KIExtreme adds photos of Kings Island from 1974

Very cool.

A good set of pics, but too few glimpses of Racer. :(

Wonderful! Thanks for sharing.

These photos are great. Thank you.

What strikes me about the midways is that they are wide, open, and free from clutter. No mini displays. No salespeople trying to sell you a family picture.

The effect is that the place is massive. If you look at current photos, everything looks more closed in, and smaller.

Does anyone else notice this?

I find it interesting that the internatinal restaurant used to be open to the public all year.

These photo's show just how great Kings Island used to be. Over the past decade or so the charm has just been sucked out of this place. Where tree's once stood have given way to concrete wastelands. I used to love this park but have for the most part given up on it.

Concrete wastelands? OK, I'll give you the whole Action Zone area, but I think it's a beautiful park. I tend to feel mostly indifferent about the ride lineup, but I do enjoy spending time there.

The midways feel closer now because the trees have matured. Compare a current photo looking from the Eiffel Tower to the ones from the park's early days, especially in the Coney and Rivertown areas.