Born-and-raised Memphian John Stevenson became fascinated with roller coasters after riding the Zippin Pippin in 1997 at the age of 5. He made many trips to the park growing up and was devastated when the park permanently closed in 2005. Around the time of the park’s auction, he launched what would become RememberLibertyland.com in June of 2006, then as a section of his roller coaster website, Coaster101.com.

The website’s Facebook and Twitter pages began to gain traction as a place for Libertyland fans and former employees to share their memories and memorabilia with the community.

  

John Stevenson at the Libertyland and Zippin Pippin historic marker (L) and at a Libertyland: Images of Modern America book signing (R) 

In June of 2016, John Stevenson began writing Libertyland: Images of Modern America, a book that would cover the park’s lifespan through photographs, many never-before-seen. The Memphis community (and beyond) played a crucial role in sharing their stories, photographs and more to make the book possible.

The book was published in September of 2017. But the story doesn’t end there – many stories, photos and more are waiting to be found and shared on RememberLibertyland.com. So sit down, buckle up, keep all hands in feet inside the car at all times and enjoy the Libertyland ride.