Little Dipper is a steel kiddie roller coaster at Memphis Kiddie Park in Brooklyn, Ohio, a small family amusement park just outside Cleveland. Built by the Allan Herschell Company, the ride opened with the park on May 28, 1952, making it one of the oldest steel coasters still running anywhere in the country.
Despite its name, Memphis Kiddie Park has nothing to do with Tennessee — it takes its name from Memphis Avenue, the Brooklyn, Ohio street where founder Stuart Wintner built the park. More than seven decades later, Little Dipper remains a beloved first coaster for generations of Northeast Ohio kids, running its simple oval circuit at a gentle pace built for pint-sized riders.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: Memphis Kiddie Park
- Location: Brooklyn, Ohio
- Manufacturer: Allan Herschell Company
- Opened: May 1952
- Height: about 12 feet
- Top speed: about 8 mph
- Length: about 280 feet
- Inversions: 0
The Ride Experience
Little Dipper carries riders around a compact oval layout aboard a single three-car train, seated two across in two rows per car for a total capacity of 12 passengers per cycle. A chain lift pulls the train up its short first hill, after which gravity carries it through a few gentle dips before returning to the station — a ride designed entirely around young children taking their first coaster spin.
The original Herschell train served the ride for its first two decades before being replaced with a Bradley & Kaye train in the early 1970s, which still operates today. The coaster got a fresh red-and-white paint scheme for the 2006 season and continues to run largely unchanged from its 1952 debut.
A Piece of Coaster History
Little Dipper is frequently cited by enthusiast sources as the oldest operating steel roller coaster in North America, having run at the same park since opening day in 1952 without ever being relocated. That longevity, paired with its unassuming size, makes it a quiet landmark in coaster history even though most riders come for a fun afternoon rather than a piece of preservation.
The ride survived a 2020 closure during the COVID-19 pandemic and returned to service, continuing an operating streak that has outlasted countless larger coasters built decades after it. For coaster enthusiasts tracking historic rides, Little Dipper remains a must-visit stop precisely because so few steel coasters from its era are still spinning.
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Little Dipper Photo Archive: May 2016
These are original ThrillZing photos of Little Dipper taken at Memphis Kiddie Park in Brooklyn, Ohio on May 27, 2016, restored and upscaled from the original camera files. They show the 1952 Allan Herschel junior coaster’s sign, lift and track, one of the oldest steel coasters still running in the country. All photos are free to reuse under a CC BY 4.0 license with credit to ThrillZing and a link to this page.
Little Dipper FAQs
Is Little Dipper really the oldest operating steel roller coaster in North America?
It’s widely cited as such by enthusiast sources, having operated continuously at Memphis Kiddie Park since May 1952.
Is Memphis Kiddie Park located in Memphis, Tennessee?
No. The park is in Brooklyn, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb, and takes its name from Memphis Avenue, the street it sits on.
Who built the Little Dipper coaster?
It was built by the Allan Herschell Company, a longtime manufacturer of kiddie and amusement park rides.
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