Wisconsin
Baraboo
Circus
World
The
first thing one notices about this 1917 Herschell-Spillman
carousel is that it is desperate for a full restoration. The paint is worn and
seriously cracking. The carousel is a two-row portable with 28 jumpers and 2
chariots. The horses are of the Country Fair design. Some of the horses are
probably not original. There are 2 bucking broncos, and it is not certain that
these are original to the platform. Only four horses have been restored in the
past four years.
The band organ is a North Tonawanda converted to play 125 Wurlitzer rolls.
It
is not known where the carousel was originally located, but it was in Big Bend
Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin followed by a stay at High Cliff Park in Menasha,
Wisconsin where it remained until 1967. The carousel has been at the Circus
World Museum since 1967.
Baraboo
was home to the Ringling Brothers, and it is from Baraboo that the brothers
launched their first circus tour in 1884. Baraboo remained the home of the
Ringling Brothers Circus until 1918 when it joined the Barnum and Bailey Circus
which the Ringling brothers purchased in 1908. The Circus World Museum is on
the wintering site of the Ringling Brothers Circus and contains many original
buildings. The museum has a wonderful collection and display of posters, circus
wagons and other circus memorabilia. The museum is on the National Register of
Historic Places. When visiting Wisconsin Dells, a few hours at the museum is
highly advised.
For
information on opening times call 608-356-8341 or access their web site at www.circusworldbaraboo.org/.
For
further information:
The
National Carousel Association
https://carousels.org/USACensus/stdqueries/census-CLA.html
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circus_World_Museum
Youtube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4awQlu_gCiM
Three
Restored Horses
Two
Bucking Broncos
Inside
Panels
Waterloo
Fireman’s
Park
In Fireman’s
Park in Waterloo, Wisconsin, resides a most beautiful 1911, C. W. Parker #53
portable carousel with two rows of 28 jumpers and 2 chariots. The horses are of
the Country Fair style with simple paint schemes and few trappings. The
mechanism is the grasshopper type. The scenery rounding boards sport eagles
newly (late 1980s) carved by Ray Jones and Blake Kellogg, beautiful flag
shields and scenes of Waterloo.
The
carousel is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Restoration was performed by Lisa Parr of Old Parr’s Studio in
Chicago from 1987 to 1991. The carousel is housed in a 1927, 14-sided
building. Because of frequent flooding,
the carousel and building were moved to higher ground and re-opened on July 4,
2011. Restoration of the carousel and its building is ongoing.
The
carousel was originally located in Lisbon, North Dakota. At some time, it
became acquired by William Curtis for the Curtis
Brothers Carnival based in Cuba City, Wisconsin where it remained until 1925.
It has been in Fireman’s Park since 1925.
The band organ purchased in 1996 is a 1915 North Tonawanda Musical
Works, North Tonawanda, New York.
The carousel is maintained and operated by volunteers. Waterloo is
fortunate to have this beautiful and historic carousel. It is a source of pride
and it shows what a community can do when it becomes committed to a project.
The City of Waterloo is known as “Carousel City”.
For
information on opening times call 920-478-3025 or access their web site at www.waterloowi.us.
Youtube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zp31EN6bGPE
One
of the Rounding Boards
(R)
Note “C. W. Parker, World’s Largest Manufacturer of Amusement Devices,
Leavenworth, Kansas” label.
Beautiful
Secondary Carvings
Beautiful
Secondary Carvings
The
Sassy Horse
1915 North Tonawanda Musical Works band organ
