitors would go downstairs to watch divers feed marine animals through the portholes. Finally, the show moved to the stadium, where "educated porpoises" showed off their skills. Marineland staff wore nautical uniforms, like sailor suits for the Jumpmasters.
Marineland also had other exhibits, including "Wonders of the Sea," an electric eel demonstration, and displays of penguins and flamingos. Visitors could even play catch with friendly dolphins on the top deck between shows.
Marineland had its own fresh water system. It used a special process called reverse osmosis to turn salt water into fresh water. This supplied the entire park.
When Walt Disney World Resort opened in 1971, it first helped Marineland's attendance. However, when SeaWorld opened in Florida, it had a negative impact on Marineland's visitor numbers from the late 1970s onward.
Challenges and Decline
In 1983, Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney sold Marineland to a group of businessmen. These new owners tried some new ideas. Some worked well, like adding a seasonal high dive show and a sea lion show. They also changed the show schedule to make it easier for visitors. A campground was also added to the property. These changes helped attendance go up for a few years.
However, at the end of 1987, the park decided to make big changes to "modernize" the shows. They stopped using the famous hard hat diver helmets and switched to modern SCUBA gear. The old nautical uniforms were also replaced. After these changes, attendance seemed to drop.
Because of declining visitors, poor decisions, and bad luck, the owners couldn't pay their loans. The park was put up for sale again. Ownership changed often, and the future of Marineland became very uncertain.
In the 1990s, Marineland faced more challenges from government inspections and increasing regulations. The park struggled financially. By the year 2000, many long-time employees were laid off. The old park needed a lot of repairs, and a series of hurricanes made things worse. The owners tried to find a buyer as the facility fell into disrepair. Some parts became unsafe, and portholes had to be sealed because they leaked.
Eventually, the property was sold through a complicated deal. The new buyers faced financial problems and went bankrupt. Marineland became a non-profit foundation, but it still struggled with money. Needed repairs were not done, and the park looked very run-down. Employees had to cope with broken equipment, safety issues, and trouble getting paid. Many dedicated people helped keep the place running. In the end, a large part of Marineland's dolphin population was sold, and a new owner took over.
Rebirth and Today
In 1999, Hurricane Floyd and Irene forced the park to close for two months. The damage was severe. In 2003, all park buildings west of Highway A1A were torn down. In 2004, the park closed completely for major renovations after being hit by three more hurricanes.
Marineland reopened on March 4, 2006, as the Marineland Dolphin Adventure. It is now operated by the Georgia Aquarium. Today, modern equipment and highly trained staff care for the animals and visitors.
During the renovations, the original 1938 Circular Oceanarium and Rectangular Oceanarium were demolished. New, large tanks and structures were built. The old entrance, walkway, and gift shop are some of the few original structures left. The new facility also gets its water from the City of Palm Coast.
The old dolphin shows ended as the park changed. Marineland Dolphin Adventure is now a hands-on educational facility. Guests can interact directly with dolphins and see other marine life. The land where the old hotel and campground once stood is now part of the River to the Sea Preserve, a park managed by Flagler County.
In 1974, the University of Florida opened the Whitney Marine Laboratory next to Marineland. This lab studies marine animals. Marineland's own research facility also helped us learn a lot about dolphins. Marineland staff also helped rescue hundreds of stranded whales over the years.
In July 2008, three bottlenose dolphins were born at the new Dolphin Conservation center. In January 2011, Marineland was sold again to the Georgia Aquarium. In 2019, the park was sold once more to Dolphin Discovery, which runs it today.
Marineland Dolphin Adventure offers several dolphin encounters and educational programs. It also conducts research to help care for marine life. The facility and staff provide modern medical care to the marine mammals. The dream started by Marine Studios in 1938 continues today.
Dolphins at Marineland
Marineland is home to 14 bottlenose dolphins:
- Betty 3 (female, 50 years old)
- Lightning (male, 37 years old)
- Sunny (male, 35 years old)
- Shaka (female, 36 years old)
- Dazzle (female, 32 years old)
- Niele (male, 26 years old)
- Zac (male, 26 years old)
- Casique (female, 18 years old)
- Briland (male, 17 years old)
- Tocio (female, 12 years old)
- Aqe (male, 12 years old)
- Boomer (male, 5 years old)
- Oli (male, 4 years old)
- Surge (male, 4 years old)
Images for kids
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Aerial view of Marine Studios, Marineland, Florida in 1939, one year after it opened
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Slab of coquina at Marineland entrance
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Gift Shop 2019
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Marineland Entrance 2019
See also
In Spanish: Marineland para niños
