The beauty and charm of Carousel Horses was introduced to me early in my life. My Mom and Dad make them out of old rockin' horses that they find and bring home.From there they are transformed into such wonderful things! Mom lets me keep mine inside my bedroom ....imagine that ..a horse in the house! I like it very much and when I grow up...well I just guess all my dollies are just gonna have wait their turns for rides on it. Below are some pictures of how they are made and Oh yeah ...pictures of my parents showing you!
This one is of my Mom, I believe she's taking what some call a break...she told me she was working !
Yes ...thats my Dad. Body repair of horses is really important.
It's on their way to be painted soon, now they begin to really change!
WOW...alot of change don't you agree ?
Just about all done now. All that lacks are the finishing touches.
I sure hope you enjoy the finished product. This one was made for my Nana!
When my Mom and Dad are not working on these Carousel Horses , they find time to help me build my pages. I got a glimpse of Dad of the other day ...here he is ! Hee Hee
From the most usual crowning atop them, music and sparkling jewels and even mirrored, flashing lights of just the right color to catch a childs eye. The fantasy and reality of a "Carousel Ride" will always hold a treasured place in the heart of a child in anyone !
Having seen these beautiful horses and enjoying them made me want to know more about them. So I did some research and well here are some neat facts of where and how they first came to be!
" Daddy's Site "
"LET ME KNOW YOU WERE HERE AND RETURN SOON"
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(click to enlarge)
The "Carousel Ride"
above, is being enjoyed by my brother Jais, when he was a little guy. As with most activities with children when they are enjoying themselves, you'll always find "grown-ups" watching intently and enjoying the charm, just as much as if they were on the "Carousel Ride" right along side of the children!.
The origin of carousels is said to occur in the 1600's as a device to train young noblemen in the sport of jousting. In those days the motion was provided by manual labor. The first American 'Merry-Go-Round', once called 'a ring of flying horses', appeared in 1799. After the Civil War,'Merry-Go-Rounds' became the main features at fairs, city parks, seaside resorts, amusement parks and carnivals . Ten thousand were built in the United States between the late 1800s and 1935. By 1980, 315 were known to exist throughout the country.
The machine was manufactured about 1910 by Savage, an English roundabout manufacturer. It turns clockwise, which was the custom in Europe.
The roundabout was originally destined for the Panama-Pacific Exposition held in San Francisco in 1915. It was shipped around the horn before the Panama Canal opened. Off-loaded at Los Angeles, it moved via rail to San Francisco in time for the Exposition.
After the Exposition, the roundabout became part of a little known travelling circus. In the early 1930's Foley & Burk Shows purchased the machine. After that it was called a 'Merry-Go-Round' because it was part of an American travelling carnival show. Foley & Burk Shows retired the equipment to a Redwood City warehouse in 1967.
The Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad purchased the 'Merry-Go-Round' in late 1980 after collecting $50,000 in donations. Now it's called a 'Carousel' because of its stationary installation. Restoration began in 1981 starting with the horses. There were twenty nine hand carved wooden horses and two chariots. There are positions for thirty horses. A mold was fashioned as a copy of one of the center row horses (CW Parker Manufacturing) and a fiber glass resin replica was cast in the mold to add the 30th horse.
When Savage had many roundabout orders to fill and found his own horse inventory too low, horses were purchased from G&J Lines, CJ Spooner, and the German carousel industry. The German imports had double faceted jewels mounted on bezels. Some of the jewels were installed with mirrors behind them. The English roundabout companies never mounted jewels in their horse carvings.
After the carousel was transported to Oak Meadow Park, teams of volunteers led by Charles Dewey and Jerry Kennedy spent many years reconditioning the horses, redesigning the power train and linkages, as well as constructing the carousel building. Paul Seaborn of Seaborn Automation, a local company, designed and built all the mechanical and electrical innovations which upgraded the carousel with 'behind the scenes' modern technology.
The W.E. Mason Carousel was dedicated to the memory of Bill Mason Sr. in July 1990. Bill was the organizer of the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad who always loved kids and wanted the Carousel to complement the train at the park !.
He works really hard on his pages so please visit...Thank you
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