Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round
75 Years of Fun in Griffith Park
Over the past few
days I’ve had the pleasure of taking my Canadian friend to Disneyland a couple
of days and then around to see some Disney sights around the Los Angeles,
California area. We drove to Burbank and walked around the Disney Studio and
saw where Walt Disney wanted to build his “little park” before he decided
better and made a much bigger playground for himself, Disneyland. We stopped in
at the Carolwood Barn (Walt’s backyard train workshop from his house) and then
went a little ways further into Griffith Park to see the Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round.
Now you may ask,
why check out the Merry-Go-Round in Griffith Park if I’m showing her mostly
Disney history? Well, the story goes; Saturday was Daddy Day with the girls for
Walt Disney. He was always looking for fun things to do with his two daughters.
Often he ended up in Griffith Park sitting on a bench watching his girls ride
the Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round. He would sit there on the bench and think
there should be some “entertainment enterprise” where parents could enjoy
having fun with their children instead of just watching them. This is where the
dream of Disneyland began.
Today the grand Merry-Go-Round
has lost much of its luster. It is in good running condition but much in need
of refurbishment. The poor old horses need lots of TLC to bring them back to
the grandeur they once had. You can see the beauty beneath the faded and
chipped paint and missing “jewels”. The crown panels are missing some of the
pictures and the ceiling has some holes. The entire thing is faded.
The Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round
was built in 1926 by the Spillman Engineering Co. It is the only 4 row, all
jumping horse Spillman Merry-Go-Round still working today. From 1926-1938 it
was on Mission Beach in San Diego. Some of the horses on the Merry-Go-Round
date back to the 1880’s All the horses have real horse hair tails.
The music is from the
original calliope. Its Stinson 165 Military Band
Organ is said to be the largest carousel band organ on the West Coast, with
more than 1500 marches and waltzes in its repertoire.
In 1938 it was
purchased and moved to Griffith Park where it has entertained generations of
children and is still bringing joy to the current generation of children. The Merry-Go-Round
was purchased by privet parties in 1984 with the intent of refurbishing it.
Slowly it is happening but is slow and expensive. The Merry-Go-Round has to
generate the funds for its maintenance and repairs.
Many people have donated time, money and supplies in the process so far. I hope the speed
of repairs picks up and this grand Merry-Go-Round is returned to its original
beauty. It would be a shame for this piece of history to be lost.
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