Explore the history of one of Ohio's most beloved amusement parks, Fantasy Farm. A must-read for fans of roadside attractions, amusement parks, and family entertainment.
Not many developers would build an amusement park next door to the successful
LeSourdsville Lake
amusement park, but Edgar Streifthau was a one-of-a-kind man in Butler County, Ohio.
Streifthau, the original owner of
LeSourdsville
, was forced to sell his beloved park, but he still had the amusement-park bug, and in 1963 he built
Fantasy Farm
directly next to
.
Fantasy Farm's
audience was young children, and the concept was successful for decades. The two parks coexisted for 28 years despite periodically appearing in court opposite each other. In 1982, Streifthau sold
to local carnival owner William Johnson, who ran the park for another decade before finally becoming a victim of the economy. Johnson closed
in 1991 and sold off all of its assets.
Author Scott Fowler is the founder of the
Southwest Ohio Amusement Park Historical Society
and the
Southwest Florida Amusement Park Historical Society
. The organizations are dedicated to preserving the rich amusement park heritage in southwest Ohio and along the Gulf Coast of Florida.