Arkansas
Little
Rock
Little
Rock Zoo
The
Arkansas Carousel
Over-the-Jumps
The
Over-the-Jumps carousel at the Little Rock Zoo is a fully restored 1924 Spillman
Engineering, two-row, portable, undulating, track carousel with forty jumpers
(two of which are Allan Herschell horses) and four
chariots. It is only one of four carousels of this type built by Spillman
Engineering. It is the only Over-the-Jumps carousel that is still fully
operational. The platform is mounted on a 1960s caterpillar mechanism.
From
its manufacture in 1924, it was part of a traveling carousel based in Arkansas
until the 1940s. The carousel took up residence in Milford, Connecticut until
1945 when it returned to Arkansas to reside in War Memorial Park until placed
in storage in 1990. An independent non-profit group purchased the carousel,
fully restored it and donated it to the Little Rock Zoo where it opened it to
the public in 2007.
The
carousel is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Rides
are $3.00 in addition to the entry fee to the zoo. Regrettably, it was not yet
operating when we visited.
For information on
operating times, call 501-666-2406 or access
their website at www.littlerockzoo.com/carousel.
For
further information:
The
Little Rock Zoo
https://littlerockzoo.com/carousel
The National
Carousel Association
http://carousels.org/USACensus/stdqueries/census-CLA.html
Youtube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eB1wn9xh5s