cloudtravel: Central Park Carousel

October 07, 2003

Central Park Carousel

In the middle of New York's Central Park is an old carousel that a lot of folks don't know about. The first carousel in Central Park opened in 1871 and was mule powered (the official carousel website says the mule was blind - a little extra drama). The operators signalled starts and stops using taps on the floor. The first carousel was destroyed by fire and there is reference on the web to a second carousel that operated into the early 1950s. The present carousel is from Coney Island where it had served from 1912 unitl the fall of 1950. These days it's a cheery surprise but I shudder to think what an irony it must have been when the Park was a demilitarized zone in the 1970s. The horses - 52 jumpers and five standers - were carved by Russian immigrants Solomon Stein and Harry Goldstein. Websites that claim to be in the know say they're unusually large. The origin of the carousel organ is disputed. Some say it's a Gerburder and others say it's a Ruth and Sohn 33 converted to handle Wurlitzer 150 music rolls. It's a dollar and a half for a ride and you can find the carousel at a latatude approximating 64th Street. The phone number is 212-879-0244. According to carousels.com it is the only carousel in the borough of Manhattan. Click here for my own photo album of the Central Park Carousel, these pictures, such as they are, having been crudely snapped with a Logitech pocket digital camera.