--- title: "Illinois" description: "Illinois’ modern amusement history includes the Gurnee park originally developed under the Marriott name.The story behind the day outA hotel company builds a theme parkMarriott’s Great America opened in 1976. The park’s official timeline follows construction through the preceding year and its debut as a new permanent destination. Its origins connect the theme-park business with a hospitality company looking beyond hotels. The familiar Great America name has continued through later ownership changes, but the 1976 opening belongs to the original Marriott development rather than the subsequent Six Flags era.Sources & further readingSix Flags Great America · Official historical timelineHistorical sources checked 25 October 2026." canonical_url: "https://thmprk.com/region/illinois/" markdown_url: "https://thmprk.com/region/illinois/index.md" language: "en-US" content_type: "taxonomy_archive" taxonomy: "job_listing_region" term_id: 209 page: 1 --- # Illinois Illinois’ modern amusement history includes the Gurnee park originally developed under the Marriott name. The story behind the day out ## A hotel company builds a theme park Marriott’s Great America opened in 1976. The park’s official timeline follows construction through the preceding year and its debut as a new permanent destination. Its origins connect the theme-park business with a hospitality company looking beyond hotels. The familiar Great America name has continued through later ownership changes, but the 1976 opening belongs to the original Marriott development rather than the subsequent Six Flags era. ### Sources & further reading - [Six Flags Great America · Official historical timeline]() Historical sources checked 25 October 2026. 1 published places. Page 1 of 1. - [Six Flags Great America]() · [Markdown](); location: Gurnee, Illinois, United States. Canonical source: https://thmprk.com/region/illinois/