Only about 5% of the 2500 wooden carousels carved and crafted in the USA between 1885 and the 1930s still exist, and not all of these are in fine repair. One of the best preserved examples is the Kit Carson County Carousel, which my wife and I were looking forward to seeing because we’ve always enjoyed carousels and carousel horses.
This carousel was made by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, the sixth (#6) of 74 they made between 1904 and 1933. It was made in 1905 for Elitch Gardens, an amusement park in Denver. Elitch Gardens upgraded its carousel in 1927 and old #6 was sold and moved to Burlington, where it still resides.
It’s a fully functional three row stationary carousel (the animal do not go up and down), and it still has the original paint on its 45 carousel animals as well as on the scenery panels encasing the motor works. It was designated a National Historic Site in 1979.
This Carousel is found on the Kit Carson County Fairgrounds and is open from Memorial Day through Labor Day, from 11 am – 6 pm. Admission to the museum is $1.00 — and rides are 25 cents. As we visited in April, we were disappointed to find the Museum closed, but did take a few photos of the carousel through the museum’s window.
