C. W. Parker Carousels
By Steve Matta
According to Frederick Fried's book, "A Pictorial History of the Carousel", Parker's company, C. W. Parker Amusement Enterprise, billed itself as the world's largest manufacturer of amusement devices. Their line-up included "jumping horse carousels, Ferris wheels, carved wagon fronts and monkey speedways which used live monkeys as auto drivers in a fixed course." (Fried)
In 1911 Parker moved his factory from Abilene to Leavenworth, Kansas. Fried's book shows a carousel that was constructed at Vinewood Park in Topeka, but it was not built by Parker. The Topeka machine was constructed by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
By the way, if you haven't added this book to your collection, I highly recommend it. There is a whole chapter devoted to the music of the carousel. The original copyright was in 1964 by A. S. Barnes & Co., transferred to Fried in 1982. It is available from Vestal Press under the ISBN 0-911572-29-5.
Steve Matta
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(Message sent Mon 10 Mar 1997, 11:02:59 GMT, from time zone GMT.) |
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