Editing Roller coaster (section)

===Scenic railways===
{{see also|Side friction roller coaster}}
{{distinguish|The Great Scenic Railway|Scenic Railway (Dreamland Margate)}}
In 1827, a mining company in Summit Hill, Pennsylvania constructed the [[Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway]], a downhill [[gravity railroad]] used to deliver coal to Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania – now known as [[Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania|Jim Thorpe]].<ref>[http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/coasters/history/start/america.shtml "Roller Coaster History: Early Years In America"]. Retrieved on July 26, 2007.</ref> By the 1850s, the "Gravity Road" (as it became known) was selling rides to thrill seekers. Railway companies used similar tracks to provide amusement on days when ridership was low.

Using this idea as a basis, [[LaMarcus Adna Thompson]] began work on a gravity [[Switchback Railway]] that opened at [[Coney Island]] in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (State)|New York]], in 1884.<ref>{{cite news | author=Chris Sheedy | title=Icons&nbsp;– In the Beginning... Roller-Coaster | work=[[The Sun-Herald]] Sunday Life (Weekly Supplement) | publisher=John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd. | page=10 | date=2007-01-07}}</ref> Passengers climbed to the top of a platform and rode a bench-like car down the {{convert|600|ft|m|0|adj=on}} track up to the top of another tower where the vehicle was switched to a return track and the passengers took the return trip.<ref name="Rutherford" /> This track design was soon replaced with an oval complete circuit.<ref name="Urbanowicz"/> In 1885, Phillip Hinkle introduced the first full-circuit coaster with a [[lift hill]], the ''Gravity Pleasure Road'', which became the most popular attraction at Coney Island.<ref name="Urbanowicz"/> Not to be outdone, in 1886 Thompson patented his design of roller coaster that included dark tunnels with painted scenery. "Scenic railways" were soon found in [[amusement park]]s across the county.<ref name="Urbanowicz"/>