Event will offer $1 rides on Looff Carrousel, $1 popcorn, free face painting, and presentations on the changes coming to Riverfront Park
Monique Cotton, Director of Communications and Marketing, Spokane Parks & Recreation, 509.435.1866, mcotton@spokanecity.org
Wednesday, July 22, 2015 at 1:56 p.m.
On Saturday, July 25th, Riverfront Park is celebrating National Carousel Day with $1 rides on the historic Looff Carrousel, $1 popcorn, free face painting for kids, and presentations on the changes coming to Riverfront Park. Changes include improvements to the Looff Carrousel facility and are part of the 64-million-dollar Riverfront Park renovation.
Riverfront Park’s National Carrousel Day celebration will also include:
July 25 was chosen as the celebration day for National Carousel Day, an “unofficial” national holiday, as it coincides with the first United States patent that was issued for the modern carousel. That patent was awarded to William Schneider of Davenport Iowa on July 25, 1871.
Riverfront Park’s 1909 Looff Carrousel is on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of America’s most beautiful and well preserved hand-carved wooden carousels. The Looff Carrousel features 54 horses, 1 giraffe, 1 tiger, 2 Chinese dragon chairs, and a brass ring to catch!
The Looff Carrousel was completed and originally installed in Natatorium Park in 1909 as a belated wedding present from Charles I.D. Looff, to his daughter, Emma, and son-in-law, Louis Vogel. In 1964, Bill Oliver became the manager of Natatorium Park, which closed in 1967. All of the rides were sold, except for the Carrousel, which was placed in storage until 1975. It was Bill Oliver’s dream to keep the ride in action. In the spring of 1975, the move to Riverfront Park was initiated. The carrousel opened on May 8, 1975 in Riverfront Park, and has been operating at this location since then.
The City of Choice
509.625.6200
parks@spokanecity.org
808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA 99201
