DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Urban exploration in Arkansas
travcojim
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DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by travcojim »

Was watching the local news last night here in Springdale and there was a report from the Arkansas Business Journal that two investors had purchased some of Dogpatch, the report said that they had purchased at least 25 acres of the park. Not sure if it was the main area around the lake, sure if was. I am going to see what else I can find this morning. So anyone who was planning on checking things out better get on it this weekend, then again, that could be too late.
travcojim
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by travcojim »

Dogpatch USA will soon be a stop for bikers.
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DOGPATCH, USA - Dogpatch U.S.A will soon come to life again, this time as a haven for bikers .

Dogpatch is an old theme park just south of Harrison . In a report out today, Arkansas Business.com says Bob Richard and Randal Phillips bought a 25-acre piece of the property.

The two reportedly plan to renovate the property to bring in bikers and others who travel Scenic Byway 7. A stretch of road internationally recognized for motorcycles.
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White Rabbit
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by White Rabbit »

Man... I hope they don't tear everything down. I don't know if all you guys know this, but some of those log cabins at Dogpatch are actual 19th century hillbilly cabins that were disassembled and reassembled at Dogpatch. It'd suck if something like that were bulldozed. :/
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ropingk
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ropingk »

It would be real cool if they just redid it and left it like it was,,, but we all know it probaly isnt going to happen I am guessing they ment the bikes you pedal and not Harleys??? and you are correct most of thoese cabins came from all over the Ozarks and were carefully reasembled and for some strange reason they still look pretty solid,, :shock: could you imagin the moeny it would take to do that at todays prices............ :shock:
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ann_marie
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ann_marie »

Maybe I'm dumb here, but why didn't the people that own it take care of it? Were people not going and they were losing money? Why did it close anyway?
travcojim
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

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The main reason it sold was a combo of bad managment by the company that it was sold to, and also Branson took alot of the business away from the park. It got to the point where it was even free to get in and they only charged for the rides, but that didn't come close to paying for the help that it took to keep the doors open. And as far as the bikes, it will be Harleys and Motorcycles, I read a few more articals on the plans. I could not copy them, if I come across a site I can link to I will post it. I think they will leave alot of the buildings and try and keep the feel of the area in whatever they end up doing. Lets at least hope so. If anything maybe they would put the cabins up for sale, let someone take them down and move them.
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ropingk
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ropingk »

There are so many threads about Dogpatch and the whys and how comes and everything but, the reality is simple To many greedy investors maybe to big a dream kind of like the Edsil (sp) it was just kinda out of the way and instead of putting the profit back into the park the owners put it in there pocket---- the real strange thing is that it has almost become a like a shrine to a whole lot of people ---Hey where is dogpatch when you really need him???
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ann_marie
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ann_marie »

I had not even heard of it until I started researching UE. Then again I'm not really into theme parks when they are open. :twisted:
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ropingk
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ropingk »

If you go to UE's home page you can go to galleys and there are a bunch of pictures and then go to the abandmed sites (i think) and you will find a bunch of stuff for dogpatch or then I guess you could just go to Dogpatch on the web and read many pages about how it was started and how it came to be then how it failed stories about the Ski resort the Motel I know it was a really neat place for young kids in the 70;s to go and just have fun and now it is fun for the same kids to go and explore well it was untill now

Rick :P
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ann_marie
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ann_marie »

Yeah, I've seen the pictures. I wished it was closer for me to explore. Ah well.
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White Rabbit
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

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Another thing that I still think was the main thing that killed it was it's in a horrible, HORRIBLE location. It's in the middle of bumblefuck nowhere, down a dinky curvy two-lane highway, in between Harrison and Jasper (which are not exactly booming metropolises). I think all the great management in the world couldn't have saved the thing where it was.
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by Willard »

I remember my parents taking me and my cousins there when I was a little kid. It was lots of fun. To bad it's not open anymore. I will say that bad managment was one reason for it's closing, but I don't think the location was as big of a deal as the fact that the Li' Abbner comic strip had not been in syndication since the late 1970's. I don't ever remember seeing a Li' Abbner comic strip in the paper when I was little, though my parents sure did and at the time we lived in northern Oklahoma right on US 81. I will say this that the park didn't have much advertising if I remember right. Originally it relyed on the comic strip to get it popularity. I guess that's what happens when greed crosses with something that has gone out of style.
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ropingk
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ropingk »

I don't know how many horse people are here but I go to a lot of diffrent trail rides some in Arkansas some in Missouri Dogpatch could have been turned into the most awesone horse riding adventure ever, you could have left it exactally as it was the old stores and all that ,,it would have made a great "Old West Town" and for this the location would not matter since some of the trail rides that prople go to are so far in the middle of no where it just isn't funny, but then that is whay people go to get away, there might not be enought places to ride but if I remember it was pretty much out in the wilds and with places like Emenience charging $200 bucks a week and drawing in over 2500 people each month IF it was managed the right way it should have worked verry well
Oh well I guess it just wasnt to be hopefully this new adventure will be good
Rick
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travcojim
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by travcojim »

I don't think the location had much to do with it closing. Hwy 7 is always a busy road and is always ranked as one of the top 10 roads in the nation, I think the location added to the appeal of the place. Espically to people from big cities who had never been somewhere like Dogpatch.
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ropingk
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RE: DOGPATCH SOLD!!!

Post by ropingk »

It is hard to imagin Lill Abner and Daisy May on the back of a Soft tail but man doing that log ride on a harley would be wild, to bad the Mad rat or Red Mouse or what ever it was called is gone
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