New England Square
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The Winslow Estate
New England Square is represented by a small New England village with a handful of shops and a dining location which serves as a form of prolounge for the anchor of this setion of the park; The Winslow Estate. Beyond the quaint Main Street, sits a long abandoned estate of the town’s most famous family. The Winslow family’s roots date back to the town’s founding; as one of the first residents Samuel Smithson was a shrewd and ambitious man. His business dealings brought great wealth to him and his family allowing him to build a massive estate on the outer limits of the town; close to his financial empire but far enough away to maintain his privacy; because what would a powerful and wealthy family be without secrets?
Over the generations his family’s wealth continued to grow; but over the years they became more secluded and rumors began to spread. Once reliable socialites at the finest gatherings, one by one the members of the family stop leaving the estate. Eventually no one saw any member of the family or their staff again and it was amused the massive mansion had fallen abandoned. Residents of the town avoid the estate at all cost, taking the long way home just to avoid even walking by. The grounds are constantly covered in a thick blanket of fog and all that can be heard are the lone howl of a wolf or the squeaking of the crows. Each attraction and experience in the land reveals a new piece of the larger mystery that lurks here. Will you uncover the secrets of the Winslow Estate?
Attractions
The Grounds
Board one of the family’s riverboats along the shores of the lake and explore the massive grounds of the estate. These slow moving boat rides will take guests throughout the gardens, orchards, and thick forests that the residents of the town avoid at all costs. Starting from the Victorian boathouse, the boats are pulled, almost by some supernatural force, along the shores of the lake where we begin to see the estate is not abandoned after all. We don’t see, but we hear. The sound of carriages being pulled by horses, a woman’s hum comes from the gazebo, children playing in the woods all come from the fog. Our boat moves further into the ground passing ornate yet overgrown gardens. The vines and plants have overtaken the statues and structures through the gardens. The stone has begun to crack as nature reclaims the once manicured spaces. We hear whispers through the fog…”he’s gone mad, my dear sweet love has gone mad…”.
We continue to float towards a Victorian greenhouse; it’s glass full of cracks and missing panes. The path of the water leads us inside as we see the collection of exotic flora has taken over the structure completely. More voices speak softly from around corners and behind plants we cannot see; “A cure, one of these plants must be able to cure him…”. The sound of rushing water is heard ahead of us revealing a massive sinkhole has taken out part of the structure, sending us down a steep drip into the caves below the surface. At the bottom of the fall we wide through the caverns and catacombs that echo with ghostly shouts and a woman screaming. Strangely the estate’s large population of crows has seemingly taken up refuge in these caves staring down at us as we pass. We emerge from the cave and return to the boathouse unsure of the mystery we have stumbled on during our search of the grounds.
The Ballroom
The Ballroom is a heavily themed variant of the “Madhouse” flat ride that incorporates illusions and special effects to bring guests face to face with the estate's many ghostly inhabitants. The room is ornately decorated reflecting the mysterious family’s wealth but time has taken its toll as the fixtures and corners are faded with dust and cobwebs. The ride begins with the room going dark as it storms outside to the sound of faint music playing in the background as the chandeliers and light fixtures flicker to life. The room begins to spin as the music intensifies and specters begin dancing along the walls. The room flips upside down and we hear the sound of screams as thunder strikes and the lights go out. The lighting flashes as suddenly written all over the walls in red “The deal is fulfilled…pay what’s due” The lightning flashes again and suddenly a dark hooded figure appears in the balcony as the room slowly flips right side up. Another flash of lighting and the figure is gone and the room has returned to its present day state.
The Graveyard
The graveyard is a customized family power coaster with a clover leaf layout. The train twists and winds through the Winslow family graveyard passing by the thick forest of trees and gravestones marking the final resting places. The queue snakes through the entrance to the graveyard as we read the tombstones, marking the generations of the family who were laid to rest here. The station is a massive mausoleum for the founder of the estate; Samuel Winslow. Inside a family of crowd has taken refugee as if watching over the final resting place of the vast manor’s namesake.
The Crows
Atop the hill that overlooks the estate sits the remnants of a bird sanctuary built as a gift by one of the Winslow men for his wife. The queue tells the story of how while all sorts of birds came to the sanctuary at first, after time it soon only became home to an unnatural swarm of crows. The Crows is an custom version of the classic swing ride with main base and top design like a detailed Victorian iron structure with black seats designed to look like crows. The ride swings as the sound of a signing woman orchestrates the ride but devolves into a sad wailining before ending with a loud scream.
The Secret
The Secret is a self paced walk through experience that allows guests to tour the mystery filled corridors and rooms to discover more about the family who inhabited them. The linear path brings guests throughout the entire mansion where through special effects and timed mine-shows the spirits that haunt its many halls tell us the story of what happened all those years ago. Each room is filled with hidden details and effects-told stories encouraging guests to take their time to piece together the secret lurking in this estate. The culmination of the experiences takes us to the office that has housed the family’s long line of patriarchs where we learn what truly happened. The lightning strikes and the office goes dark and the large portrait above the fireplace comes to life depicting the story as it unfolds. As if read from his dairy, Samuel Winslow, the estate founder, speaks of a dark spirit that appeared to him as a flock of crows that formed a woman. The spirit offered him a deal. Him and his many heirs would come into great wealth and prosperity; in exchange the spirit would return after three centuries to claim the family’s spirit for her own. As the generations passed the family reaped the rewards of the bargain but until the three centuries had passed. Samuel Winslow’s distant descendent Thomas Winslow was the heir to the fortune when the dark spirit returned again saying the deal’s payment was coming due. He was slowly driven mad as the deadline approached, eventually deciding instead he would take the lives of his family rather than surrender them to the dark spirit. Angered by his decision to renege on his ancestor’s promise she cursed his and the estate forcing his spirit and the spirits of all its inhabitants to be forever trapped here.
Dining
The Pine Tree Inn
Located in the Main Street section of the lane, the Pine Street Inn offers weary travelers a warm and cozy place to escape from the spirits for a bite to eat. The interior's warm wooden features are accented by the lit fire place. With a menu featuring classic favorites such as the Innkeeper's Roast, Fish & Chips, and Roasted Chiecken and Vegetables its the perfect place to stop when the temperature gets a little too chilly...or perhaps that's just a spirit entering the room.
Entertainment
The Estate Spirits
The Winslow Estate is home to over a dozen spirits who wander the grounds and mansion halls eager to tell their stories to any living visitors who are willing to listen. With a full cast of performers playing various members of the Winslow family or the staff, each will appear randomly either inside the mansion throughout the day or around the grounds at night where they will regale us with the secrets of the stories family and how they came to meet their untimely fates. Each spirit has a piece to tell of the larger mystery behind the manor. Gather around for a "ghost story" of an entirely different kind.
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