For generations of New Jersey and Philadelphia-area families, Clementon Park & Splash World was more than an amusement park. It was summer afternoons, first roller-coaster rides, children running toward the water slides, family photographs and memories passed from one generation to the next.
Now, after 119 years, that chapter has come to an end.
Clementon Park & Splash World in Camden County has closed following the 2026 season. Its final operating day was September 7, and the 52-acre property is being placed on the market as its owners search for a buyer.
The park first opened in 1907, founded by Theodore B. Gibbs and his sons. Over more than a century, it survived changing tastes, new owners, economic struggles and even a devastating fire in 1931. Splash World was added in 1993, giving the historic amusement park a new life for another generation of families.
Its rides became familiar landmarks of South Jersey summers. The Hellcat roller coaster, Giant Gondola Wheel, Dragon Coaster, Scrambler and dozens of family attractions welcomed visitors year after year.
The park had already faced an uncertain future before. It closed in 2019 following financial problems, but IB Parks & Entertainment purchased the property and reopened it in 2021. For five more seasons, children returned to the rides and families once again filled the park during the summer months.
This time, however, the owners say they have made the “difficult decision” to close and sell the property.
There is still a small measure of hope. The owners have said they would like to find a buyer who understands what Clementon Park has meant to the community and who might preserve its legacy. The sale therefore does not necessarily mean that the rides will disappear forever, but the park’s future is now uncertain.
For many New Jersey families, the news is about much more than the closing of another business.
A place that opened before two world wars, before television became part of American homes and long before modern theme parks dominated family entertainment has reached the end of another chapter.
For 119 summers, generations walked through the gates of Clementon Park.
This September, the gates closed — perhaps for the last time.
Sources: Clementon Park & Splash World; Philadelphia Business Journal; New York Post
By NJ RADAR Team