There's a destination out there for every kind of food lover. Collegedale, Tennessee has Little Debbie Park, where fans can climb and pose with life-sized replicas of the famous Little Debbie snacks. Atlanta, Georgia is home to Coca-Cola World, a cafe and discovery lab where soda obsessors can learn how to make Coca-Cola. But, how many food brands can boast an entire town and theme park named in their honor? Hersheypark and the surrounding town of Hershey, Pennsylvania was created by Milton Hershey, candy maker and inventor of Hershey's chocolate, to provide his employees with a more pleasant living and working environment.
When Hersheypark first opened in 1906, the original idea behind it was to promote simplicity and relaxation. Hershey developed Hersheypark as a prime location for water activities, creating a dazzling lake on Spring Creek where his employees could enjoy a peaceful boat or canoe ride. The park was full of beautiful, towering trees and acres of wooded groves to provide shady picnic and walking spots. At first, the park only consisted of a few main buildings and a pavilion, but within a few years of opening, it grew to include a merry-go-round, an amphitheater, bowling alleys, tennis courts, a scenic railroad, a carousel, and much more. Over 100 years later, Milton Hershey's vision of creating a factory town like no other still rings true today.