The roller coaster doesn’t have a single clear “inventor,” but two key milestones are usually highlighted: early “Russian Mountains” ice slides in the 1600s–1700s, and LaMarcus Adna Thompson, who is often called the “father of the modern roller coaster” for his 1884 Switchback Railway in New York.

Early origins: Russian ice slides

  • In the 17th–18th centuries, people in Russia built large wooden ice slides —steep ramps covered in ice where riders sped down in sleds.
  • These “Russian Mountains” are widely considered the earliest ancestors of the roller coaster, more like giant permanent slides than mechanical rides.

From Russia to modern coasters

  • In the 1800s, the concept spread and evolved, including wheeled cars on tracks instead of sleds on ice.
  • Gravity-powered hills, linked cars, and more controlled layouts slowly turned these slides into recognizable amusement rides.

LaMarcus Adna Thompson’s role

  • In 1884, American inventor LaMarcus Adna Thompson built the Switchback Railway at Coney Island, often cited as the first commercially successful modern roller coaster.
  • Because of this and his later designs, Thompson is frequently credited as the “father of the roller coaster,” even though he refined an idea that had been evolving for centuries.

TL;DR: No single person “invented” the roller coaster, but early Russian ice slides started the idea, and LaMarcus Adna Thompson is most often credited with inventing the first modern roller coaster in 1884.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.