First True U.S. Roller Coaster The 1885 patent (details pictured) for LaMarcus Thompson’s “Roller Coasting Structure” certified the first coaster to be designed as a U.S. amusement ride. The Coney Island, New York, attraction had opened in June 1884 and went by the name Switchback Railway. It cost only a nickel but was so wildly popular that it made Thompson a fortune. Its success inspired many imitators–and launched an industry that turns 125 in the U.S. in June 2009. “That was more like a railroad on an incline, not an exciting roller coaster by today’s standards,” explained enthusiast Eric...