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Carousel in Bobbejaanland, Belgium (Bobbejaan Schoepen Archive)

A carousel (or carrousel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating platform with seats for passengers. The "seats" are traditionally in the form of wooden horses or animals, which are often moved mechanically up and down to simulate galloping. This leads to one of the machine's alternative names, the galloper. Other popular names are merry-go-round, roundabout and flying horses. Usually, circus music is looped while the rides spins. A carousel (or carrousel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating platform with seats for passengers. ... A merry-go-round is another name for a carousel. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 586 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1838 × 1879 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 586 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1838 × 1879 pixel, file size: 1. ... Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter Typhoon roller coaster Bobbejaanland is an amusement park in Lichtaart, Belgium. ... Bobbejaan Schoepen Bobbejaan Schoepen (born Modest Schoepen, May 16, 1925, Boom, Antwerp) is a Flemish entertainer, singer, guitarist, composer, actor, and founder of the Bobbejaanland amusement park in Belgium. ... 4 second exposure night photography . ... This article is about rotation as a movement of a physical body. ... For other uses, see Tradition (disambiguation). ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... Horse gaits are the different ways in which a horse can move, either naturally or as a result of specialized training by humans. ... This article is about devices that perform tasks. ... Entrance of the Gladiators (Czech: Vjezd gladiátorů, German: Einzug der Gladiatoren) is a military march composed in 1897 by the Czech composer Julius Fučík. ...

Although modern carousels in America are mainly populated with horses, carousels in Europe, and in America from earlier periods, frequently include diverse varieties of mounts, including dogs, cats, rabbits, pigs, and deer, to name a few. And sometimes, regular chairlike seats are used as well. For other uses of chair, see chair (disambiguation). ...

Any rotating platform may also be called a carousel. In a playground, a merry-go-round is usually a simple, child-powered rotating platform with bars or handles to which children can cling while riding. At an airport, rotating conveyors in the baggage claim area are often called carousels. Combination playground structure for small children; slides, climbers (stairs in this case), playhouse A playground is an area designed for children to play freely. ... Baggage claim area at the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. ... A Baggage carousel is the name given to a device, generally at an airport, that delivers checked luggage to the passengers at the baggage claim area at their final destination. ...

History

I love carousels!

The earliest carousel is known from a Byzantine Empire bas-relief dating to around 500 A.D., which depicts riders in baskets suspended from a central pole. The word carousel originates from the Italian garosello and Spanish carosella ("little war"), used by crusaders to describe a combat preparation exercise and game played by Turkish and Arabian horsemen in the 1100s. In a sense this early device could be considered a cavalry training mechanism; it prepared and strengthened the riders for actual combat as they wielded their swords at the mock enemies. European Crusaders discovered this contraption and brought the idea back to own their lands, primarily the ruling lords and kings. There the carousel was kept secret within the castle walls, to be used for training by horsemen; no carousel was allowed out in the public. Eventually some small carousel rides were made and installed for royalty in their private gardens. Soon after that, with the pomp of France and circumstance of Paris a grand game was devised and played in Le Place du Carrousel. Along with a pageantry-filled jousting tournament it also consisted of "combatants" throwing clay balls filled with perfumed water at each other, thus those being hit would smell for days. A highlight of the carrousel was the ring-tilt, in which knights would attempt to spear suspended rings at full gallop. Byzantine redirects here. ...

As for the Turkish and Arabian horseman, a carousel was built around 1680 as a training device for the ring-tilt, consisting of wooden horses suspended from arms branching from a center pole. Riders aimed to spear rings situated around the circumference as the carousel was moved by a man, horse, or mule. With the development of craft guilds and the relative freeing up of the trades in Europe, by the early nineteenth century carousels were being built and operated at various fairs and gatherings in central Europe and England. For example, by 1837, wagonmaker Michael Dentzel had converted his wagonmaking business in what is now southern Germany to a carousel-making enterprise. Animals and mechanisms would be crafted during the winter months and the family and workers would go touring in their wagon train through the region, operating their large menagerie carousel at various venues. Other makers such as Heyn in Germany and Bayol in France were also beginning to make carousels at this time. In its own unique style, England was also rapidly developing a carousel-making tradition.

A roundabout at a fair in London, with traditional animal mounts, barley twist poles and fairy lights.

Early carousels had no platforms: the animals would hang on poles or chains and fly out from the centrifugal force of the spinning mechanism; these are called "flying horses" carousels. They were often powered by animals walking in a circle or people pulling a rope or cranking. By the mid-1800s the platform carousel was developed where the animals and chariots would travel around in a circle sitting on a suspended circular floor which was hanging from the centerpole; these machines were then steam-powered. Eventually, with the technological advances of the industrial revolution, bevel gears and offset cranks were installed on these platform carousels, thus giving the animals their well-known up and down motion as they traveled around the center pole. The platform served as a position guide for the bottom of the pole and as a place for people to walk or other stationary animals or chariots to be placed. Band organs were often present (if not built in) when these machines operated. Eventually electric motors were installed and electric lights added, giving the carousel its classic look. Carousel on Londons South Bank during a summer festival. ... Carousel on Londons South Bank during a summer festival. ... Fairground organ A fairground organ is a pipe organ which is not played from a keyboard, but rather by mechanical means such as music roll or book music, and designed originally to be used on a fairground or in the United States on a carousel or in a dance-hall...

Although the carousel developed gradually in European countries such as Germany, France, England, and Italy, it did not reach its full scale development until it went into its American phase. This began with several makers, primarily Gustav Dentzel, Michael Dentzel's son, of Germany, and Dare from England. Michael Dentzel sent all four of his sons over to America in the 1850s, one of them, Gustav, with a full and complete large carousel packed away on the steamship. In early 1860 Gustav set up his family's carousel in Philadelphia to test the American market. It met with great success. At the same time he opened up a carousel and cabinet workshop in Germantown. This eventually became the headquarters for one of America's greatest carousel-making families. Shortly after this beginning other carousel makers from Europe began to arrive on American shores. Many fine woodcarvers and painters, classically trained in their European homeland, worked for these early American companies. The Dentzels, being of German origin, also employed other Germans such as the Muller brothers and also many Italians, such as Salvador Chernigliaro.

Several centers and styles for the construction of carousels emerged in the United States, Philadelphia style, with Dentzel and the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, Coney Island style with Charles Carmel, Charles I. D. Looff, Marcus Charles Illions, Soloman Stein and Harry Goldstein and Mangles, Country Fair style with Allen Herschell and Edward Spillman of Upstate New York, and C.W. Parker of Kansas. Early on the Dentzels became known for their beautiful horses and lavish use of menagerie animals on their carousels. Their mechanisms were also considered among the very best for durability and reliability. Gustav's sons, William and Edward operated the company until William's death in 1927 at which time the company was auctioned off. By this time many carousel companies had gone out of business or diversified into other rides due to the hardships of the depression. Young Edward Dentzel, who was operating carousels in Southern California at the time decided to stay there and become a luxury housing contractor in Beverly Hills, he eventually became the Mayor of that city in the early 1950s. Charles I. D. Looff was a master builder of hand-carved carousels and amusement rides in America. ...

Detail of carousel horse, Edinburgh

Many carousel connoisseurs consider the golden age of the carousel to be early 20th century America. Very large machines were being built, elaborate animals, chariots, and decorations were superbly made by skilled old-world craftsmen taking advantage of their new freedoms in America. Large amounts of excellent and cheap carving wood were available such as Appalachian white pine, basswood, and yellow poplar. Whereas most European carousel figures are relatively static in posture, American figures are more representative of active beasts - tossed manes, expressive eyes and postures of movement are their hallmarks. The first carousel at Coney Island was built in 1876 by Charles I. D. Looff, a Danish woodcarver. The oldest functional carousel in Europe is in Prague (Letná Park). Another style is a double-decker, where there is a huge carousel stacked on top of another. An example is the Columbia Carousel. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 536 pixelsFull resolution (3872 × 2592 pixel, file size: 3. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 536 pixelsFull resolution (3872 × 2592 pixel, file size: 3. ... Charles I. D. Looff was a master builder of hand-carved carousels and amusement rides in America. ... For other uses, see Prague (disambiguation). ... Letná Park Letná Park (in Czech Letenské sady) is a large park built on a plateau above steep embankments along the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic called Letná. Letnás elevation and location afford commanding views of the Prague Old Town (Staré MÄ›sto). ... The Columbia at Six Flags Great America in 2005 Carousel Columbia (also known as Columbia Carousel) is a pair of double-decked carousels at Six Flags Great America and at Paramounts Great America. ...

William H. Dentzel of Port Townsend, Washington is the only descendant from a founding American carousel family of the United States still making wooden carousels. His carousels are similar to the oldest operating carousel in the United States in Watch Hill, R.I. (1893) built by the Dare company, a "flying horses" machine. The power sources for Dentzel’s contemporary carousels range from rope-pull to hand-crank to foot-pedal to AC 110 volt electric to DC solar power.

In the USSR in the 1970s and 1980s carousel was not just an attribute of amusement parks, but also an integral part of the urban culture. Many playgrounds, which existed in every yard, were equipped with a standard flower-shaped carousel, made of metallic bars with six wooden seats attached to them. State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ... Urban culture is the culture of cities. ...

Notable carousels

• The world's only two-row stationary carousel built from an original Dentzel blueprint left in existence^[1], the Highland Park Dentzel Carousel and Shelter Building, is located in Highland Park in Meridian, Mississippi.

• Recently, William Henry Dentzel III, built the world's first solar-powered Carousel. The carousel is in operation in the Solar Living Institute in Hopland, California.

• There is only one carousel in the world that rides in a waving motion - "Over the Jumps: The Arkansas Carousel" in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is also the only remaining wooden track carousel built by the Herschell & Spillman Company, and one of only four track carousels still in existence.

• The carousel at Hersheypark in Hershey, PA is purposely misspelled as "Carrousel".

• The carousel at Eldridge Park is one of the fastest in the world. http://www.eldridgepark.us/

• The carousel at Conneaut Lake Park in Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania is the last T.M. Harton Carousel that is still in operation and its Artizan band organ is one of two known of the same model in the world.

• Binghamton, New York is considered the "Carousel Capital of the World" due to the six original carousels in the Triple Cities area, donated by George F. Johnson, owner of the Endicott-Johnson Company early in the 20th century. These Carousels were donated with the express stipulation that they would never charge admission for anyone to ride them. Apparently when Mr. Johnson was a child he was frequently too poor to ride the local carousel and he vowed this would never happen to another child in the area. The carousel at the Ross park zoo in Binghamton, NY does charge admission, in a way, as it requires the child to drop one piece of litter found in the park into a trash barrel in order to ride. This is all written on a plaque at the entrance to the carousel.

• Himmelskibet in Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen is the world's tallest carousel.

• The oldest existing carousel made in 1779 to 1780 stands in Germany at the Wilhelmsbad Park in Hanau.

• The carousel in Riverfront Park in Spokane, Washington is an original Looff carousel built in 1909 and installed at the Natatorium Park in Spokane. http://spokanecarrousel.org/

• The Richland Carrousel Park in Mansfield, Ohio is an indoor carousel in the downtown Historic Carrousel District that was completed in 1991. It is the first hand-carved indoor wooden carousel to be built and operated in the United States since the early 1930s built by Carousel Works Inc. http://www.richlandcarrousel.com

• Sydney's Darling Harbour Carousel is a New South Wales Heritage listed attraction. It is an example of an old Edwardian Carousel which a very rare nowadays. It is operated by a classic steam motor which has been retained. The Carousel dates back to the 'Golden Age' of Carousels between the 1890s to the 1920s.

Meridian is a city located in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County in Mississippi, a state of the United States of America. ... Hopland is a small town of less than 800 people located at the start of the Redwoods in Mendocino county of Northern California. ... Little Rock redirects here. ... Hersheypark was opened in 1907 as a leisure park for the employees of the Hershey Chocolate Company, an American confectionery company. ... Hershey is an unincorporated community within Derry Township in Dauphin County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. ... Conneaut Lake Park is an amusement park located in Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania, USA. It has long served as a regional tourist destination, and is loved by roller coaster enthusiasts for its classic Blue Streak coaster. ... Conneaut Lake is a borough located in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. ... This article is about the City of Binghamton, New York. ... Himmelskibet (The Star Flyer) is the tallest carousel in the world. ... Tivoli Gardens is a famous amusement park in Copenhagen, Denmark. ... Nickname: Location within the state of Ohio Country United States State Ohio County Richland Founded 1808 Incorporated 1828 (village) - 1857 (city) Government  - Mayor Lydia J. Reid (D) Area [1]  - City  29. ... This article is about the metropolitan area in Australia. ... Darling Harbour is a large recreational pedestrian precinct situated on the western edge of central Sydney, Australia. ... NSW redirects here. ...

Media references

• According to Holly Marie Combs in an episode of Charmed called Forget me...not, "A merry-go-round has lots of animals. A carousel only has horses." This is not actually true; carousel and merry-go-round are synonyms.

• A carousel in Venice, Italy, contains and releases magic and is the focal point of The Thief Lord (Both the book and the movie) by Cornelia Funke.

• In Something Wicked This Way Comes (novel) by Ray Bradbury, there is a carousel in the carnival that can cause riders to become younger or older depending on the direction in which they ride.

• At the end of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield watches his little sister riding on a carousel.

• The musical Carousel (1945) was a broadway musical featuring hit songs such as "If I Loved You" and "You'll Never Walk Alone". The protagonist Billy Bigelow is a carousel barker.

• In the Namco Bandai's Soul Calibur IV game, a stage of a medieval Eastern European carrousel is present in the game.

• In the movie Jeux d'Enfants or Love Me If You Dare (in the translated American title) a tin carousel box is used as a trade-off for a game of truth or dare that gets out of hand.

For other uses, see Charm. ... Venice (Venetian: Venezsia, Italian: Venezia, Latin: Venetia) is the capital of region Veneto, and has a population of 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ... This article is about the novel, for information about the movie see The Thief Lord (film) The Thief Lord (original German title: Herr der Diebe) is a 2000 childrens book by German author Cornelia Funke, whose books have been published in many other languages. ... Cornelia Caroline Funke (born December 10, 1958, in Dorsten, Northrhine-Westphalia) is a celebrated, multiple award-winning German author of childrens fiction. ... Something Wicked This Way Comes is a 1962 novel by Ray Bradbury. ... Ray Douglas Bradbury (born August 22, 1920) is an American literary, fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer best known for The Martian Chronicles, a 1950 book which has been described both as a short story collection and a novel, and his 1953 dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451. ... The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J. D. Salinger. ... Jerome David Salinger (born January 1, 1919) is an American author best known for The Catcher in the Rye, a classic coming-of-age story that has enjoyed enduring popularity since its publication in 1951. ... Carousel is a 1945 stage musical by Richard Rodgers (music) and Oscar Hammerstein II (book and lyrics) that was adapted from Ferenc Molnars play Liliom. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... If I Loved You is a popular song. ... Youll Never Walk Alone is a song written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for their 1945 musical, Carousel. ... A barker is a person who attempts to attract patrons to entertainment events, such as a carnival, by exhorting passing public, describing attractions of show and emphasizing variety, novelty, beauty, or some other feature believed to incite listeners to attend entertainment. ... Soul Calibur IV ) (cited in Electronic Gaming Monthly as the title being one word) is the fifth installment in Namcos Soul series of fighting games. ... Love Me If You Dare (French title: Jeux denfants -- Childs Play in English) is a 2003 French film directed by Yann Samuell). ...

Direction

Roundabouts, the term used in the UK, usually travel clockwise (see photograph at top), while carousels, the term used in the rest of the world, go anti-clockwise. In real life, one gets on a horse by lifing one's right leg over the animal's back as it stands with its head towards your left (the horse's left side is called its "near" side). Likewise for a carousel that turns counter-clockwise: you stand on the near side of the horse to mount (towards the center of the carousel, not on teetering on its outer edge). One reason for the carousel turning counter-clockwise may be so the rider can use their right hand to catch the brass ring. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country in western Europe, and member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the G8, the European Union, and NATO. Usually known simply as the United Kingdom, the UK, or (inaccurately) as Great Britain or Britain, the UK has four constituent... The Clockwise direction A clockwise motion is one that proceeds like the clocks hands: from the top to the right, then down and then to the left, and back to the top. ... A clockwise motion is one that proceeds like the clocks hands: from the top to the right, then down and then to the left, and back to the top. ...

Gallery

Dentzel Carousel, a National Historic Landmark in Meridian, MS, United States. This article or section needs additional references or sources to improve its verifiability. ... Meridian is a city located in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County in Mississippi, a state of the United States of America. ...	French old-fashioned style carousel with stairs ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 613 KB) Summary A old-fashioned style carousel in southern France. ...	Modern carousel in Brussels Old Caroussel in Bruxelles. ...	Columbia is a Double Decker and the World's Tallest Traditional Carousel Image File history File links DSCN0159_(Medium). ...
Standard Soviet carousel, 1970s-1980s Image File history File linksMetadata Standard_Soviet_carousel. ...	James Noyce & Sons' traditional "gallopers" at Nottingham Goose Fair in 1983 Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1066x699, 528 KB) Summary This is a scan from a 35mm transparency which I took in 1983 at the famous Goose Fair, Nottingham, England. ... The Nottingham Goose Fair is an annual travelling fair held in Nottingham, UK, during the first week of October. ...	A 1920s C.W. Parker merry-go-round in Tucson, Arizona Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Tucson (pronounced ) is the seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States, located 118 miles (188 km) southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles (98 km) north of the U.S.-Mexico border. ...	The Town Square Carrousel at Adventureland in Altoona, Iowa Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2000x1263, 671 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Carousel User:Cburnett Adventureland (Iowa) ... Adventureland is a family-owned amusement park in Altoona, Iowa (just northeast of Des Moines). ... Altoona is a city located in Polk County, Iowa. ...
The Mangels-Illions Carousel, after its 2000 restoration, on the grounds of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Columbus, Ohio. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 538 pixelsFull resolution (1131 × 761 pixel, file size: 247 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Author: Ian Francis Source: self-made URL: N/A Camera: Taken with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P73 Date taken: 04/16/2007 Summary: Image of... The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is a non-profit zoo located in Powell, Ohio (Liberty Township/Delaware County), just north of Columbus. ... Nickname: Location in the state of Ohio, USA Coordinates: , Country State Counties Franklin, Fairfield, Delaware Government  - Mayor Michael B. Coleman (D) Area  - City 212. ...	The Richland Carrousel Park in downtown Mansfield, Ohio is the first hand-carved indoor wooden carousel to be built and operated in the United States since the early 1930s. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 594 pixelsFull resolution (2080 × 1544 pixel, file size: 929 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Nickname: Location within the state of Ohio Country United States State Ohio County Richland Founded 1808 Incorporated 1828 (village) - 1857 (city) Government  - Mayor Lydia J. Reid (D) Area [1]  - City  29. ...	A traditional Merry-go-round in Covent Garden, London, August 2007 Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (3072 × 2304 pixel, file size: 3. ... Covent Garden is a district in London, located on the easternmost parts of the City of Westminster and the southwest corner of the London Borough of Camden. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... August is the eighth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ...	William F. Mangels Kiddie Galloping Horse Carrousel circa 1935 William F. Mangels (1866-1958), amusement manufacturer and inventor, worked at Coney Island and was a major player in the development of American amusement parks at the turn of the twentieth century. ...

References

• Coloring book, history, construction handbook.

• A Brief Carousel History, Carousel Magic! web site, 2003-07-30

• The oldest carousel in the world

• How It's Made - Discovery Channel

External links

• Carousels.com
• the National Carousel Association
• the C. W. Parker Carousel Museum
• International Museum of Carousel Art
• Video of a hand-cranked carousel in Szentendre, Hungary
• Merry-Go-Round Museum in Sandusky, Ohio
• Historic Carousels at the 1964-65 New York World's Fair
• Carousel Works
• myCarousel.com
• carrouselconnection.com W.F. Mangels / M.C. Illions Kiddie Carrousel Horses
• Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

carousel

Sandusky is the name of some places in the United States of America: Sandusky, Michigan Sandusky, Ohio Sandusky was the name of the first locomotive built in the United States. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ...