In this two-part series, the Port News fondly looks back at some of the many amusement and family fun parks that were dotted across the Port Macquarie-Hastings.
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This story looks at King Neptune's Park.
You could feed dolphins, get up close and personal with some seals and other marine life and learn about conservation - 1970s-style.
Port Macquarie's Marine Park - later renamed King Neptune's Park - was situated at the eastern end of the Breakwall caravan park on land that now houses the skatepark and the playground area.
It was a major attraction for the area for several years, not only for its many visitors but for those who worked at the attraction and local residents.
Its genesis was in the mid to late 1960s and early 1970s but the concept took many years to bring to fruition. There were some false dawns.
In 1967 Jack Evans was the well-known owner of the Tweed Head's Porpoise Pool. He proposed leasing an area on the southern breakwall toward Town Beach.
He was supported by the lessees of the then Caracamp, who agreed to make available the necessary land for the porpoise pool.
He was confident of building the first pool and grandstand by Christmas of that year, given he had support from the Port Macquarie Council and the Public Works Department.
All parties viewed the planned marine park as integral to developing Port Macquarie as the state's premier holiday spot.
Part of Mr Evans' plan was to catch dolphins in the Hastings River.
By April the following year, representatives from Marineland in Queensland had visited the town to discuss their potential interest in developing the marine park.
A public meeting was given an insight into the challenges of establishing such a facility but despite the misgivings, the then mayor Ald. Mac Adams felt strongly that the marine park would be the start of a steady flow of tourists into the town.
In June 1969 council approved a proposal from builder and plumber, W. J. Heffernan, to build a Marine Park, research station and aquarium on land adjacent to the Caracamp below Mrs York's garden.
While there was plenty of momentum for the project, the proposal did not proceed.
But that change and in 1972, the construction of Port Macquarie's Marine Park was underway. It was not without its problems and modifications to the pumping systems were needed before it had even opened.
Constructed by Bill Wozencraft on a land lease in-perpetuity, the $200,000 marine park opened to the public in 1973.
Its initial inhabitants included a locally caught 600lb giant turtle and a four year old female Dolphin and five fur seals.
A dolphin trainer, Rick Smallman, arrived from England to train and care for the seals, dolphins and other marine life.
He has fond memories of those early days at the park and says he is tempted to write a book on the popular tourist attraction.
I'd started working with animals when I was just 16 years old.
- Rick Smallman
Mr Smallman, who still lives in Port Macquarie with wife Carol, travelled the world training and working with other skilled marine animal trainers before taking up an offer to work in Port Macquarie in 1973.
"I'd started working with animals when I was 16 years old," Mr Smallman said.
"Fortunately I was able to travel extensively working and living with some of the best trainers around the world.
"I took up an opportunity to come to Australia through Jack Evans. In those days it was more word of mouth and your experience that got you a job.
"There were a few problems with the local facility - including the pool being round, which is not the best for training and performing marine animals.
"However, the facility was pretty popular right from the start with locals and tourists," he said.
"The reason it was successful was easy: the closer you can get people to the animals the more they like it."
Mr Smallman admitted to having a bit of "the showman in him" and said this was another reason why he enjoyed his job so much.
"Half the dolphin sessions were about getting people involved in the show. They loved it.
"You'd ask them: 'do you want to go for a swim with a dolphin?' and they loved every minute of it.
You'd ask them: 'do you want to go for a swim with a dolphin?' and they loved every minute of it.
- Rick Smallman
"Dolphins are highly intelligent animals and they responded really well to routine. They were very trainable animals."
And the veteran animal trainer says the role of facilities such as King Neptune's Park and SeaWorld (Queensland) played in helping people better understand the animal world was important.
"Even the so-called politically correct learnt much of what they know about dolphins and other animals from facilities like the park in Port Macquarie and elsewhere," he says.
"We certainly played a vital role in that learning process.
"Our animals were really well fed and looked after. We had regular veterinary health checks on them. There were also many injured animals brought in for treatment and feeding from all sorts of sea birds, dolphins, penguins and New Zealand seals.
"We also helped people appreciate the differences between dolphins from around the world, their habitats and how they adapted to change in their environment."
Mr Smallman said he had been approached a number of times about whether he'd be interested in writing a book about the park and his time and experiences working there.
He understands and appreciates how important King Neptune's Park is to the history and fabric of the Port Macquarie community.
"It played a vital part and role in this community over many years," he says.
It played a vital part and role in this community over many years.
- Rick Smallman
Sadly though, he does not see many of the former staff from his time at the park.
But he has fond memories of his experience and the visits he hosted from animal researchers, photographers, filmmakers and authors.
Mr Smallman eventually left the park in 1987 after deciding to take a caravanning trip around Australia.
The trip was short-lived.
"We had reached Nowra when we heard that Jane - my favourite dolphin - had passed away and we decided to head back home," he said.
He was approached about returning to work - mostly on weekends - at the park and he jumped at the chance.
But, he says, the writing was on the wall that the park had hit some problems.
Faced with restrictive government legislation regarding keeping dolphins and sea lions in animal parks, mounting costs, and the inability to expand, the park owners Syd and Marie Murphy had little choice but to close.
The popular tourist attraction eventually closed on January 31, 1989.
The park's residents including Cheeky the dolphin, crocodiles, fairy penguins which are now called Little Penguins and birds were moved to new homes.
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