LAKEVIEW, Ga. — Whether a summer day trip or the site of your cousin’s company picnic, Lake Winnepesaukah has been part of the fabric of Chattanooga area childhood for 100 years.
From hand-stamped wristbands to “Come On, Get Happy” jingles echoing through local TVs, each generation knows “Lake Winnie” a little differently — but almost no one alive remembers a time in the area without it. This week, the South’s oldest family-owned amusement park turned 100.
Lake Winnie’s Tuesday morning celebration included remarks from several local politicians, an amusement park historian and other national amusement park experts. It also featured a proclamation read by former Georgia state Sen. Jeff Mullis on behalf of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.
“‘As one of the few remaining family-owned amusement parks in the United States, Lake Winnie has continued its tradition to deliver fun through generations, remaining the South’s favorite family amusement park,'” Mullis read.
When Tennyson Dickinson, park director and great-granddaughter of cofounders Carl and Minette Dixon, stepped up to the stage, she told a story of her daily bike rides to the park, where she’ would take half-popped popcorn kernels and dump them in the lake. Then she would ride around the lake and come back to find plenty of fish attracted by the popcorn, which she said was like “fishing in a barrel.”