Lake Winnie's Centennial Celebration

Rossville, Georgia (IAAPA News) - Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park, a beloved institution nestled in the highlands just outside Chattanooga, marked its 100th anniversary on June 17, 2025, with a celebration as vibrant as its legacy. 

Generations of families and local leaders gathered to honor a century of thrills, tradition, and treasured memories.

Tennyson Dickinson, park director and great-granddaughter of founders Carl and Minette Dixon, spoke with heartfelt pride when describing the milestone to Funworld.

“It’s a wonderful celebration and it’s a wonderful responsibility at the same time to carry on the legacy begun by my great grandparents, continued by my grandmother, my aunt, and my mother, but it is indeed a special day to celebrate 100 years at Lake Winnie,” Dickinson says.

Since 1925, members of the Dickinson family have served as caretakers and visionaries, carrying forward Carl Dixon’s dream and continually reinventing the park for new generations.

Dickinson added, “I want to thank everyone who has ever walked through the gates—and every happy child who loved the park and later brought their own children to enjoy it.”

Jim Futrell, IAAPA historian and archivist and National Amusement Park Historical Association historian and director, reflects on the park’s remarkable legacy.

“There are very few amusement parks that get to celebrate their centennial,” he notes.

“Fewer still remain in the hands of the same family for four generations—and as far as I know, none have been led primarily by women across such a long history.”

The park also honored its oldest attraction, the Boat Chute, designed and built by Carl Dixon himself in 1927.

Recognized as the last operational mill chute ride in the U.S., the Boat Chute remains a cherished symbol of the park’s enduring charm and engineering ingenuity.

“[There’s] a sort of healing that takes place—in ways science has yet to understand—fun and smiles… That’s why we’re here,” Dickinson shares with the crowd in closing.

“One hundred years, and we’re still counting.”