Making a Carousel
The First Carousels
According to Stacey L. Blachford of Enotes.com, early carousels were made in the 1500s by commoners in France. The horses and raised, rotating platform were an imitation of the real horses used in a court game called "carosello." In this game, horsemen would toss perfume-filled balls to one another; another variation involved the rider pulling down a brass ring while in motion (the root of the phrase "reaching for the brass ring").
In 1866, an Englishman named Frederick Savage powered the old human-driven machine with steam, and it became an instant hit.
Today, most carousels in the United States are produced in one town. Mansfield, Ohio, is home to both Carousel Works and Carousel Magic, two custom shops that produce wooden carousels to order.
What Materials Are Used?
Even though modern carousels no longer run on steam or pure manpower, they still have many attributes in common with the structures of old. The main materials are still metal and wood. The horses are always crafted by hand from basswood; major producers from the past Americans Charles Looff and Charles Dare and German artist Gustav Dentzel. Their horses are now major collector's items.
For a new carousel with actual piped music, the organ is produced by the Stinson Organ Company based in Ohio. The famous Wurlitzer jukebox company produces the music scrolls for the player organs. Since weather kills the tuning of wind instruments, many new carousels use CDs or digital media for their tunes.
About the Horses
Most horses are made by hand, even today. Carousel horse making is a respected and serious art form. Old pieces are so prized that, according to Blanchford, "auction prices of up to $60,000 per horse for antique ponies have brought a new awareness to the importance of equipping a new carousel with the genuine article."
Horses are produced from blocks of wood with sketches and small-scale models that are crafted to order. Typically, one horse takes about 35 hours to create, not including any painting or accent work. If an antique horse is being redone, there might be layer upon layer of paint to scrape off and redo, attesting to the many owners that pass the horses along.
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