High Chaparral Theme Park

High Chaparral Theme Park is a Wild West-themed attraction in southern Sweden, located near Hillerstorp in Gnosjö Municipality, close to the boundary with Värnamo Municipality and near Store Mosse National Park. Its setting also places it close to major road connections, including the E4 motorway and Swedish national road 27. The park is built around an imagined nineteenth-century North American frontier environment and combines live entertainment, themed architecture, transport attractions, retail, family activities, and overnight accommodation. The park was founded by Swedish entrepreneur Bengt Erlandsson, widely known as “Big Bengt,” and opened in 1966. Erlandsson grew up in Småland in a family connected with forestry and sawmilling. His interest in the American West was influenced by the region’s history of emigration to the United States and by stories associated with that migration. In 1956, he travelled through the United States, covering roughly 4,000 kilometres during a four-month trip. The journey provided visual and cultural impressions that later informed the park’s frontier setting. A significant early construction opportunity arose when Sweden’s national telephone company disposed of a large quantity of wooden telephone poles. Erlandsson used the materials to create a frontier fort and settlement with log cabins and other structures inspired by representations of the American West. What began as a personal and creative project attracted public curiosity, and Erlandsson developed it into a commercial visitor destination. The result was an attraction that combined entertainment with a museum-like presentation of objects associated with popular culture, transportation, machinery, and frontier imagery. High Chaparral’s core experience is broader than a single Western street or theatrical set. The site includes Wild West, Native American, and Mexican-inspired areas; staged stunt performances; themed shops; and activities directed at children and families. Visitors may encounter demonstrations and shows involving Western characters, including Lucky Luke and the Daltons, as well as Zorro. Attractions have included gold panning, a miniature town, a steam train, and a paddle steamer. A buffalo pasture and other outdoor features reinforce the park’s frontier-oriented identity. Retail outlets sell Western-style clothing and accessories, including hats, vests, holsters, and replica firearms. The park has also operated as a cultural and industrial-history display. Its collections have included old cars, motorcycles, machinery, signs, paintings, toys, and unusual Cold War-related objects. In 2018, Bengt Erlandsson’s descendants established a large museum inside the park containing approximately 1,200 items from his collection. The museum did not achieve the expected level of success, and the collection was subsequently scheduled for auction after the season. High Chaparral has remained closely associated with the Erlandsson family. After Bengt Erlandsson died in March 2016, management passed to his grandsons Emil and Philip Erlandsson, who emphasized family audiences. Emil Erlandsson left the chief executive role in September 2016 and later announced plans for a larger American counterpart, but that project was discontinued in 2019 for reasons that were not publicly specified in the available reference material. In addition to day visits, the destination offers a campground with cabins and trailer facilities, together with access to a lake used for swimming. The park has also historically offered free admission to residents of nearby municipalities, linking the attraction to its local community as well as to domestic and international tourism. A major flood in January 2023 submerged substantial parts of the site, creating an operational and preservation challenge. High Chaparral’s present identity rests on its combination of theatrical Western storytelling, family recreation, Swedish regional tourism, and the preservati…

High Chaparral developed from Bengt Erlandsson’s interest in the American frontier and from the cultural links between Småland and Swedish emigration to the United States. Erlandsson was born in 1922 in Brännehylte, Småland, into a family operating a forest farm and sawmill. The stories of local people who had emigrated to America helped shape his fascination with the American West. He travelled through the United States in 1956, spending four months touring approximately 4,000 kilometres and gathering impressions that later influenced his construction and interpretation of the park. The attraction’s physical origins date to the disposal of approximately 200,000 telephone poles by Sweden’s national telephone company. Erlandsson obtained some of this material and used it to build a frontier fort and settlement of log cabins. The structures were styled after nineteenth-century American frontier environments, including imagery associated with United States Cavalry posts and Western settlements. Visitors became curious about the site, and Erlandsson recognized that the project could serve both commercial and historical purposes. High Chaparral opened in 1966 and gradually became a permanent tourist destination rather than a private or purely decorative construction. The park’s historical presentation has always been mediated through popular Western culture rather than functioning as a strictly academic reconstruction. Its setting includes Wild West, Native American, and Mexican-inspired zones, supported by themed buildings, shops, costumes, performances, and transport attractions. Live stunt shows are staged several times a day, while character-based presentations have included Lucky Luke and the Daltons and Zorro. Family activities such as gold panning and a miniature city broaden the attraction beyond passive sightseeing. The park has also offered a steam train, a paddle steamer, a buffalo pasture, and accommodation facilities beside the site. Erlandsson’s collecting activities expanded the attraction into a post-industrial and cultural museum. The collections included toys, signs, paintings, cars, motorcycles, machinery, a steam train, and objects associated with the Cold War. Some displays were unusual and eclectic, including a large bronze statue of Lenin that had been removed from Nowa Huta. This mixture of Western memorabilia, vehicles, machinery, and political artifacts became part of the park’s distinctive character. Bengt Erlandsson was convicted of tax evasion during the 1990s. Despite that controversy, the attraction continued operating and retained its family identity. For many years it offered free admission to residents of neighboring municipalities, an arrangement that connected the park to its local area while it also served visitors from elsewhere in Sweden and abroad. After Erlandsson died in March 2016 at the age of 93, management was associated with his grandsons Emil and Philip Erlandsson. They placed greater emphasis on families and contemporary visitor appeal. Emil stepped down as chief executive in September 2016 and announced an ambition to build a larger equivalent in the United States. The proposal was abandoned in 2019, with no reason identified in the available reference material. In 2018, two years after the founder’s death, the grandsons opened a large museum within High Chaparral to display approximately 1,200 items from his collection. The venture did not prove successful, and the collection was slated for auction after the season. This episode illustrates the difficulty of converting a founder’s personal collection into a separate museum product within a theme-park operation. The park has continued to combine entertainment with destination tourism. Its neighboring campground provides cabins and trailer spaces, and a lake offers swimming. In January 2023, flooding put substantial parts of the property underwater, creating a significant physical disruption. High Chaparral nevertheless remains identified with its founder’s frontier vision and with a family-oriented Swedish interpretation of the Wild West.

1. 2023Major flooding affects the site

   January floods leave substantial parts of the park underwater.

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2. 2019Proposed United States expansion is discontinued

   The larger American park proposed by former CEO Emil Erlandsson is discontinued.

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3. 2018Founder’s collection museum opens

   A museum displaying approximately 1,200 items from Erlandsson’s collection opens inside the park.

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4. 2016Family succession follows the founder’s death

   Bengt Erlandsson dies in March, and management is associated with his grandsons Emil and Philip Erlandsson. Emil later leaves the CEO role.

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5. 1990Founder convicted of tax evasion

   Bengt Erlandsson is convicted of tax evasion during the 1990s; the reference material does not specify the exact year.

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6. 1966High Chaparral opens

   The frontier fort and settlement developed by Bengt Erlandsson opens as a visitor attraction near Hillerstorp in southern Sweden.

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7. 1956Bengt Erlandsson tours the United States

   Erlandsson spends four months travelling through the United States, an experience that informs his later frontier-themed construction and park concept.

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A family-oriented Swedish destination that turns the mythology and visual language of the American frontier into an immersive theme park, while retaining the character of a founder-built museum and regional tourist attraction.

• Wild West theme parkTheme park experience1966

  The central offering is an immersive frontier environment built from forts, log cabins, themed streets, shops, costumes, and live performances. It presents a popular-cultural version of the nineteenth-century American West and includes related Native American and Mexican-inspired areas. The experience is designed for day visitors and families, with opportunities for exploration, photography, shopping, and participation in themed activities.

• Live stunt and character showsLive entertainment

  High Chaparral stages several stunt shows each day and has presented character-based entertainment featuring figures such as Lucky Luke and the Daltons and Zorro. These shows translate Western action imagery into theatrical performances and are a central part of the park’s family-oriented programming.

• Steam train and paddle steamerTransport attraction

  A steam train and paddle steamer provide themed transport and sightseeing within the park. Together with the site’s frontier buildings and outdoor areas, they reinforce the attraction’s nineteenth-century setting while giving visitors a slower, scenic way to move through the grounds.

• Western merchandiseRetail

  On-site shops sell Western-themed clothing and accessories, including hats, vests, holsters, and replica revolvers and rifles. The merchandise extends the park’s experience beyond the visit and supports its role as a themed destination rather than only a collection of rides or shows.

• Founder’s collection museumMuseum2018

  The museum created in 2018 displayed roughly 1,200 objects collected by Bengt Erlandsson. Its holdings included toys, signs, paintings, cars, motorcycles, machinery, a steam train, and Cold War-related objects. The museum was not successful in its initial form, and the collection was scheduled for auction after the season.

• Camping and cabin accommodationHospitality

  Accommodation beside the park includes a campground with cabins and trailer facilities. The site also has a lake used for swimming, allowing visitors to make the park part of a longer regional holiday rather than limiting their visit to a single day.

• 2023Response to major site floodingOther

  Heavy flooding in January 2023 left major parts of the park underwater.

  What changed. The park faced disruption and site damage associated with the flooding.

  Aftermath. The available reference material does not specify the duration of closure, repair measures, or financial impact.

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• 2019Discontinuation of the United States expansion projectStrategy

  The proposed larger American counterpart to High Chaparral remained under consideration after its announcement in 2016.

  What changed. The project was discontinued in 2019.

  Aftermath. High Chaparral continued as a Sweden-based attraction. No public explanation is given in the reference material.

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• 2018Launch of the founder’s collection museumProduct launch

  Following Bengt Erlandsson’s death, his grandsons sought to present his extensive collection as a major museum attraction within the park.

  What changed. Emil and Philip Erlandsson opened a museum containing approximately 1,200 objects, including vehicles, toys, signs, artwork, machinery, and Cold War artifacts.

  Aftermath. The museum did not prove successful, and the collection was scheduled for auction at the end of the season.

  Source
• 2016Proposal for a larger United States parkStrategy

  After leaving the CEO position in September 2016, Emil Erlandsson announced plans to create a similar but larger attraction in the United States.

  What changed. The proposed American park was pursued as an expansion of the High Chaparral concept but was later discontinued in 2019.

  Aftermath. The project did not proceed; the available reference material does not disclose the reason for its cancellation.

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• 1990Bengt Erlandsson tax-evasion convictionControversy

  Bengt Erlandsson was convicted of tax evasion during the 1990s. The available reference does not provide the exact year, court details, or penalty.

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• 2023Flooding submerges major parts of the park

  Floods in January 2023 left major parts of High Chaparral underwater, affecting the site and its facilities.

  Other
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• 2018Founder’s collection museum opens inside the park

  Emil and Philip Erlandsson created a museum displaying approximately 1,200 objects from Bengt Erlandsson’s collection, including toys, signs, paintings, vehicles, motorcycles, and a steam train.

  Product launch
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• 2018Museum collection scheduled for auction after weak results

  The museum was not successful enough to continue in its initial form, and the collection was scheduled to be auctioned at the end of the season.

  Other
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• 2016Bengt Erlandsson dies at 93

  Founder Bengt Erlandsson, known as Big Bengt, died in March 2016 at the age of 93. His death marked the end of the founding era of the family-run attraction.

  Other
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• 2016Emil Erlandsson leaves the chief executive role and announces a proposed United States park

  In September 2016, Emil Erlandsson stepped down as CEO and announced plans to develop a larger park in the United States. The proposed project was later discontinued in 2019.

  Leadership change
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1. High Chaparral Theme Park
2. High Chaparral official website