Carvers and Manufacturers
Illions Looff Stein/ Goldstein Dentzel
During the golden age
of carousels, several companies were manufacturing the machine in the United
States. Many of the companies (see below) were major manufacturers each turning
out a hundred or more carousels, but many were small and made only a few. Some
of the minor carousel manufacturers not listed below are Owen and Margeson of Hornellsville, NY
(now Hornell, NY), Gottfried Bungarz Stage, Wagon and
Carrousele Works in Brooklyn, New York, Gillie, Godard and Company in Tonawanda, NY, and The Queen
City Carousselle Company, the Gem Novelty Company
(later named the United States Merry-Go-Round Company) and the Cincinnati
Merry-Go-Round Company all in Cincinnati.
There were many
skilled artisans, most European immigrants, carving horses, menagerie animals,
rounding boards (crestings, shields, rims, cornices)
and facades in the United States. Several carvers often worked for a single
company and many carvers moved from shop to shop or supplied figures to more
than one company. Most figures were not signed, the carvers were never indexed and records have been destroyed or lost. Thus, it is
often “pure guesswork” assigning figures to specific carvers. Many carvers such
as Charles I. D. Looff were also manufacturers who
made the complete machine while other carvers such as Marcus Illions teamed with another company that made the platform,
frame and machinery. Illions and William Mangels had
a relationship that resulted in several carousels. The W. F. Mangels Company,
E. Joy Morris, M. D. Borelli, T. M. Harton, Fred Dolle, Henry Dorber and Kremer’s Carousel Works made carousel platforms,
frames and mechanisms, but all their figures were supplied by either private
artisans or by artisans in their employ.
Major carvers and
manufacturers are listed alphabetically by last name below.
Charles
Carmel
Charles Carmel,
born in Russia in 1865, immigrated to the United States in 1883 where he
settled in Brooklyn, NY. As a carver, trained in his homeland, Carmel easily
found employment in Charles Looff’s and Willam Mangels’ carousel shops. During his time with Looff, Carmel met another master carver, Marcus Charles Illions, who was also working there. Carmel left the Looff Carousel Company when Looff
moved to East Providence, Rhode Island and joined the employ of Solomon Stein
and Harry Goldstein. In 1905, Charles Carmel left Stein and Goldstein and
opened his own carving facility at 202 Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn. Carving
independently, until 1920, he sold his horses to carousel frame manufacturers
including William Mangels, Stein and Goldstein, Frederick Dolle
and M. D. Borelli, the Murphy brothers, and the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
Carmel’s figures are found primarily on mixed carousels with figures from other
carvers.
Charles
Carmel
Often borrowing from the styles of other
carvers such as Marcus Charles Illions, Charles Looff and Stein and Goldstein, Carmel had very high
standards and his horses appear realistic with windswept manes and are
beautifully decorated. They are liberally adorned with fish scale blankets,
feathers, tassels and armor. Trappings, bridles and saddles were often adorned
with jewels. (It is thought that the jewels may have been added by platform
manufacturers such as Borelli since Carmel did not like jewels and used them
very sparingly.) Their stature has been described as powerful, strong and
aggressive. Secondary carvings such as eagles, rabbits and game birds often
adorn his horses. The flowing mane and batwing saddle became two of his own
signature design innovations, although due to his adoption of the numerous
traits from other carvers, Carmel’s horses may be difficult to distinguish.
L. A Carmel horse from
Rye Playland, Rye, New York; R. A Carmel horse at the New England Carousel
Museum in Bristol, CT
Charles Carmel died of cancer in 1931 (or
1933), but his legacy lives on. His work may currently be seen on carousels at
Rye Playland in Rye, New York and at Knoebel’s Grove
in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. The carousel in New Haven, Connecticut is a mixture
of horses some of which are Carmel’s.
For further reading:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://gesacarouselofdreams.com/about/carousel-background/
http://www.silverbeachcarousel.com/about-us/carousel-history
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/where-have-the-carousel-animals-gone-antique-merry-go-rounds-fight-extinction/
Frank Carretta
Frank Carretta immigrated to Philadelphia from Italy as a
fourteen year old boy to live with friends after his father died. Carretta found work
first as a cabinetmaker in a furniture factory but found little stimulation
from the trade because he was unable to use his fertile imagination. Carretta joined the Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1903
but only stayed a few months before joining the Dentzel
Company where he worked for six years before rejoining the Philadelphia
Toboggan Company in about 1912 where he became a master carver and continued to
work until the 1940s. His horses were large, powerful, elaborate and intricate
in detail.
Frank
Carretta
Carretta loved carving horses
because children liked to ride horses better than menagerie animals. In an
interview, Carretta said: “What better thing can a
man do than make children happy?”*
Some of the horses
on the Philadelphia Toboggan Company #80 carousel in Holyoke, Massachusetts
were carved by Carretta. The chariots on the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company #85 Paragon carousel in Hull, Massachusetts were
probably carved by Carretta.
One
of the chariots of the Paragon carousel, Hull, Massachusetts, probably carved
by Caretta
*This quote is
from an article we located on Google Images. The source of the article is
unknown, but seems to have been from an interview of Carretta
by Edwin W. Teale.
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Hinds, Anne Dion. 1990. Grab the
Brass Ring: The American Carousel. New York: Crown Pub.
Hopkins, Roland.
2006 Convention visits
Minnesota and the Dakotas. Carousel News
& Trader, November 20, 2006.
Salvatore
Cernigliaro
Salvatore “Cherni” Cernigliaro (1879-1974)
was a cabinet and furniture maker from Italy who specialized in carving
ornamentation. He immigrated to Philadelphia in 1902 (or 1903) at the age of
twenty-three. He found employment with the E. Joy Morris Carroussel
Company. In 1903, when the company was sold, Cernigliaro
found employment with Gustav Dentzel. Although the Dentzel carousels had a variety of menagerie animals, it
was Cernigliaro who introduced cats, ostriches, pigs
and rabbits. Cernigliaro was given free rein to
innovate new designs. He carved the entire animal including decorative flowers,
straps, and drapery and introduced secondary carvings such as beautiful cherubs
to the Dentzel Company. He was the first to carve
armor. Cernigliaro
is credited with inventing the Arabian horse. While with the Dentzel Carousel Company, Cernigliaro
worked closely with Albert and Daniel Muller with whom he became very close
friends. When the Dentzel Carousel Company
temporarily closed after Gustav Dentzel’s death in
1909, Cernigliaro worked for the Philadelphia
Toboggan Company, carved propellers to aid in the war effort and tripled his
weekly wage. After the war, he went back to work for the Dentzel
Carousel Company. Soon after the Dentzel Carousel
Company closed in 1928, Cernigliaro moved to
California to teach the art of carving.
Salvatore
Cernigliaro
A
cat from the Pullen Park, Raleigh, North Carolina carousel probably carved by Cernigliaro
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the Carousel. Green Village, NJ:
Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fraley, Tobin and
Gary K. Wolf, Carousel
Animals: Artistry in Motion. San
Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2002.
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN
0-911572-29-5.
The
Salvatore “Cherni” Cernigliaro
Letters. September,
October and November, 2004 The Carousel News
& Trader. http://carouselhistory.com/the-cherni-salvatore-cernigliaro-letters
Weedon, Geoff and Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art. London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
Andrew
Christian
Andrew Christian (circa
1825-1871) was an American toymaker who started his business, Andrew Christian
& Sons, at 65 Maiden Lane in Brooklyn, New York City circa 1856. The
manufacturing was located at 87 - 93 Mangin Street
in Brooklyn. In
the area business directories, the company was listed variously as a maker of
toys, hobby horses, spring horses, perambulators, carriages, cabs, rocking
horses, propellers and sleighs. The earliest reference to a Christian carousel
is 1870. It is thought that Christian and Charles Dare (see below) worked
together for a year beginning in 1867 or 1868 during which time the Watch Hill,
Rhode Island carousel was manufactured.
An
Advertising Medal. From: Benjamin, William and Barbara Williams. 2016. Andrew
Christian and Charles W. F. Dare. Carousel History. http://carouselhistory.com/andrew-christian-and-charles-w-f-dare/
After Christian’s
untimely death in 1871, control of the company was assumed by Hoffmire, Kelsey & Cornwell. By 1876, Charles Dare (see
below) is listed as occupying the Mangin Street
buildings. Thus, it is probable that Dare purchased the Hoffmire,
Kelsey & Cornwell company.
From:
Benjamin, William and Barbara Williams. 2016. Andrew
Christian and Charles W. F. Dare. Carousel History. http://carouselhistory.com/andrew-christian-and-charles-w-f-dare/
A
Christian horse from the Watch Hill, Rhode Island carousel
For further
information:
Charles
W. F. Dare
Charles W. F. Dare
(1834 - 1896) was originally (circa 1858-1859) a manufacturer of children's toys, primarily carriages, rocking horses and
carousels. Dare may very well have been the first carousel manufacturer
in America. In 1867, his retail/manufacturing
business was at 47 Cortlandt Street in Manhattan and listed as
selling/manufacturing hobby horses. Dare
probably produced his first carousel between 1867 and 1875. Determining
the date that Dare made his first carousel is complicated by the apparent
interchangeability of the terms “hobby horse” and “carousel horse”. By 1872 and 1876, manufacturing was at 62 Kent Street in
Brooklyn and 87-93 Mangin Street in Brooklyn,
respectively. The manufacturing location of 87-93 Mangin
Street shows the connection between Andrew Christian and Charles Dare who
previously occupied the same site. In 1884, the name of the company was changed
to C. W. F. Dare Company. By 1889, Dare was concentrating on carousels (Dare
referred to them as “carousals”) and had established the New York Carousel Manufacturing Company at 234-236 Kent
Street in Brooklyn after the C. W. F. Dare
Company was found to be insolvent. In 1890, the New York Carousel
Manufacturing Company acquired the assets of the insolvent C. W. F. Dare Company.
Two years after Dare’s death in 1896, the New York Carousel Manufacturing Company was also
insolvent.
Dare
Company Letterhead
Dare is credited with designing and popularizing the county fair
style of carousel: simple, plain, sturdy, light weight and easily portable and
storable. The carousels were manufactured for travelling the countryside to
county fairs, carnivals and special events. His “flying horses” were mounted on
chains and rods so that as the mechanism rotated, centrifugal force would allow
the horses to “fly” outward. The Flying Horses Carousel, a National Historic Landmark, located in Watch
Hill, Rhode Island is an example. Dare also made swinging platform carousels
and traditional platform carousels.
Note center metal rod (white) and rear chain (white). From the
Watch Hill, Rhode Island carousel
The Dare Flying Horses carousel at Watch Hill, Rhode Island
Dare horses and figures have been described as crude, primitive
and “toy-like”. All of Dare’s horses have a characteristic martingale on the
breast. His figures had real horsehair tails and manes and leather saddles and
ears. Many of the horses manufactured by the Dare Company were most likely
carved by Andrew
Christian, who originally specialized in the production of rocking horses.
Christian’s rocking horse style, with its outstretched front legs, can be seen on the Flying Horses Carousel in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. The
company also produced menagerie animals and platforms on which the horses could
be mounted. The Flying Horses Carousel in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts on Martha’s
Vineyard, also a National
Historic Landmark, is an example of a Dare platform
carousel. The carousels at Watch Hill and Oak Bluffs are thought to have been
built in 1876.
The Dare Flying Horses carousel at Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts
Although the only totally “Dare Carousels” still in operation
are those located in Watch Hill, Rhode Island and Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, a
carousel in Brenham, Texas features Dare horses on a C.W. Parker manufactured
carousel.
The company closed in the late 1890’s. Charles F.W. Dare died in
1901.
For further information:
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN
0-911572-29-5.
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International Publishing.
ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
Benjamin, William
and Barbara Williams. 2016. Andrew
Christian and Charles W. F. Dare. Carousel History. http://carouselhistory.com/andrew-christian-and-charles-w-f-dare/
www.http//:papermatters.blogspot.com
www.http//:cityofbrenham.org
www.http//:mvpreservation.org
Gustav Dentzel
Gustav Dentzel was born in Germany in 1840 and immigrated to the
United States in 1860 (maybe as late as 1864). His father, William Dentzel, was a carver of carousel horses in Kreuznach, Germany, and Denzel learned the craft while
assisting his father. William Dentzel had a carousel
in Germany as early as 1837-1839. Gustav Dentzel settled
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and opened a business as a cabinet maker at 433
Brown Street.
Gustav
Dentzel
In 1867, while not
making cabinets, he made a small traveling carousel with seats (no horses) suspended
by chains from a center pole. The power to rotate the carousel was supplied by
a human. He traveled with the carousel until 1870, when he decided to
manufacture them full time and referred to himself as a “Carroussell
Builder”. After discovering that Americans liked his carousel, he changed the
name of his company to G. A. Dentzel, Steam and
Horsepower Caroussell Builder (note change of
spelling from “carroussell” to “caroussell”).
The spelling was later changed to “carrousel”.
Dentzel was the first to supply steam power to
a carousel in the United States. He moved his company to Beach and Fairmont
Avenues in Germantown, Philadelphia. His
first carousel was set up at Smith’s Island on the Delaware River in Philadelphia
in 1870 and was so successful that he dismantled it and moved it to Atlantic
City, New Jersey. Dentzel travelled from town to town
selling tickets to the ride. The company’s name was
later changed to the G. A. Dentzel Company. Dentzel not only carved and manufactured the carousels, he
also operated several in amusement parks. Dentzel
primarily manufactured park model carousels.
G. A. Dentzel, Carroussell
Builder
According
to Daniel C. Muller, the early horses of the G. A. Dentzel
Company were designed by Johann Heinrich (John Henry) Muller, Daniel’s father,
who had immigrated to America in 1881. Dentzel is
known for his very realistic, life-like, gentle appearing, graceful and
beautiful carousel animals. The Dentzel horses were
never jeweled. Not only did Dentzel carve horses, but
he also carved a variety of other animals including domestic cats, tigers,
lions, pigs, rabbits, frogs, ostriches, and giraffes. From 1903, although he
hired several German and Italian immigrant carvers, Dentzel’s
chief and master carver was Salvatore Cernigliaro who
created “lavish trappings of flowers, bells, bows, and intricate halters,
straps” (Dinger, 1983) and “elaborate drapery” (Fried, 1964). Cernigliaro also introduced whimsical animals to Dentzel’s menagerie carousels. Dentzel
also employed other carvers such as Harry Dentzel,
Gustav’s nephew. When Johann Heinrich Muller died, Dentzel
employed Muller’s sons, Daniel C. and Alfred. Daniel C. Muller is recognized as
Dentzel’s most talented, imaginative and gifted
artisan.
The Dentzel platforms make use of mirrors and other decorations
which add to their appeal and beauty. Often, each horse/figure in a row were of
similar colors. Most of Dentzel’s carousels were
built as special orders and included the special specifications of the
purchaser.
Note the similar colors on this row of horses from the carousel
in Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania.
In
1900, Dentzel manufactured his first electrified
carousel using the overhead crank and gear mechanism allowing for jumping
horses.
Dentzel died in 1909, but his sons, William and
Edward ran the company until it closed in 1928, when William died. The stock was
purchased by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company. Edward moved to California
where the fifth and sixth generations of Dentzel
carousel makers continue the family tradition. William H. Dentzel
III sustains the art by accepting a few projects which focus on carousel
making, history and restoration. His younger brother, David, has carved several
large animals, some wooden carousels and a selection of items for collectors.
L to R: William Dentzel, Edward Dentzel, Salvatore Cernigliaro
From Carousel History:
http://carouselhistory.com/gustav-and-william-dentzel-co/
From a ca. 1920 Dentzel flyer
Approximately
two dozen Dentzel Carousels remain in operation.
Three are preserved in museums. Others are thought to have worn out from use or
have been dismantled and due to the unique style and wonderful craftsmanship,
sold separately to collectors.
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the Carousel. Green Village, NJ:
Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN
0-911572-29-5.
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dentzel_Carousel_Company
http://dentzel.weebly.com/
http://carouselhistory.com/gustav-and-william-dentzel-co/
Frederick
Dolle and M. D. Borrelli
Thanks to the
wonderful research by William Benjamin and Barbara Williams, we know a lot
about Frederick Dolle (1858-1912),
a North Bergen, New Jersey manufacturer, operator/owner of carousels as well as
amusement parks and other operations. Dolle was the
brother-in-law of Charles Looff.
It
is not certain when Dolle entered the carousel
business, but by 1906 he was manufacturing carousels. His business went by
several names including F. Dolle’s
Carrousel Works (1907), Dolle’s Carousel Works (1909)
and Dolle’s Carrousels (1910). Although it is not
known if Frederick’s bothers, Rudolph and Henry, were partners in the business,
it is known that both brothers were involved with amusements including
carousels.
Rounding board from the Dolle
carousel at the Silver Beach Carousel museum in St. Joseph, Michigan.
Dolle eventually became
partners with Mario Domenico (Domenick) Borrelli (1893-1969),
a 1907 Italian immigrant, who first started working with Dolle
as a ring boy for one or more of Dolle’s carousels. The Dolle carousel operation
built the platforms and mechanisms, but the horses were carved by Charles
Carmel. Borrelli is credited with adorning the Carmel horses with
jewels. The partnership continued with Frederick’s wife, Elizabeth, after Dolle died in 1912. M. D. Borrelli’s younger brother,
Vincent, assisted M. D. and Elizabeth in the business. When Elizabeth died in
1935. Borrelli purchased controlling interest and continued the business.
It is
not known how many carousels were manufactured by Dolle,
but Benjamin and Williams have identified at least eight parks that had Dolle carousels but estimate that as many as two dozen
carousels were manufactured by Dolle and the Dolle/Borrelli partnership with at least one going to
Manila, Philippines and perhaps one to Sydney, Australia.
For
further information:
Benjamin, William and Barbara Williams, Mr. Frederick Dolle: A Look at a
“Carousel King” in his Heyday. Carousel News & Trader, January 2010.
Benjamin, William and Barbara Williams, M.
D. Borrelli and His Role in the 20th Century Amusement Industry. Carousel
News & Trader, May 2010.
Benjamin, William
and Barbara Williams,
M.D. Borrelli, MFG of High Grade Carousels, Carousel News &
Trader, May 2010. http://www.carouselnews.com/
May-2010/M.D.-Borrelli-MFG-of-High-Grade-Carousels.html.
M. D. Borrelli Bejeweled Fun Forest Carousel, Carousel History, July 3,
2015.http://carouselhistory.com/fun-forest-carousel-wa/
Allan Herschell (Armitage-Herschell) (Herschell-Spillman)
Born
April 27, 1851, Allan Herschell, in 1870 along with his
parents and brother, emigrated from their native Scotland to Buffalo, New York
where the young Herschell found work as a foundry
foreman. Trained as a molder, in 1872, at the age of twenty, Herschell partnered with James Armitage, bought out their
employer’s equipment, moved their company to North Tonawanda and founded the
Tonawanda Engine and Machine Company. Their primary products were farm
machinery, steam boilers and steam engines.
Allan
Herschell
In
1883, with a diagnosis of lung disease and recommendation from his physician to
abandon boiler manufacturing, Herschell designed and
built his first carousel, the steam riding gallery. His inspiration for
building a carousel came after visiting New York City and seeing an operating
carousel (probably a Dare carousel) in 1882. His first carousel, completed in
1883 or 1884, was powered by one of his steam engines. The engine was outside
the carousel and rotated the carousel on a track via a belt. The horses were
simple and plain and modeled after Dare horses. His early carousels were
supplied with a simple mechanism that rocked the horses back and forth. By
1886, Herschell had built three steam riding
galleries. Popularity of the machine spread rapidly throughout New York, and in
1887, Tonawanda Engine and Machine Company evolved into the Armitage-Herschell Company, Inc. producer of steam powered
carousels. In 1890, sixty carousels were sold. A year later, the company was
producing a carousel every day.
In
1901, due to financial problems, Herschell left
Armitage-Herschell and with his brother-in-law,
Edward Spillman, purchased Armitage-Herschell in 1903
forming the largest manufacturer of carousels in the United States, the Herschell-Spillman Company. The company produced small,
easily transported, steam powered carousels, some with menagerie animals and
storybook characters as well as intricately designed and decorated horses.
Herschell
Spillman Co.
In
1913 (or 1911) due to ill health, Allan Herschell
retired from the Herschell-Spillman Company, but the
company continued without Herschell. By 1914, with the aid of a carving machine,
the Herschell-Spillman company had evolved into the
production of large, permanent, park model carousels of the Country Fair design
with jumping horses and a variety of menagerie animals. Eventually, the
permanent carousels were populated by more decorated and intricately carved
figures and chariot sides resembling a combination of Coney Island and
Philadelphia styles. Illions even supplied the horses
for one of the Herschell-Spillman platforms.
In
1915, on his own, Allan Herschell reentered the
carousel business and founded the Allan Herschell
Company in direct competition with the Herschell-Spillman
Company. Although he later added other rides for adults and children, Herschell’s main foci were roller coasters and his
signature portable, easily dismantled and packed carousels which could be
quickly disassembled and transported from town to town by traveling carnivals.
The first carousel made by the Allan Herschell
Company, the No. 1 Special, completed in 1916 is still at its original site at
the factory in North Tonawanda, NY. Herschell also made some large, more ornate park models
with scenery panels and decorative rounding boards, jewels and mirrors. Through
the years, the style of the Herschell figures changed
significantly.
Since
materials were less available with the onset of The Depression and the need for
stronger and more durable figures, cast aluminum legs were added to the wooden
bodies in the 1920s. Eventually, all aluminum horses were used. Weedon and Ward
described the evolution from all wood to a mixture of wood and aluminum as “…an
era in American carousel history [that] quietly ended”.
Herschell
was the largest manufacturer of carousels in the United States, producing over
3000 carved wooden machines, which were not only shipped throughout North
America, but also to distant destinations including South Africa, India and
Tahiti. The carousel shipped to Tahiti is reported to have been fueled with
coconut hulls instead of wood.
The simple style of the Herschell
horse.
There
were no specifically acknowledged carvers noted, although research shows that Herschell himself was never a carver.
In
1920, the Herschell-Spillman Company was re-organized
to become the Spillman Engineering Company (see below), continuing with the
production of carousels and other amusement rides which had been added over the
years. Both Spillman Engineering and the Allan Herschell
Company remained in North Tonawanda, New York for a time, manufacturing similar
rides in a competitive manner.
Allan
Herschell retired in 1924 (or 1923) and died in 1927.
In 1945, the Allan Herschell Company purchased the
Spillman Engineering Company, and remained open until 1970 when it was sold to
Chance Manufacturing in Wichita, Kansas.
The
Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum, located at 180
Thompson Street, in North Tonawanda, New York has been open to the public since
1983. The Museum offers guided tours, lectures, demonstrations and wood carving
lessons at varied skill levels. There are approximately 148 Herschell
carousels still operating in the United States and Canada.
For
further information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the Carousel. Green Village, NJ:
Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN 0-911572-29-5.
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
http://carrouselmuseum.org/site/wp-content/themes/twentytwelve-child/research-forms/FindingAid.pdf
http://internationalindependentshowmensmuseum.org/vintage-carnival-rides/allan-herschell-carousel-company/
http://theoldmotor.com/?tag=herschell-spillman-company
http://www.nthistorymuseum.org/Collections/herschell.html
Friedrich
Heyn
Friedrich Heyn in Germany was initially a carver, but later manufactured
complete carousels. He is mentioned here because one of his carousels resides
in Storyland in Glen, NH.
A
Heyn Horse
Marcus
Charles Illions
It
is not precisely known when and where Marcus Charles Illions
was born. Some accounts state that it was in Vilna, Lithuania (then part of the
Russian Empire) in 1865 (some accounts say1874). At the approximate age of 14,
he immigrated to England via a brief stay in Germany and found employment
carving unfinished Frederick Savage circus wagons for Frank Bostock. Frederick
Savage was a manufacturer of carousels and circus wagons. In 1888, Illions immigrated to the United States. Illions continued to develop his carving skills with Charles
Looff beginning about 1890. By 1892, Illions opened his own shop at 747 Dean Street in Brooklyn.
Around 1899-1900, Illions was hired by William
Mangels to restore Feltman’s Looff
carousel that was damaged by fire. William Mangels, an inventor and manufacturer
of amusement rides, had a shop in Coney Island on West Eighth Street. Mangels
perfected and employed the crank and gear mechanism to raise and lower the
horses making a new style of carousel horse, the jumper, possible. This allowed
Illions to experiment with the jumping pose. In 1909,
Illions opened, along with his daughter and four
sons, the M. C. Illions and Sons Carousell Works at
2739 Ocean Parkway in Coney Island, Brooklyn.
The
relationship between Mangels and Illions resulted in
several carousels in the New York area, many of which are still in operation.
One carousel was Feltman’s at Coney Island that
operated from 1905 until 1964. Although the Mangels/Illions
relationship did not last long, Illions continued to
manufacture carousels using parts and mechanisms from Mangels. M. C. Illions and Sons Carousell Works produced carousels from
1909 until 1929 when The Depression took its toll but continued to recondition
and repair them until 1945. The company produced only fifteen large, park style
carousels and not more than six smaller, portable carousels. M. C. Illions and Sons Carousell Works produced at least one set
of horses for Allan Herschell, three sets for the
Prior and Church racing derbies and smaller horses for the Pinto Brothers, a
local company producing street kiddie carousels for the Coney Island area.
Marcus
Charles Illions
Illions was a highly
innovative carver. He loved horses and kept a stable with up to four horses so
that he could ride them often to study their motion and mannerisms. He would
also visit local racetracks to study the horses.
Illions originated the
Coney Island style, and the original Illions horses
are of the archetypal flamboyant Coney Island style, tame and complete with
jewels and 22 carat gold and silver manes and adornments. A later style of
horse was more powerful, spirited and animated and characterized by flying,
flowing manes and long thin heads. Although he employed other craftsmen
including many family members, Illions carved all the
heads of the horses himself. M. C. Illions and Sons
Carousell Works carved very few menagerie animals except as special orders.
After 1910, the company did not produce any menagerie animals.
Marcus
Illions, standing with hammer and chisel, in his
shop. From Weedon and Ward, 1981.
Unlike most
carvers, Illions usually signed his carvings. The New York Times referred to Illions as “the Michelangelo of carousel carvers”. At one
time, ten of Illions’ shop’s carousels operated from
Brighten Beach Park to West Twenty Seventh Street in Coney Island. Besides
carousel horses, Illions also carved ornate organ
fronts and various sculptures. The Great Depression sadly took its toll on
amusement parks, and his company closed during that period. Weedon and Ward
(1981) described Illions as the “most flamboyant and
innovative of all the Coney Island carvers”.
Illions died at the age
of 78 in 1949, financially devastated.
A
typical Illions horse (L) and a child’s barber chair.
Note gold manes.
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon,
Geoff and Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground
Art. London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
The Coney Island
History Project
http://www.coneyislandhistory.org/hall-of-fame/marcus-charles-illions
Carousel History
The National
Carousel Association
http://carousels.org/index.html
http://www.guernseys.com/Guernseys
New/images/Carousel Online Catalogue
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Illions
George
William Kremer
George William
Kremer was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States in 1884.
Although his original profession was a glassblower, by 1892 he was operating a
carousel at North Beach Park, Queens, New York on the present site of LaGuardia
Airport. By the early 1900s, he was listing his profession as a carousel maker.
Although not a carver, Kremer operated, manufactured, repaired and
reconditioned older carousels often outfitting the frames with new figures.
Kremer made the rounding boards and scenery panels for his carousels. Kremer’s
Carousel Works which was located near North Beach in Queens, New York, produced
at least six carousels, only two of which are still operating: the Grand
Carousel at Knoebel’s Amusement Park in Elysburg,
Pennsylvania and the Lakeside
Carousel in Lakeside Park at Port Dalhousie in St. Catharines,
Ontario, Canada.
For Further
Information:
Pennsylvania Magazine
Baver, Kristin. Knoebels Grand Carousel: 100 Year Old Park Gem receives a
Makeover. Pennsylvania Magazine,
Volume 38, no 3, May/June 2015. http://www.knoebels.com/ data/uploads/contentblock/PAMagazine_
KnoebelsGrandCarousel.pdf
Amusement Today
Rutherford, Scott.
Knoebels celebrates Grand Carousel’s 100th
anniversary. Amusement Today,
November 2013, Vol. 17, Issue 8.2.
http://www.amusementtoday.com/backissues/at_november_2013_web.pdf
Carousel News and Trader
William Benjamin
and Barbara Williams, The Carousels of North Beach Amusement Resort, Queens,
Long Island, New York. Carousel News and
Trader, May 2013, http://cld.bz/w9Rl0Zt#13/z.
Carousel History
Benjamin, William and Barbara Williams.
History of North Beach, NY. Carousel
History, March 10, 2015,
http://carouselhistory.com/the-carousels-of-north-beach-long-island-new-york/
Charles Leupold
Charles Leupold was a master carver, who with his son, Charles
Frederick Leopold (anglicized), operated a carving shop in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. The elder Leupold served as the head
carver for the Gustav Dentzel and Daniel Carl Muller
companies. Both father and son carved for Muller, the Philadelphia Toboggan
Company and E. Joy Morris. All the
horses on the eight carousels produced for the Long family, amusement park
owners and operators, are reported to have been carved by Charles Leupold.
For
further information:
Carousel History
The National
Carousel Association
http://carousels.org/index.html
David
Lightfoot
David Lightfoot
was a carver for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
David
Lightfoot and son.
The Long
Family (Edward, Arthur and George)
The Longs were English immigrants who manufactured
eight carousels between 1876 and 1903. Charles Leupold
probably carved all the horses on the eight Long carousels. At least one of the
carousels seems to be extant and in storage probably in Easton, PA where it
last operated. Members of the Long family restored carousels and owned and
operated amusement parks. Descendants of the Long family continue to own and
operate the one remaining Long amusement park, Seabreeze Park, near Rochester,
New York.
Charles
I. D. Looff
Charles Looff was one of the most famous carvers of carousel
horses. He was born Karl
Jurgen Detlev Looff, in
Denmark in 1852. Looff immigrated to the United
States in 1870 and changed his name from Karl to Charles. Apparently,
immigration officials became confused between the old German “J” and mistook it
for an “I”. Thus, his name became Charles I. D. Looff.
Upon arrival in Brooklyn, Looff found employment as a
carver in a furniture factory and as part-time ballroom dance instructor.
Charles
I. D. Looff
From scraps of left-over
wood from the furniture shop, Looff began carving
animals. He carved, painted, mounted the animals on a circular platform
completely without assistance and in 1875 – 1876 installed the platform, complete
with its animals, at Lucy Vandeveer's Bathing
Pavilion (name was later changed to Balmer’s Bathing Pavilion) on West Sixth
Street and Surf Avenue on Coney Island. This became Coney Island’s first
amusement ride. With the success of his Coney Island and other carousels, Looff opened a factory at 30-37 Bedford Avenue and Guernsey
Avenue in Brooklyn.
Looff officially started his
business in 1875 in Brooklyn, New York.
He developed the elegant, flamboyant Coney Island style of carousel
horse, showing motion with slender legs. His horses were “jolly” with “bulging
nostrils”, “exposed teeth” as if smiling and real horsehair tails. Looff’s horses never appeared aggressive or threatening,
reflecting his gentle personality. His horses were more flamboyant that those
of other carvers and adorned with jewels, silver, gold and the American flag
motif. Many of his horses were armored. It may have been Looff
who invented the armored horse. Many of his horses had secondary carvings such
as birds, rabbits, foxes and cherubs behind the saddle. The carousel structures
themselves exhibited mirrors, which in combination with reflected light, enhanced
the experience of motion. Showing his patriotism, many of his early carousels
were fitted with panels with the likenesses of famous Americans.
A typical Looff secondary carving behind the saddle. Also note
jewels.
Looff carousels often
displayed other animals such as tigers, lions and dogs (one of Looff’s favorite), camels, bears and sheep.
A Looff menagerie animal
Note the
slender and gentle nature and jewels of this Looff
horse from Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
Looff hired many master
carvers including John Zalar, Marcus Illions, John Mueller, Charles Carmel, Solomon Stein and
Harry Goldstein. Most of the chariots were carved by Charles Looff, Charles I. D. Looff’s
oldest son. He installed three more carousels on Coney Island, in addition to
his first, at Lucy Vandeveer’s Bathing Pavilion.
Charles I. D. Looff was a builder as well as a carver, having carved
and built 50 carousels as well as other amusements, including Ferris wheels,
roller coasters and fun houses. Looff and his son Arthur
built the Santa Monica (California) Pier in 1916. Looff
also designed and constructed many of the buildings that housed his carousels.
By 1900, he owned and operated several carousels.
Looff’s original factory was in
Brooklyn, New York. In 1895-1896, he moved it to Crescent Park in Riverside, East
Providence, Rhode Island, where he had built a second factory. He eventually
moved his factory to Ocean Park, California and then to Long Beach, California,
in 1910.
The Looff family at Crescent Park in Rhode Island
Looff’s son, Charles, was also a
master carver and supplied many horses to the Looff
company.
Over the years, Looff and his family built several amusement parks,
incorporating in them their own created rides including scenic railways, fun
houses and various thrill rides. The Giant Dipper Roller Coaster at the Santa
Cruz Beach Boardwalk and the Santa Monica Hippodrome, as well as his carousel
in East Providence, Rhode Island have been designated as National Historical
Landmarks.
Crescent
Park, East Providence, Rode Island
For a while, Looff was the sole supplier of A. Ruth und Sohn band organs
in the United States.
Looff died in 1918 in
Long Beach, California. Frederick Fried (Fried, 1964) described Looff as “doubtlessly…the first of America’s great carousel
carvers”.
For further information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the Carousel. Green Village, NJ:
Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial History of the Carousel.
Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN 0-911572-29-5.
Manns, William, Stevens, Marianne,
Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted Ponies.
Millwood, NY: Zon International Publishing. ISBN
0-939549-01-9
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://carouselhistory.com/charles-i-d-looff-carousel-archives/
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
http://carouselproject.wikia.com/wiki/Charles_I._D._Looff
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crescent_Park_Looff_Carousel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_I._D._Looff
http://www.millikanalumni.com/Pike/PikeLooff.html
http://www.millikanalumni.com/Pike/?pikeLooff.html
https://www.kcet.org/departures-columns/when-the-hippodrome-was-hip-the-looff-carousel-and-the-era-of-seaside-amusement
http://www.historyofcarousels.com/carousel-history/charles-i-d-looff/
William
F. Mangels
William F. Mangels
was born in 1866 (or 1867) in Germany
and immigrated to the United States in 1882 (or 1883) (maybe as late as 1886)
settling in Brooklyn, New York. He soon became involved with inventing,
engineering, repairing and manufacturing shooting galleries and amusement rides
specializing in carousels. He started manufacturing carousels in 1910. His
Coney Island machine shop employed about 12 people manufacturing the machinery
for the carousels. He was not a carver himself, but he employed several very
talented and well-known carvers, including Marcus Illions,
Charles Carmel, Solomen Stein and Harry Goldstein to
supply horses for the platform/frame mechanisms he manufactured. He is credited
with devising the first crank system in the United States in 1907 that would
allow the horses to rise and fall – the jumpers or gallopers. His mechanism was
an improvement over the English mechanism previously invented by Frederick
Savage. One of his most famous carousels is the still operating B and B
carousel at Coney Island. He also invented The Tickler (1906) and The Whip
(1907), his most famous invention. His last rides were designed for children
some of which are still in operation at Coney Island, New York, Ocean City,
Maryland and at other locations. He earned the nickname “The Wizard of Eighth
Street”. Mangels died in 1958 at the age of 92.
W. F. Mangels
Sign on the Mangels/Illions Carousel in Saratoga Springs, New York
Mangels
Kiddie Ferris Wheel, Trimper’s Amusements, Ocean
City, Maryland
Mangels made
aluminum horses cast from wood originals for at least some of George B. Marx’s
wagon mounted carousels including Children’s Delight. A good example is the
carousel outside the Virginia Discovery Museum in Charlottesville.
The
Virginia Discovery Museum, Charlottesville
George
B. Marx Wagon Mounted Carousels
For Further
Information:
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_F._Mangels
History
The National
Carousel Association
http://carousels.org/index.html
Brooklyn Public
Library
Shope, Leslie, 2009, W. F. Mangels and his
“Amusing” Career: http://brooklynology.brooklynpubliclibrary.
org/post/2009/08/31/WF-Mangels-and-his-Amusing- Career.aspx
Green-Wood Historian
Blog: Richman, Jeff, 2014, Amusing the Masses – With Your Help!
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Edward
Joy Morris
From 1895 to 1903,
Edward Joy Morris (1860-1929) was a Philadelphia manufacturer of various
amusement park rides including several carousels. His company was the Morris
Chute Company with offices on Walnut Street and factories at Callowhill and
Ludlow streets in Philadelphia. It was not known until 1989 when research
discovered that Morris manufactured carousels that had been previously
identified as Philadelphia Toboggan Company carousels. Morris sold his business
and inventory to the Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1903. The Philadelphia
Toboggan Company used about 200 of Morris’s horses and menagerie figures on
many of their early carousels dating to as late as 1907 (#14). There are no
intact Morris carousels still in existence. Individual Morris figures can be
found on early Philadelphia Toboggan Company, Muller and Dentzel
carousels.
Morris was
instrumental in developing the roller coaster as he introduced several safety
features including new wheel and wheel mounting designs which allowed the
coasters to run faster and safer. After selling the business in 1903, Morris
travelled around the country promoting, installing and running his Figure Eight
Toboggan Slide which he had patented in 1894. At least 250 Figure Eight
coasters were installed in North America.
For further
information:
http://members.neaapa.com/news/details/lions-and-tigers-and-bears-oh-my-history-of-the-carousels-at-quassy-05-02-2016
National Carousel
Association: http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders2.html
Daniel
Carl Muller, Alfred Muller, (The Muller Brothers)
Daniel Carl Muller was born in Germany in
1872. The family of Johann Heinrich (John Henry) Muller, a close friend of Michael Dentzel,
Gustav Dentzel’s father, immigrated to the United
States from Germany in 1881 or 1882 and settled in Brooklyn near Coney Island.
It is thought that Johann Heinrich Muller found work in the shop of Charles Looff and carved some horses for Looff’s
carousels. In 1888, Johann Heinrich Muller moved his family close to Germantown, Pennsylvania, the home of
the Gustav Dentzel Company and his close friend,
Gustav Dentzel. Soon, Johann Heinrich Muller and his
two sons, Daniel and Alfred, were hired by Dentzel
and worked for Dentzel after school, honing their
carving skills. Daniel was more focused, talented, attentive to detail and
artistic than his brother and went on to gain formal training at the Pennsylvania
Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. At the Academy, Daniel Muller further
developed his artistic skills. Through this training and experience, he became
one of the greatest and most artistic of all carousel horse sculptors. Daniel
Muller is recognized as Dentzel’s most talented,
imaginative and gifted artisan.
Daniel
Carl Muller in Gustav Dentzel’s shop in the early
1900s.
When Johann and his wife died in 1890, Dentzel
“adopted” Alfred and Daniel and were raised by him. Around 1899 - 1900, the
Muller brothers had had enough of Dentzel’s gruff
behavior, and to the consternation of Dentzel, left
the Dentzel company and began carving for the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company. They may possibly have also been carving for
others as well. In 1902 (or 1903), they opened their own D.C. Muller and
Brother Carousel Manufacturing Company and continued to supply horses for the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company until about 1907 when the Philadelphia Toboggan
Company decided to have all their carving done in the company. They also
supplied horses for some lesser known carousel platform and mechanism manufacturers
such as T. M. Harton who operated a minor carousel
company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The brothers also opened the U. S. Caroussell and Amusement Company that operated the
carousels built by the brothers.
Both Daniel and Alfred were carvers. Although Daniel gets much
of the attention, is the focus of carousel historians and most of the horses
are attributed to him, it is not always known which brother carved which horse
and some of the Muller horses attributed to Daniel may have been carved by
Alfred. The brothers built 12 to 16 carousels between 1903 and 1917, but seemed
to be unable to compete with the larger, more successful manufacturers such as Dentzel, Looff, the Philadelphia
Toboggan Company, and Herschell-Spillman. It was
thought by some critics that the Mullers spent too much time creating each
figure. Avoiding fantasy, for the most part, the Muller horses are described as
perhaps the most realistic of all carousel horses. Weedon and Ward (1981) said
that Muller relied “much more on the statuesque form of the animal than on the
extravagances, trappings and embellishments.”
Daniel Muller is especially famous for his military horses with military
saddles, bedrolls, bugles, canteens and military tack. They were also often
decorated with ribbons and flowers. Regrettably, none of the military themed
carousels are still in existence. Some of the horses remain, however, in
museums such as the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia. Muller also carved
other figures such as deer, lions and tigers.
A Muller military-style horse on the Forest Park carousel in
Queens, New York
D.
C. Muller and Brother Shop
D.
C. Muller and Brother Shop 1908
A
Muller military style horse from Forest Park, Brooklyn, New York
Two of the D. C. Muller and Brother carousels are still in
existence, one in Forest Park, Queens, New York and the other in Cedar Point,
Ohio. After their company closed in 1917, the brothers carved for the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company and other carousel manufacturers. In 1918, Daniel
and Alfred joined the company of Gustav Dentzel’s
son, William Dentzel, and continued to work there
until it closed in 1928 when William died. Together, Daniel Muller and William Dentzel are said to have created some of the finest
carousels ever produced. Daniel Muller died in 1952 at age 79.
For further information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
http://carouselhistory.com/d-c-muller-carousel.com
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
http://www.pjs-carousel,com/history.html
Timothy
and Bartholomew Murphy
The Murphy brothers
were partners in carousel carving and manufacturing in New York, Connecticut,
Rhode Island and Louisiana. Timothy was born in 1872 and Bartholomew in 1871 in
Cork, Ireland. The brothers were employed as carvers by Charles Looff in 1886 when Bartholomew was 15 years old, and
Timothy was 13. Timothy worked as a foreman in Looff’s
shop when Looff moved his operation from New York to
Rhode Island. He was fired circa 1895. The brothers started their own business
carving horses, chariots and menagerie animals in 1895.
Timothy
(left) and Bartholomew Murphy in 1909. From the Historic New Orleans
Collection.
By 1903, the Murphys were manufacturing carousels in New York City. In
1904, the Murphys formed a partnership with William
Nunley with whom they ran several amusement parks in the New York City area.
One of their companies was The
Rockaway Whirlpool Company. By 1906, the Murphy brothers started an amusement
business at Savin Rock, West Haven, Connecticut, where they continued to
manufacture carousels but also were involved in the theater (Nikelet Theater) and food concession business. Most of
their carousels were constructed from figures carved by other carvers although
Timothy was an excellent carver. It is thought that Henry Dorber
made the frames for the early Murphy carousels. Dorber
later manufactured frames for Stein and Goldstein. Bartholomew Murphy moved to
New Orleans in 1910 where he manufactured and operated carousels and
amusements.
There are two
carousels in New England with Murphy horses at Lake Compounce
and Lighthouse Point Park in Bristol and New Haven, Connecticut, respectively.
For further
information:
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
Benjamin, William
and Barbara Williams, 2012, New Discoveries and Further Insights: The Murphy
Brothers,
Carousel News
& Trader, August. www.carouselnews.com.
The
Murphy Brothers and their Carousels, The
Carousel News & Trader, Volume 27 (8), 2011.
William Norman and Spalding Evans
In 1891, in Lockport, New York, William Norman and
Spalding Evans purchased the Pound Manufacturing Company, renamed it the Norman
& Evans Company, and started selling their unused electricity generated
from waterpower to neighboring companies. With a prime location at the foot of
the locks on the Erie Canal, the Norman & Evans Company became a power
generating company supplying their neighbors on the north sides of Main and
Market streets with electricity via long cables.
In addition to generating power, the Norman & Evans
Company also manufactured engines,
derricks, ditching machinery and steam-powered carousels. In July1891, their
first merry-go-round was installed in Lockport. A subsidiary of Norman &
Evans Company was established as The American Merry-Go-Round and Novelty
Company. The company made more than a hundred carousels. The company closed in
1905.
For further information:
Geise, Scott. 2015. Uncovering the Mill Race, No. 14: Steam and electricity. Lockport Union-Sun & Journal. March 8, 2015.
Manns, William, Stevens, Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Charles
Wallace Parker
Charles
Wallace Parker was born in 1864 in Griggsville,
Illinois. His family moved to Kansas when he was 5 years old. It was in Kansas
that Parker started his own amusement business. He first purchased half
interest in a striker strength tester, the High Striker, and later full
interest in a shooting gallery machine. He decided to enter the carousel business
after witnessing the joy of his daughter as she rode a department store
carousel in Abilene, Kansas. Parker purchased a portable Armitage Herschell track carousel in 1892. Before he started to make
his own carousels, he would buy used Dare and Armitage Herschell
carousels, restore them, and sell them as Parker carousels.
Two
Strength Testers from the Parker Carousel Museum, Leavenworth, Kansas
With
two partners, he formed the C. W. Parker Company in 1892 and traveled
throughout the mid-west with his portable carousel. By 1894, he had bought out
his partners. Realizing that he could improve on the Armitage Herschell track carousel through innovative construction
and design, Parker built his first carousel in 1894. Later in 1894 (some
reports say circa 1900), he opened the Parker
Carnival Supply Company in Abilene. After operating for 2 years, the name of
the company was changed to the C.W. Parker Amusement Company. By 1905, Parker
owned 4 travelling carnivals in the Midwest. Parker built all the machines,
including the railroad cars to carry them. He supplied various carnival
equipment and railroad cars to other travelling carnival operators. In 1911,
due to a property line dispute with the City of Abilene, he moved his company
to Leavenworth.
Charles
Wallace Parker
Photo
from the Dickinson Country (Kansas) Historical Society
The
C.W. Parker Amusement Company specialized in and is most famous for portable
Country Fair carousels, or “Carry-Us-Alls”, as Parker
advertised them. Although most of his carousels were small, compact, portable,
and designed for carnival use, he also produced 5 larger carousels. Parker was
not a carver but was involved with most aspects of the business.
His fantasyland
horses were brightly painted with colors including pinks and purples. Even the
larger carousels were composed of relatively small horses. Over the years, his
carousel horses evolved from the simple Armitage-Herschell
type to the fancy Coney Island type and became longer in stature. His horses
have been described as “long sinewy creatures with long leg muscles carved in
interesting shapes. Their heads were thin, long and sensitive” (Fried, 1964).
Parker’s horses eventually developed a characteristic style with “violent
motion, with legs stretched almost horizontally, nostrils flaring, head held
down and sideways or flung high with mane wildly tossing, even bulging” (Hinds,
1990). After 1900 or so, Parker used a carving machine with the detailed work
completed by his carvers.
Every carousel
produced early by Parker had a horse named “Belle”, characterized by her bowed
head and 3 tendrils of mane
pulled across the neck on the larger machines. She always had a bunch of grapes
on her hip, and originally a lily and a bell behind the saddle. The later
Parker horses often had carvings of flags, ears of corn, Native Americans, men
of the Wild West, pistols, lariats and other interesting objects behind the
saddle. Many of his horses were shod with metal shoes stamped “11 worth” or “C.
W. Parker Leavenworth Kansas”. Unlike other carvers and manufacturers, Parker
often used jewels that were not faceted. Many of his horses were adorned with
garlands.
An ear of corn behind
the saddle of a 1913 Parker carousel in Leavenworth, Kansas.
Horse Shoes on a Parker Horse in the Parker Carousel Museum, Leavenworth,
Kansas
Parker used a variety of carvers, many of whom
were German immigrants. There are no records as to the carvers’ names.
Although menagerie animals have been seen in
photographs of the Parker factory, it is not known if they were carved there.
Apparently, there are no menagerie animals on any of the surviving Parker
merry-go-rounds (Dinger, 1983).
The Parker horses were made with glue but
without dowels. Consequently, the horses were not very sturdy and durable and
could not withstand the rigors of a travelling show.
Dwight David
Eisenhower, later to be President of the United States, worked in Parker’s shop
as a boy.
Parker produced
approximately 1,000 carousels in his career, 16 of which continue to operate.
One of the more famous, the “Parker 119” or the Burnaby Centennial Parker
Carousel is located at the Burnaby Village Museum in Burnaby, B.C.
Parker died in
1932, but the company continued to be run by his son, Paul, until it closed in
1955.
A
1915 Parker horse at the New England Carousel Museum in Bristol, Connecticut
Although Parker is
best known for his carousels, the company manufactured a
variety of other amusements including shooting galleries and Ferris
wheels.
A
Parker Superior Wheel at Crossroads Village in Flint, Michigan
A
Ferris Wheel Under Construction
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN
0-911572-29-5
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
www.kansastravel.org/caroselmuseum.htm
http://dkcohistory.blogspot.com/2011/02/amusement-king.html
http://firstcitymuseums.org/carousel_pages/hist_cwparker.html
The
Philadelphia Toboggan Company
Henry B. Auchy, a
successful produce and liquor businessman, and Louis Berni,
an importer of band organs, in 1899 in response to the increasing demand for
carousels made a carousel under the name of Grey Amusements Company and
installed it in Chestnut Park in Philadelphia. Auchy
and Chester E. Albright collaborated to manufacture carousels in 1903 and
established the Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC) in 1904. Since neither Auchy nor Albright were carvers, the company hired carvers.
Two of the first carvers for the young company were Daniel and Alfred Muller.
Since the names of the carvers were not recorded, it is not known who many of
the early carvers were, but when the company bought the company owned by E. Joy
Morris in 1903, as many as 200 of Morris horses were used on Philadelphia
Toboggan Company carousels manufactured from 1903 to 1907. Because of this,
some of Morris’ carousels were originally misidentified as Philadelphia
Toboggan Company carousels. The Philadelphia Toboggan Company specialized in
roller coasters but also continued to manufacture carousels. The company eventually
added skee ball machines to its line of amusements.
When the Muller brothers left in about 1907 to
form their own company, the Philadelphia Toboggan Company was left without a
master carver. The early Muller replacements were not very successful since
their horses were poorly proportioned, and as a result, the demand for PTC
carousels declined. When John Zalar was hired in
1915, his exciting and well-proportioned carvings revitalized the company.
Charles Carmel also contributed to the company’s revitalization as he started
supplying horses for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company from his own shop in
Coney Island. When Zalar was forced to retire in 1923
because of poor health, Frank Carretta continued to
develop the Zalar style. Other carvers to work for
the Philadelphia Toboggan Company are Leo Zoller, Charles Frederick Leopold,
Charles Carmel, David Lightfoot, and Salvatore Cernigliaro.
Samuel High purchased the company in 1919. By 1925, the number of full time
employees dedicated to carousel manufacturing was two: Frank Carretta and Gustav Weiss. After 1925, PTC did not produce
any new horses. Instead, they used refurbished horses from other carousels and
unfinished old stock. In 1929, the Dentzel Company
closed and was purchased by PTC. PTC hired many of the Dentzel
employees.
Many of the Philadelphia Toboggan Company
figures had secondary figures such as cherubs, women or animals carved into the
bodies, and figures and objects behind the bed roll. Early, the company carved
menagerie animals, but after 1907 all the figures were horses. PTC was one of
the few companies that carved magnificent Roman chariots.
In 1909, Auchy
patented the friction drive to rotate the carousel. Some of the original
friction drives are still in use today.
The company’s history indicates that 87
carousels were manufactured, but some histories indicate as many as 94. The
confusion may be due to renumbering when the carousels were returned to the
company for refurbishing and/or carousels manufactured by other companies but refurbished
by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company. The company manufactured stationary
carousels that were installed in parks in buildings that the Philadelphia
Toboggan Company often designed and portable ones that could easily be moved
throughout the country. The company stopped making carousels in 1933 (or 1934)
to focus on coasters and is still in business as Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters,
Inc.
Henry B. Auchy
For further information:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the
Carousel. Green Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International Publishing.
ISBN 0-939549- 01-9
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
Philadelphia
Toboggan Coasters, Inc.
http://www.philadelphiatoboggancoastersinc.com/history.php
Carousel News
Thomas
Prior and Frederick Church
It is thought that Prior moved to California in 1911
and that Church followed him there at about the same time. The Prior and Church
partnership resulted in the establishment of the Venice Amusement Company. Among
other amusements, the company designed and manufactured racing roller coasters
(two tracks side-by-side), traditional roller coasters, and carousels referred
to as racing derbies. When Thomas Prior died in 1918, his son Frank assumed the
presidency of the company.
Prior and Church patented the Great American Racing
Derby in 1913. The first derby was installed in Ocean Park in 1916. The derbies
were several rows of 4 horses abreast and rotated very fast. The horses would
move ahead and then back. No one could tell which horse would win since the
cables crisscrossed underneath the platform. Prior and Church may have made as
many as 18 derbies.
Neither Tom Prior, his son Frank, nor Frederick Church
were carvers. It is thought that the horses of the racing derbies were probably
carved by Theophilus Williams who by 1915 had started his own woodworking
company, the R. C. Amusement Company, in Denver, Colorado. The company
manufactured thousands of horses that were shipped around the world. Williams
also worked for C. W. Parker. Most of the horses on the two extant racing
derbies resemble Parker horses and were probably from Williams although some on
the Rye Playland racing derby resemble the work of Marcus Illions.
Horses on other Prior and Church racing derbies may have been carved by artists
other than by the Williams company or Illions.
The Prior and Church relationship ended in 1928.
Church moved to New York where he continued to design amusements from Rye
Playland. Some of the Prior and Church amusements still exist including two
racing derbies at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio (formally at Euclid Beach in
Cleveland) (1921) and one at Rye Playland in Rye, New York (1927). Fred Church
died in 1936.
For further information
William R. Benjamin, Ph. D.
and Barbara Williams, 1913. Racing Derbies Revisited – Part
1 – Introduction: Meet T. W. Prior and F. A. Church.
Together they patent the Great American Racing Derby, December 30, 1913. Carousel History, October 13, 2015. (An excellent 6-part article!!)
https://carouselhistory.com/racing-derby-revisited/
Jeffrey Stanton, 1998, Prior and Church - Roller Coaster Designers, https://www.westland.net/venicehistory/articles/church.htm
Frederick
Savage
Although Frederick
Savage did not manufacture carousels in the United States, several of his
carousels known as Savage Gallopers were imported to the United States. One of
his carousels is at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey.
Frederick Savage
was born in 1828 in Hevingham, Norfolk, UK. Savage
was primarily an engineer/machinist who first designed and manufactured simple
farm implements. Later, his company/factory in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK,
manufactured steam engines to power farm equipment and fairground amusements
including carousels. It is not known who carved the early horses for the Savage
company as he probably purchased them from independent carvers. Two of his
carvers/suppliers were the renowned John Robert Anderson from Bristol and
Charles John Spooner (1871-1939) from Burton-on-Trent. Both Spooner (with George Orton) and Anderson
manufactured carousels in the UK. Savage later employed his own carvers.
From
Weedon and Ward, 1981
A
Spooner horse at the New England Carousel Museum in Bristol, CT
Although he was
not the first to build a steam powered carousel which was displayed at the
Aylsham Fair in Kent circa 1865, he certainly saw their potential and started
to manufacture similar ones shortly thereafter. His innovation was to place the
steam engine in the center of the carousel providing for a smoother ride. The
use of steam as a source of power permitted the manufacture of larger
carousels.
Frederick
Savage in his mayoral robes.
By 1885, Savage
was manufacturing platform carousels, the Platform Galloper, which employed the
overhead crank and gear mechanism invented by Robert Tidman
of Norwich, UK and improved and perfected by Savage that provided the up and
down or galloping mechanism that made the carousel experience more exciting.
Savage also invented the lateral sliding mechanism that allowed the horses to
slide outwards ten to fifteen degrees on the platform due to centrifugal force
as the carousel gained speed. Savage’s company survived until 1973.
Plaque
on one of Savage’s buildings.
The
above two photographs are from: http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=16&start=75
By 1900, Savage’s
company employed 400 people.
Savage was a
justice of the peace and mayor of King’s Lynn from 1889 to 1891. Savage died in
1897 at King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK.
A surviving Savage
Galloper with Anderson and Spooner carved figures resides at Six Flags Great
Adventure in Jackson, NJ.
For further
information:
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial
History of the Carousel. Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN
0-911572-29-5.
Lynn Museum, West Norfolk
http://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/view/NCC095974
Engineering
Timelines
http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=791
National Fairground and Circus Archive
https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/nfca/researchandarticles/fairgroundrides
Dingles Fairground Heritage Centre
http://fairground-heritage.org.uk/learning/swings-and-roundabouts/
King’s Lynn Forum
http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=16
Spillman
Engineering
When Allan Herschell left the Herschell-Spillman
Company in 1911, the company was reorganized to the Spillman Engineering
Corporation. The company continued to produce smaller, simple, portable
carousels, but in 1920 started to make several models of larger permanent,
elaborately decorated, jeweled and artistic carousels available with a variety
of menagerie animals. The early Spillman Engineering carousels were modeled
after the Allan Herschell style, but eventually the
company evolved their own style. Unlike Allan Herschell’s
designs, many of the Spillman Engineering horses had secondary carvings.
Spillman Engineering started using aluminum heads and legs in the late 1920s and
in 1930 produced an all- aluminum horse. The Allan Herschell
Company purchased Spillman Engineering in 1945.
For further
reading:
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial History of the Carousel.
Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN 0-911572-29-5.
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Solomon Stein and Harry Goldstein
Solomon Stein, born in Poland in 1881(or 1882), and
Harry Goldstein, (original name is Harry Mandel), born in Russia in 1867,
immigrated to the United States in 1903 (or 1904) and 1902, respectively. Stein
immediately found employment as a furniture carver for Wanamaker’s Department
Store. Both Stein and Goldstein, as many others in the carousel field, were
also carvers of ladies’ combs. Goldstein also found employment as a carver of
models for a maker of molds. It has been speculated that Stein may have worked
for Looff for a short time. In 1905, Stein and
Goldstein met when they began working in the William F. Mangels carousel factory. They also free-lanced for
Marcus Illions.
Solomon Stein (L) and
Harry Goldstein
After honing their carving skills during their
two-year employ with Mangels, they opened their own carving company in 1906 (or
1907) to supply horses to other manufacturers in cramped quarters at 44 Boerum
Street in Brooklyn, New York. In 1912, along with Henry Dorber
who supplied the mechanical mechanism, they formed Stein, Goldstein and Dorber Company. They were first located at 128 Hopkins
Street in Brooklyn but soon moved to larger quarters in an old trolley barn on
1455-1459 Gates Avenue. Stein and Goldstein carved the heads while other
carvers provided the bodies. When Dorber left the
company in 1914 to operate one of the Stein and Goldstein carousels, they
reorganized to Stein, Goldstein, The Artistic Carrousell
Manufacturing Company to make complete carousels. At this time, Stein and
Goldstein continued to supply carvings to other companies. They supplied
Mangels with horses until about 1912. The carvers used machinery produced by
other manufacturers including Mangels.
Stain and Goldstein horses are known for their
large, nearly life size, musculature stature with large teeth. Since their
horses are often in aggressive stances, some have described them as “fierce”,
“frightening”, “angry” and “snarling”. Weedon and Ward (1981) said they traded
“grace for strength”. The Stein and Goldstein horses sport large buckles and
are elegantly and elaborately adorned with beautiful flowers, garlands and
ribbons. Some of their horses are armored with chain mail, fish scales blankets
and fringe. Stein and Goldstein did not carve menagerie figures. Stein and
Goldstein produced the largest carousel on record, with a diameter of 60 feet
and 6 rows of horses accommodating up to 100 people. In all, they built 17
carousels, 11 of which they owned and operated. There are 3 remaining in
operation today.
Note the beautifully carved
flowers on this carousel horse from Hartford, Connecticut.
Stein and Goldstein also carved the mirror
frames and various decorations adorning each of their carousels. One very
popular Stein and Goldstein Carousel still in existence can be seen in Bushnell
Park, Hartford, Connecticut. Another Stein and Goldstein carousel is in New
York City’s Central Park.
From
the carousel in Hartford, Connecticut
In the 1920s, Stein
and Goldstein carved circus and carnival figures as well as wooden horses used
as a child’s barber chair and horses placed outside various stores and barber
shops.
Stein
and Goldstein child’s barber chair
Solomon Stein died
in 1937. Harry Goldstein continued to operate a carousel, amusement parks and
arcades until he, too,
passed away in 1945.
For further reading:
Dinger, Charlotte. 1983. Art of the Carousel. Green Village, NJ:
Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial History of the Carousel.
Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN 0-911572-29
Hinds, Anne Dion. 1990. Grab the
Brass Ring: The American Carousel. New York: Crown Pub.
Manns, William, Stevens,
Marianne, Shank, Peggy. 1986. Painted
Ponies. Millwood, NY: Zon International
Publishing. ISBN 0-939549-01-9
Weedon,
Geoff and Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground
Art. London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
Zimiles, Murray, 2007, Gilded Lions and Jeweled Horses: The
Synagogue to the Carousel, Jewish Carving Traditions, Lebanon, NH: Brandeis
University Press.
http://carousels.org/Carvers_Builders.html
http://www.carouselmuseum.com/business.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Park_Carousel
U. S. Merry Go Round Company
This Cincinnati based company,
originally named the Gem Novelty Company, manufactured a few carousels. There
are only two still in operation: Albion, PA in Borough Park and one at the
National Cathedral in Washington, D. C.
John Zalar
John Zalar (Zahler, original spelling)
(1872 or 1874-1925) was a 1902 immigrant from Slovenia (some sources indicate Zalar was from Austria) where he developed and honed his
artistic and sculpting skills. With his unique skills, Zalar
easily found employment with the City of New York. He probably started carving
for Looff as early as 1904. In 1911, Zalar moved his family to Rhode Island to work with Looff full time. When Looff moved
his operation to California in 1914, Zalar move his
family to California. When Zalar’s wife died in 1915, Zalar
returned to the northeast where he found employment with the Philadelphia
Toboggan Company. He carved for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company from 1916 (or
1915) to 1923 (or1925). Due to health reasons, in 1920, Zalar
returned to California with his family, but continued to carve horses for the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company in a backyard shed until 1923. Zalar died in 1925.
John
Zalar in the California Looff
Factory, 1914 or 1915, from the Zalar Family
Collection.
Zalar’s horses had a distinctive
style with expressive eyes, flowing manes, tucked
heads, flared nostrils, aggressive open mouths, and defined musculature
(Gardner, 2013). Some of the horses on the Philadelphia Toboggan Company #80
carousel in Holyoke, Massachusetts are attributed to Zalar.
For further
information:
Dinger, Charlotte.
1983. The Art of the Carousel. Green
Village, NJ: Carousel Art, Inc. ISBN 0-914507-00-1.
Fraley, Tobin and
Gary K. Wolf, Carousel
Animals: Artistry in Motion. San
Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2002.
Fried, Frederick. 1964. A Pictorial History of the Carousel.
Vestal, NY: The Vestal Press Ltd. ISBN 0-911572-29-5.
Gardner, Richard, Kings Dominion Carousel PTC #44 -
A Historic Masterpiece of Joy and Regret. Carousel
News and Trader, Saturday, 27 April 2013. http://www.carouselnews.com/Feature-Current-and-Historic-Stories-2011-2013/Kings-Dominion-Carousel-PTC-44-A-Historic-Masterpiece-of-Joy-and-Regret.html.
Weedon, Geoff and
Richard Ward. 1981. Fairground Art.
London: White Mouse Editions, Ltd.
Williams, Barbara.
1980. John Zalar, “The Master Carver”. Merry-Go-Round Volume 7, no. 2.
http://www.carouselcorner.net/Articles/MerryGoRoundup/Merry_Go_Round_Up_Vol-7_1979.pdf
Williams, Barbara and Brian Morgan, John Zalar, PTC #65, and PTC #66.
http://www.carouselcorner.net/Articles/MerryGoRoundup/Merry_Go_Round_Up_Spring_1995_03.PDF.
Leo
Zoller
Leo Zoller carved
for Charles Looff and the Philadelphia Toboggan
Company. He was the first master carver for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
Zoller’s horses were large with long snouts, close set eyes and often in a
jumping stance. Zoller carved all 70 horses and the four chariots on the circa
1908 Philadelphia Toboggan Company #17, the largest carousel in the United
States, at Six Flags in Atlanta, Georgia. Zoller was paid $1,932.49 for the carvings. The horses were so
big, the legs had to be shortened so people could mount them. Zoller also
carved all 43 horses and the two chariots for the circa 1909 Philadelphia
Toboggan Company #18 now at Carousel Center Mall (Destiny USA) in Syracuse, New
York. It took Zoller a year to carve the horses for which he was paid $1000.
Zoller carved for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company until about 1911.
A
Zoller horse from Philadelphia Toboggan Company #18
For
further information:
Hinds, Anne Dion. 1990. Grab the
Brass Ring: The American Carousel. New York: Crown Pub.
The National
Carousel Association
http://carousels.org/index.html