Sadly, the worst accident happened when the park was only two years old. A young man, goofing off in front of his friend and probably a bit tipsy from beer, tried to jump onto a moving trolley and slipped. Read what happened to him.

Two crashes occurred in 1908 that rattled the nerves of patrons coming to and from the resort. The first was onboard the “Oaks Flier,” a boat that transported the public from the foot of the Morrison Bridge to the park. A distracted captain slammed the craft into the bridge as he simultaneously tried to operate the engine, steer, and take tickets. While none of the fifty passengers was hurt, the crash resulted in a public cry for more employees to man the boat.

The second accident involved a head-on collision of two trolley cars on the O.W.P. line near The Oaks. The cars were traveling at about twelve miles an hour when they struck. Again, no one was hurt, but the cars suffered substantial damage.

A stuntman injured himself in 1913 when he lost control of his car after performing a flying leap through the air. The driver cut his face at some point between the time the car landed, broke through two rope barriers, tore across a lawn and a flowerbed, and slowed alongside a building on the midway.

High water has always been a challenge to the park, which is situated on the banks of the Willamette River. Floods in 1913 closed some concessions for a few days and threatened to put a damper on Fourth of July festivities.

Another natural disaster occurred in 1915, when lightning struck the auditorium, carousel, and skating rink, causing $600 worth of damage. Superintendent
E.H. Bollinger heroically managed to shut down the power in the converter house despite the blue flames that danced over the equipment and threatened to start more serious fires.

In 1919, startled youngsters survived an accident while riding the miniature railway. The driver of an automobile did not see the approaching train because a large rose bush obstructed his view. The lack of injuries allowed the Oregonian to report the novelty of a passenger vehicle “demolishing” a railway engine.

A fire of unknown origin damaged the Chutes ride beyond repair in 1920. The Oregonian called the blaze, “one of the most spectacular in the city this year,” partly owing to a small box of fireworks that burned. Insurance covered most of the $5,000 worth of damage, and the structure was rebuilt for the following season.

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