August 07, 2011

DINOSAUR WORLD GIFT SHOP/RESTAURANT DESTROYED IN FIRE

Photo by Richard Carlsen

UPDATE: The fire was "likely arson"

Fun Blog reader Becky Koester just shared with me the sad news that the main building on the former grounds of Dinosaur World in Beaver Springs, AR has burned to the ground. Here's the full story, though details are sparse.

The park has been closed since 2005 but many former patrons have held onto hopes that it would be refurbished at some point. The Secret Fun blog has become an internet stop for folks wishing to share updates and memories about the defunct attraction because of a post I wrote in 2008. The comments section is populated with a number of people who are related to the former owners. Here's how the building appeared in 2007...

3 comments:

Jody B. said...

Aww...man. This is kind of heartbreaking ain't it?

Matt Strawbridge said...

Kirk,

Big fan of your site for a long, long time... finally decided to post. I live in Jonesboro, AR and love seeing stuff that interests me.

Very sad that this place has burned... any word if anything at all is left of the surrounding attractions?

-Matt Strawbridge

Kirk D. said...

Jody- that's exactly what it is.

Matt- Thanks for your long-time interest. It's nice to hear from a local. It's sounding like everything else is still there, waiting to be looked at again, unguarded.