Crescent Park Looff Carousel

	Crescent Park Looff Carousel
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	U.S. National Historic Landmark
	Riders on carousel, 2008
Location	Bullock's Point Ave., East Providence, Rhode Island
Coordinates	41°45′23″N 71°21′33″W / 41.75639°N 71.35917°W
Built	1895; 129 years ago
Architect	Charles I.D. Looff
MPS	East Providence MRA (AD) (2.6MB)
NRHP reference No.	76000045
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	April 21, 1976
Designated NHL	February 27, 1987

Crescent Park Looff Carousel, also known as Crescent Park Carousel or more officially as Crescent Park Looff Carousel and Shelter Building, is a National Historic Landmark in East Providence, Rhode Island.

The hand-carved carousel was built in 1895 by Charles I. D. Looff at his Brooklyn, New York factory and installed at Crescent Park Amusement Park in the Riverside section of East Providence, Rhode Island. The ride's fifty-foot platform contains sixty-one horses, one camel, two single coaches, and two double chariots. Fifty-six of the horses are jumpers. It is among the finest and least-altered of Looff's surviving carousels, serving as a showcase for his workmanship.

History

Charles I. D. Looff was born in Denmark in 1852 and immigrated to the United States in 1870. He built the first carousel at Coney Island in 1876. From his Brooklyn factory, Looff built many carousels for the East coast and places like the Texas State Fair in Dallas, the Oklahoma State Fair in Oklahoma City, as well as Houston and Fort Worth. In 1905, Looff moved his factory to Crescent Park and used this carousel as a showpiece for customers to select the horses that they wanted on their rides. Most of the figures on this carousel were carved between 1905 and 1910 when Looff moved his factory to Long Beach, California. Of almost fifty carousels that Looff built between 1875 and 1918, this is one of the ten or twelve remaining in operation.

When Crescent Park closed in 1977, the City of East Providence kept the carousel off of the auction block after being pressured by local coalitions in a lengthy legal battle.^[3] The restored ride continues to operate every summer and is controlled by a commission of eighteen people who maintain statutory authority over a managerial and operational staff.^[4]

The carousel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1987.^[2]^[5] The Rhode Island General Assembly proclaimed the carousel as "the State Jewel of American Folk Art."

The carousel was re-opened on August 6, 2022 after a three year closure due to repair work.^[6]

Building

The carousel is housed in one of Looff's classic "hippodrome" buildings topped with his traditional onion dome. Sunlight floods through multicolored clerestory windows and reflects off of faceted mirrors to create a magical kaleidoscope effect. The carousel is circled by several rows of wooden benches and a rope fence. Tickets are purchased from a free-standing booth located just inside the entrance and opposite from a small gift and snack stand. Adjacent to this stand is a small exhibit of historical artifacts. Vents at the roof's peak provide natural air circulation. A full-sized hand-carved American bald eagle sits atop the rides center pole. Managerial offices are located in a pavilion annex opposite the main access road which was formerly Looff's on-site workshop.

Rides

Rides begin and end when a brass fog bell manufactured by PERKO Inc. is rung.^[7] The duration of the ride is determined with the help of a small hourglass affixed to the snare drum cabinet of the band organ. It is one of the only carousels in America where riders can play the ring game by grabbing a brass ring to earn a free ride. After catching the rings, riders throw them into the cut-out mouth of a clown face painted on a large canvas. Originally, the ride was powered by steam from the park's steam plant. The carousel is currently operated by an electric motor.

Band organ

An Andreas Ruth und Sohn Style 38 band organ, imported from Waldkirch, Germany, provides music from a Wurlitzer 165 music roll system, which replaced the original German cardboard book music system.^[8] At least six cassette volumes of recorded music were previously sold at the carousel and have become rare collector's items. In response to noise complaints by the carousel operators and visitors, several of the ranks of pipes in the band organ have been disabled to reduce the music volume. In a notable 1995 incident, carved instruments from the facade of the band organ were stolen.^[9]

References

^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
^ ^a ^b "Crescent Park Looff Carousel". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2008.
^ Rodericks, Bob (August 6, 2013). "The Coney Island of the East Coast". Reporter Today. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
^ "City of East Providence - Crescent Park Carousel Commission". Archived from the original on June 2, 2010. Retrieved February 28, 2010. Carousel Park Commission
^ James H. Charleton (October 1985). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Crescent Park Looff Carousel and Shelter Building" (pdf). National Park Service. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) and Accompanying one photo, exterior, from early 1900s (32 KB)
^ Bateson, Liz (August 9, 2022). "Historic East Providence carousel reopens after three-year halt". WJAR. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
^ [1] PERKO Inc.
^ [2] Census of Classic Wood Carousels
^ [3] Projo.com archives, "Looff Carousel ornaments stolen"

Images

Crescent Park Looff Carousel and midway c.1905
Looff family at Crescent Park mgr c.1905-1910
Crescent Park carousel in 2007

[nris-1] "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.

[nhlsum-2] "Crescent Park Looff Carousel". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2008.

[3] Rodericks, Bob (August 6, 2013). "The Coney Island of the East Coast". Reporter Today. Retrieved June 4, 2018.

[4] "City of East Providence - Crescent Park Carousel Commission". Archived from the original on June 2, 2010. Retrieved February 28, 2010. Carousel Park Commission

[nrhpinv2-5] James H. Charleton (October 1985). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Crescent Park Looff Carousel and Shelter Building" (pdf). National Park Service. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) and Accompanying one photo, exterior, from early 1900s (32 KB)

[6] Bateson, Liz (August 9, 2022). "Historic East Providence carousel reopens after three-year halt". WJAR. Retrieved August 13, 2022.

[7] [1] PERKO Inc.

[8] [2] Census of Classic Wood Carousels

[9] [3] Projo.com archives, "Looff Carousel ornaments stolen"

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

v t e U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Topics	Architectural style categories Contributing property Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places Keeper of the Register National Park Service Property types
Lists by state	List of U.S. National Historic Landmarks by state: Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming
Lists by insular areas	American Samoa Guam Minor Outlying Islands Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico Virgin Islands
Lists by associated state	Federated States of Micronesia Marshall Islands Palau
Other areas	District of Columbia American Legation, Morocco
Related	National Historic Preservation Act Historic Preservation Fund List of jails and prisons on the National Register of Historic Places University and college buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places portal Category