The Buffalo Heritage Carousel is one step closer towards completion. This past Monday, New York State Assemblyman Sean Ryan met up with the a number of the board of directors from the Buffalo Heritage Carousel to take an initial look at a handful of the restored carousel horses, as well as the Wurlitzer band organ. It won’t be long before the solar powered 1924 Herschell-Spillman carousel will find its way to its new home at Canalside. If you’re not familiar with the history of the carousel, and how it was brought back to Buffalo by a passionate crew of historians and environmental advocates, click here.
Altogether there are 34 animals in the historic menagerie, which are being painstakingly brought back to life at the Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum – to date, 25 have been completed. The DeAngelis Carousel is “a vintage, park-style, menagerie carousel, custom designed and manufactured in 1924 by Spilllman Engineering in N.Tonawanda for Dominick DeAngelis.”
The carousel restoration has included menagerie repainting in Western New York and mechanical components being rebuilt in Ohio.
Ryan, who secured $600,000 in state funding for the project, met up with the board of directors, and the restoration team, to observe the restoration process*, and to announce that work on the final horses (and one ostrich) is now underway.
“As the restoration on this carousel nears completion it’s become clear that this project has exceeded even our highest expectations,” said Assemblyman Sean Ryan. “The beautiful restoration work that has been done on this historic carousel will allow it to once again be an attraction that will draw people in from all over. Buffalo Heritage Carousel Inc, and their restoration team have done amazing work to help bring this carousel back to life. The work that has already been completed is amazing, and I can’t wait to see people’s reaction when they’re able to take their first ride on the finished product.”
*Expert carousel restorers abide by the original 1924 Spillman factory color palette after the horses and managerie have been paint stripped, sanded and re-fortified.