The magic (and madness) of Marine World

Audrey Boyce

Only a few decades ago, lions and tigers roamed the area that would become headquarters to some of the biggest tech companies in the world at what was called Marine World/Africa USA.

Marine World had two elements: African and aquatic. The African element contained elephant and camel rides as well as a lion and tiger show. The aquatic attraction had dolphins, seals, whales, and water ski shows.

Bradford S. Baruh was the visionary for Marine World, and targeted the Redwood Shores area as the perfect location with its access to water and good climate. Baruh partnered with the American Broadcasting Corporation to create the park.

The first animals purchased for Marine World were from an animal park in St. Petersburg, Florida that was closing: two whales, four dolphins, and seven Humboldt penguins.

“My biggest memories were getting to the front seats so you could get splashed by the giant wave from the jumping killer whale. All the kids went to the front, and the parents would sit higher up to avoid getting soaked to the skin,” Susan Linares, a resident at the time, said.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Marine World hosted rock concerts with performers such as Big Brother & The Holding Company, Elvis Bishop, and Tower of Power.

“It was attended by people from all over. It was definitely the place to go when you had visitors from out of town,” Linares said.

Part of what made Marine World such a popular attraction was its bayfront location. The natural lagoon located in Redwood Shores was utilized to support the activities. This provided unique exhibits for the aquatic aspect of Marine World.

“There was a show with people doing water skiing jumps and pyramids. I remember a yearly milk carton boat contest where people built their own boats and would paddle in a race in the lagoon,” Linares said.

Jefferey Young, who attended Marine World as a child, described a specific attraction that stuck in his memory.

“I remember a ride, it was a scenic zipline where I was attached by a swing, and on the swing, I could see all of the African animals set-ups below me— there were zebras, elephants, and more,” Young said.

Jefferey Young is likely referring to the zipline in “Whale of a Time World”, which according to the San Francisco Chronicle, was where San Francisco 49ers star guard Randy Cross severely injured his ankle.

Julie Taha, who also visited Marine World as a child, voiced the reality of the rapidly changing infrastructure that is now less focused around entertainment for youth and nature. Redwood Shores, now the home to Oracle, Nintendo, Zuora, Qualys, Shutterfly, and many more major technology companies, is arguably not a place one would expect to have been home to such an exciting place.

“Nowadays, more and more places where kids could go are being replaced

Anika Marino

The aquatic theme park that used to call Redwood Shores home

San Francisco Chronicle/CC BY-NC

An elephant skis at Marine World in 1969 at what is now the Belmont Slough. by condo complexes and business offices. That was probably my first experience of concrete replacing nature,” Taha said.

Despite the fascination and fun that came with Marine World, there were, of course, ethical downsides. As animal cruelty is a topic brought more to light in our current era, some of the practices at Marine World can be viewed as immoral. Taha presumes that the reason for the park’s closure was due to these ethical problems and the growing tech industry.

“I think two things happened: people realized that putting whales in captivity was not a very good thing, and (the park) probably started to lose money. In addition, the Silicon Valley high tech market was moving into the area, so they were probably offered a lot of money for the land. They [Marine World] ended up moving to Vallejo,” Taha said.

Taha was correct. In the early 80s, the developers at Campeau Corporation had plans to build a $300 million project which would force Marine World to a new location in Vallejo, according to Redwood City History. However, Marine World did provide educational information about the animals and the attractions, as many of the workers were animal experts. Small presentations about each of the animals would be presented to the visitors.

“As a kid, and having loved animals so much, I really appreciate that there was a place like Marine World. No, it wasn’t perfect, but it was somewhere you could go to learn about things. The people who worked there seemed to have an interest and expertise in animals also,” Taha said.

Public Domain A 1960s tour group on one of Marine World’s rides at modern day Oracle Bay Trail. Ed Bierman/Jeffat/CC BY-NC A crowd watching a demonstration in 1970 at what is now Oracle Parkway.