# Dentzel Carousel Company

The G.A. Dentzel Company was an American builder of carousels in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

## History

Its founder, Gustav Dentzel, had immigrated to the United States in 1860, from Germany. Having carved carousels for his father before immigrating he opened a cabinet making shop on Germantown Ave. in Philadelphia. He soon tired of the cabinet making business and decided to try his hand at building a small portable carousel that he could travel with around the country. After finding that people had a great enthusiasm for his carousel he decided to go into the carousel building business full-time in 1867, hiring other woodworkers who had also emigrated from Europe.
His son William took over the business after Gustav's death in 1909, and continued making carousels until 1928, with employees such as master-carvers Salvatore "Cherni" Cernigliaro and Daniel Muller. After William's death, Muller went on to form his own carousel company, while the Dentzel equipment and remaining stock were sold to the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
In mid-2017, an estimate indicated that there may be 150 of the Dentzel units in existence. At that time, a model from 1907, with 52 hand-carved animals, was sold by Centreville Amusement Park in Toronto, Ontario, to the city of Carmel, Indiana. The selling price was an estimated CAD $3 million, approximately US $2.25 million. The ride will open in 2018 or 2019 as part of a multi-year downtown redevelopment project. ***PLEASE NOTE - the sale referenced above did not happen and the Denzel Carrousel is still operating at the Centreville Amusement Park in Toronto, Canada.

## Operating Carousels (in USA)

| Ride Name | Year Built | Location | City | Figures | History |
| King Arthur Carrousel | 1922 | Disneyland | Anaheim, California | 68 Jumpers, 1 Chariot | Sunnyside Park (1922-1954) |
| Merry-Go-Round | 1912 | Knott's Berry Farm | Buena Park, California | 18 Jumpers, 10 Standing, 24 Menagerie, 2 Chariots | Hersheypark (1912-1936) Brady Park (1936-1955) |
| Merry-Go-Round | 1907 | Castle Park | Riverside, California | 18 Jumpers, 12 Standing, 20 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Hersheypark (1907-????) Knott's Berry Farm (1950s-1984) |
| Dentzel Carousel | 1921 | San Francisco Zoo | San Francisco, California | 24 Jumpers, 12 Standing, 16 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Pacific City Amusement Park (1921-1925) |
| Broad Ripple Park Carousel | 1917 | The Children's Museum of Indianapolis | Indianapolis, Indiana | 17 Jumpers, 14 Standing, 11 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Broad Ripple Park (1917-1956) Parks Department Indianapolis (1956-1969) |
| Spencer Park Dentzel Carousel | 1902 | Riverside Park | Logansport, Indiana | 32 Standing, 11 Menagerie, 3 Chariot | Robison Park (1902-1919) Spencer Park (1919-1962) Riverside Park (1962-Present) |
| Carousel at Glen Echo Park | 1921 | Glen Echo Park | Glen Echo, Maryland | 28 Jumpers, 12 Standing, 12 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | |
| Chesapeake Carousel | 1905 | Watkins Regional Park | Upper Marlboro, Maryland | 15 Jumpers, 16 Standing, 13 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Chesapeake Beach (1905-1972) |
| Highland Park Dentzel Carousel | 1904 | Highland Park | Meridian, Mississippi | 20 Standing, 8 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Louisiana Purchase Exposition (1904) |
| St. Louis Carousel | 1921 | Faust County Park | Chesterfield, Missouri | 46 Jumpers, 16 Standing, 4 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Forest Park Highlands (1929-1963) Storage (1963-1965) Sylvan Springs Park (1965-1980) Storage (1980-1987) |
| Antique Carousel | 1898 | Canobie Lake Park | Salem, New Hampshire | 24 Jumpers, 19 Standing, 3 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | |
| Dr. Floyd L. Moreland Carousel | 1910 | Seaside Heights | Seaside Heights, New Jersey | 35 Jumpers, 18 Standing, 5 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Island Beach Park (1910-1928) Casino Pier (1932-2015) |
| Carousel | 1905 | Ontario Beach Park | Rochester, New York | 22 Jumpers, 11 Standing, 19 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | |
| Menagerie Carousel | 1905 | Burlington City Park | Burlington, North Carolina | 16 Jumpers, 10 Standing, 20 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Locust Point (????-1924) Forest Park (1924-1948) |
| Pullen Park Carousel | 1912 | Pullen Park | Raleigh, North Carolina | 19 Jumpers, 10 Standing, 23 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Bloomsbury Park (1912-1915) |
| Kiddy Kingdom Carousel | 1925 | Cedar Point | Sandusky, Ohio | 27 Jumpers, 14 Standing, 11 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Hunting Park-Germantown (1936-1968) |
| Albany Carousel | 1909 | Albany Historic Carousel and Museum (Dentzel mechanism only) | Albany, Oregon | 32 Jumpers, 16 Standing 2 Chariot | Downtown Albany (2017) |
| Antique Carousel | 1921 | Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom | Allentown, Pennsylvania | 50 Jumpers, 12 Standing, 4 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Exposition Park (1921-1941) Lake Lansing Amusement Center (Pine Lake) (1941-1971) Cedar Point (1971-1994) |
| Stoner Carousel | 1924 | Stoner Carousel Association | Lancaster, Pennsylvania | 25 Jumpers, 8 Standing, 15 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Rocky Springs Park (1901-1923) Rocky Springs Park (1924-1983) Lake Lansing Park (1983-1987) Dollywood (1990-1999) Storage (1999-present) |
| Weona Park Carousel | 1900 | Weona Park | Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania | 34 Standing, 10 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Original location unknown (1900-1924) |
| Woodside Park Carousel | 1902 | Please Touch Museum | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 24 Jumpers, 16 Standing, 12 Menagerie, 2 Chariot | Woodside Amusement Park (1902-1955) Rockaways' Playland (1956-1961) Storage (1961-1962) St. John Terrell's Music Circus (1963-1966) Storage (Smithsonian Institution) (1966-2005) Restoration (2005-2008) |
| Grand Carousel | 1926 | Kennywood Park | West Mifflin, Pennsylvania | 50 Jumpers, 14 Standing, 2 Menagerie, 4 Chariot | Commissioned by U.S. Government in 1926 for Philadelphia Sesquicentennial Celebration, but not finished in time and purchased by Kennywood. |
| Memphis Grand Carousel | 1909 | Children's Museum of Memphis | Memphis, Tennessee | 32 Jumpers, 16 Standing 2 Chariot | Forest Park Amusement Park (1909-1923) Mid-South Fairgrounds (1923-1974) Storage (1974-1976) Libertyland (1976-2005) Storage and restoration (2005-2017) |
| Silver Star Carousel | 1926 | Six Flags Over Texas | Arlington, Texas | 50 Jumpers, 16 Standing 2 Chariot | Rockaways' Playland (1926-1963) |
| Dentzel Carousel | 1923 | Fair Park | Dallas, Texas | 50 Jumpers, 16 Standing 2 Chariot | Carsonia Park (1923-1950) |

## Gallery

* The Woodside Amusement Park Carousel, now at the Please Touch Museum
* Lead horse on the Woodside Amusement Park Carousel
* Maker's mark on the lead horse on the Woodside Amusement Park Carousel
* Row of giraffes on the Broad Ripple Park Carousel
* Horse on the Woodside Amusement Park Carousel
* Giraffe at the Pullen Park Carousel
* Zebra at Weona Park Carousel
* Tiger at the Pullen Park Carousel