CA 1910 Looff Menagerie – Saltair Park, Great Salt Lake, Utah
In 1910, Charles Looff delivered a grand 4-row carousel to the Saltair Park outside of Salt Lake City. The park was built on a pier over the Great Salt Lake and proudly referred to by its owners as the “Coney Island of the West”.
The grand Saltair carousel was placed prominently on the pier to be the first attraction people would see as they arrived at the park by train. This proud placement may very well have saved the ride from the numerous calamities to come. One has to wonder if Looff had any idea at the time of the historical significance and various destinies that the future would hold for his rides.
In 1910, Charles Looff delivered a 4-row carousel to Saltair Park, built on a pier over the Great Salt Lake, referred to as the “Coney Island of the West”. The original figures were sold in the 1980s. The historic carousel mechanism, now a 2-row, now operates in Nederland, CO, as The Carousel of Happiness.
In the case of the Saltair Park Carousel, the historical ride has gone something like this:
In 1925, a fire swept through the Saltair Park destroying most of the rides and buildings. The carousel and its neighbor, the Giant Racer roller coaster would miraculously survive.
In 1931, another fire destroyed the park and all its rides, including the roller coaster this time. The carousel was the lone survivor, however two of its outer rows of wooden animals were destroyed and it was rebuilt as a two-row machine. In 1951, yet another fire destroyed much of the park, the carousel, once again, survived.
In 1957, a windstorm blew across the Great Salt Lake and Saltair Park. The roller coaster was destroyed and never rebuilt. Parts of the top of the carousel were blown off, but it continued to operate.
Then, in 1959, the park declared bankruptcy and the state took over the park’s assets. The director of the Utah State Training School in nearby American Fork asked for the carousel to be included in a small new park called Fairyland being built for the school’s residents. The carousel was moved to the safety of its new location.
In 1975 the carousel was completely renovated and its animals repaired by the students and staff at the vocational training section of the school. The students stripped up to 30 layers of paint from the animals and fond one horse with the date “1872” engraved in the wood. A year later, the restored ride opened to great accolades from school residents and community members alike.
In 1986, the carousel was bought and its animals sold at auction.
The school’s residents were devastated as the ride was dismantled and taken away. Providing a bright spot on a dark day, the truck driver who transported the animals knew of someone interested in buying a carousel mechanism. Enter Scott Harrison of Nederland, CO.
Harrison bought the Looff frame and enlisted the help of his friend Malcom Campbell to dismantle and remove the ride. It was an emotional day for the school’s residents as they watched their beloved ride taken away. They relayed fond memories of their rides on the merry-go-round and told Harrison of the numerous times the iron center pole was struck by lightening. The carousel had been free standing with no building to protect it, and in fact Harrison found charred wood on its sweeps.
Harrison would spend the next two decades restoring the carousel mechanism and carving a new menagerie of 33 animals and 18 small figures for the rounding boards. This is now known as The Carousel Of Happiness, celebrating its 5th anniversary this Memorial Day in Nederland, CO.
This historic Looff carousel, like so many others, has proven to be a survivor. Making the transition from four rows of animals, to two rows, then to none. And now the 115 year-old mechanism operates again, with a new menagerie to populate it, ready to run another 100 years, with nearly a half a million smiling riders already in its latest incarnation.
CURRENT PHOTOS AND MORE ON THE CAROUSEL OF HAPPINESS >>>
