Looff Carousel at Slater Park - Pawtucket, RI
Posted by: 
NorStar
N 41° 52.287 W 071° 20.620
19T E 305506 N 4638159
This carousel was designed by Charles I. D. Looff in 1895, making it one of the oldest carousels in the world.
Waymark Code: WMCER8
Location: Rhode Island, United States
Date Posted: 08/29/2011
Views: 8
In Pawtucket, Rhode Island, there is a nice municipal park with a carousel. This carousel, built in 1895 by Charles I. D. Looff, is one of the oldest in the world of its type, and is a great place to 'take a spin!'
The carousel is located in the northern part of the park, by a small lake. Parking is available right by the carousel. A multi-sided yellow building covers the carousel. Inside, the carousel is in the center, while the snack bar/ticket booth and other items line the side. There are several painted scenes on the carousel, some of which appear to have been made recently, and some might have been old.
The carousel is one of the oldest surviving carousels in the country, though it was hard to find out surviving carousels from the listing on Wikipedia on Charles I. D. Looff. Within the building there is a sign stating that it is the oldest 100 ft carousel in the world. Without any evidence to the contrary, I'll have to take their word for it.
The carousel itself is a 'stationary' carousel, which means that it doesn't have the rotating mechanism that causes the horses to go up and down. This is made up with speed - this carousel is considered the fastest one that Looff made - and we can attest to it as we were a little dizzy after the ride. There are three rows of 42 horses, three dogs, one camel, one giraffe, one lion and two chariots. There is a band organ that was built at North Tonawanda (#109) in 1910. At the time of the visit, it was in fine working shape.
The carousel was originally installed at Lee Funland in upstate New York. It was brought to Rhode Island in 1910. According to another web site, in 1967, the carousel was closed and plans were to sell it. Community based efforts save the carousel, and it was restored and reopened in 1979. It was closed again in 2009 and put through new renovations, and reopened in 2010.
The carousel is only 25 cents to ride, based on donation requirements. So, when you go there - buy some popcorn or something. It is also available for birthday events.
I assume that the carousel is open from spring through the summer. However, only the spring hours were available on the website.
Other Sources:
Wikipedia (Charles I. D. Looff):
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visit link)
Agilitynut.com (Carousels):
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visit link)