See the last pony rides at Sacramento’s William Land Park, as owner rides off to retirement

After 37 years of pony rides at William Land Park, Marilyn Hagemann is riding off into the sunset.

Hagemann, owner of Land Park Pony Rides, packed up her ponies for the last time on Memorial Day after helping kids with a final day of rides at the park on her last day of operations. She and the animals will retire.

“We have 16 of them, a few horses and the ponies,“ she said. “A few of them are going to go to a place they have in Woodland for disabled children, but the others were going to find homes for, (and) I’m going to keep a few that need special care.”

According to the Sacramento Public Library, the rides were started in 1926 by Martin Bryant and operated through World War II, when a ride cost 10 cents. In 1948, the concession was acquired by Eddie Fernandes, whose family’s stint ended in 1980.

Hagemann took over in 1986, after the previous concessionaire quit amid a quarrel with the city over ride prices and improvements to the barns, according to Bee reports.

The pony rides, adjacent to Funderland and across the Land Park Drive from the Sacramento Zoo, are part of the parks kid-focused district that also includes Fairytale Town.

This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 5:00 AM.