08/23/2011
Jumping Horses
This carousel was built in 1912 at Leavenworth Kansas by C.W. Parker and was the 119th one made by them. It was originally sold in 1913 to Mr. F.K. Leggett of Houston Texas for $5,886.00 and was originally equipped with a steam engine and “wishbones/grass-hopper/jumping horse” mechanisms. It toured Texas for two years with the Lone Star Circus then in 1915 the machine was shipped back to the factory. It is believed that the machine was rebuilt by the factory, had some fancier horses and heavier rounding boards added. The factory records consulted do not tell for certain where the machine went between 1915 and 1936, possibly to San Jose, CA from 1918 until 1922 and then to San Francisco California, or in Tacoma, Washington. In 1936 it was purchased and was in operation at Happlyland in Vancouver by May 1936. The Parker #119 was put into a pavilion which had been built in 1928 by a rival company. Here it remained until Happyland was demolished in 1957. Parker #119 was then moved to the new small pavilion in Playland until that too was demolished in 1972. From 1972 to 1989, Parker #119 was operated outdoors, and was put away each winter. In 1989 it was announced that the carousel would be sold off horse by horse at an auction in New York. Ms. Venus Solano and Mr. Doug McCalum and other local people came together to “Save the Carousel” and formed the “Friends of the Vancouver Carousel Society”. In May 1989, Burnaby Village Museum agreed to provide a home for the carousel and the “Friends”, led by President Don Wrigley, set about raising the $350,000 to purchase the machine. Keith Jamieson, a carousel expert, was brought in to coordinate the rebuilding project. With a lot of hard work, the help of the Government of British Columbia and the support of the Municipality of Burnaby, the carousel was purchased. Funds were also raised to pay for the restoration, and Burnaby agreed to build a new pavilion for it as a Centennial project.
Enjoy!