Story Land in New Hampshire

Author Adventures strives to focus on the homes, workplaces, and hangouts of authors that remain open to the public. However, in states where these opportunities are few, we are more flexible.

While New Hampshire does not have many literary landmarks that are open to the public and tour-able, it does offer the distinctive literary destination of Story Land. This is a popular amusement park, geared especially to children ages 2-12, with rides, shows, and characters from fairy tales and nursery rhymes. It is perfect scope for even the youngest children to manage in a single day, or even just a morning or afternoon. We enjoyed everything there, though the Turtle Twirl is quite dizzying, being faster than it looks!

Though its essence lies in the hearts of children, Story Land is also a fairy tale wedding destination for children-at-heart.

History

One of the many distinctions of Story Land is its origin. According to the Story Land website, the idea was sparked by a German dollmaker and brought to the United States by the couple who started the dream in 1954: Bob and Ruth Morrell. The park opened a year before Disneyland, which offered a similar concept on a far grander scale. Story Land endured financial struggles but ultimately succeeded. Through the hard work and dedication of the Morrells, each decade brought growth and increasing generations of visitors.

A list of some of its most notable attractions can be found in an “insider’s” article of NH Magazine, which highlights the park’s 60th anniversary. Read it here: https://www.nhmagazine.com/discover-the-secrets-of-story-land.

Story Land is located at 850 NH Route 16 in Glen, a small town with a population of approximately 2,800 residents. It is the next stop on our New Hampshire Author Adventures Trail, following the Thomas Bailey Aldrich house museum.

Patricia Smart