Gatorland Compass Rose - Orlando, FL
N 28° 21.348 W 081° 24.241
17R E 460407 N 3136683
A beautiful compass rose section of the 1956 original Gatorland gift shop floor in Orlando, Florida, USA.
Waymark Code: WM464F
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 07/13/2008
Views: 41
This compass rose section of the old gift shop floor has been preserved and is now located outside between the two entrance booths at Gatorland, a theme park and wildlife preserve.
From Wikipedia:
At approximately 6:00 AM local time on November 6, 2006, a 3-alarm fire broke out at Gatorland. Apparently the fire started when a heating pad in one of the displays in the gift shop shorted out. Arson was not suspected. The fire was brought under control as of 8:30 AM the same day. The gift shop was completely destroyed, and several walkways also burned. The fire killed a four-foot-long crocodile and two six-foot-long pythons, but spared the other animals. During the day, the birds that are displayed in and around the shop were moved to the aviary at the back of the park and were not injured. The famous concrete entrance that is shaped like an alligator's mouth did not collapse, but was charred, and later removed due to safety concerns.
Gatorland reopened the day after Thanksgiving 2006, once inspectors confirmed that there was no structural damage to the various walkways and displays at the park.
The gift shop and main offices were rebuilt as a two-story concrete block building, with a new concrete alligator's mouth, and opened on 2008-05-22.