Dinn Corporation

Updated on Nov 25, 2023

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Former type Private Founder Charles Dinn Defunct 1991		Fate Dissolved Founded 1983

Industry Roller coaster construction Key people Charles Dinn, Denise Dinn Larrick, Randy Larrick, Jeff Dinn Headquarters West Chester Township, Butler County, Ohio, Ohio, United States

The roller coasters of dinn corporation

Dinn Corporation was a roller coaster designing and manufacturing company established in West Chester, Ohio in 1983 by Charles Dinn. The company is noted for moving and rebuilding several existing wooden coasters and building ten new wooden roller coasters in the United States.

History

Charles Dinn served as Kings Island's Director of Construction, Maintenance and Engineering, where he oversaw the design and building of The Beast with a team including Al Collins, Jim Nickell, William Reed and Curtis D. Summers. In November 1984, Dinn left Kings Island and opened his own corporation in West Chester, Ohio. The corporation relocated three older wooden roller coasters from parks that had been closed to new parks One of the firm's first projects was rebuilding the San Antonio Playland Park Rocket as the Phoenix at Knoebels Amusement Resort. In 1985 Dinn contacted Curtis D. Summers, Inc., an engineering firm in Loveland, Ohio to provide the design for the restoration of the helix of Paragon Park's Giant Coaster which his company was moving to Wild World in Largo, Maryland. That was the start of relationship that lasted until 1991. In 1987 the two started building new coasters, with Wolverine Wildcat and Raging Wolf Bobs both opening in 1988.

In 1991, Charlie Dinn closed the Dinn Corporation after a dispute that occurred during the construction of Pegasus at Efteling. This was despite a possible project in the works for Kings Island to open in 1992. However, Charles's daughter Denise Dinn Larrick formed the now-defunct company Custom Coasters International, with many of the key personnel from the Dinn Corp.