The Carousels of the Disney Parks — The Disney Classics

There are staple attractions that almost every amusement park should possess: a Ferris wheel, bumper cars, a Tilt-A-Whirl, and a carousel. When Walt first dreamed up the idea of building his own theme park, originally to be named Mickey Mouse Park, many of his colleagues and family believed it to be a bad idea. They thought it would be a poor investment since there was a stigma surrounding amusement parks at the time, which was that they were simply a money grab. The classic theme park attractions named above were what everyone was imagining, and it was believed that this new idea would be nothing new to the world. But for Walt, building the park would be so much more than just a financial investment into his ever-growing business, but it would also be a dream realized.

Walt Disney and a map of Disneyland. Image from: https://disneylandnews.com/galleries/2015/01/26/historical-images/

The Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round

Walt’s idea for a theme park initially started as a quaint, accessible themed area within or across from the Burbank studios so the public could come enjoy this area of California that was being built up by Disney. This idea evolved after a Saturday afternoon spent at Griffith Park, a large park in the Los Feliz neighborhood that Walt loved to bring his daughters Sharon and Diane to. Walt would watch his children ride the merry-go-round that they had there from a bench nearby. He began to think about the possibility of building a space that could be fun for children and adults alike. This is the moment that Disneyland expanded beyond his mind and he had a clearer vision of how Disneyland would differ from any regular amusement park.

The bench that Walt sat on at Griffith Park is on display at the Greatest Moments of Mr. Lincoln attraction on Main Street USA today. The merry-go-round at Griffith Park is still in operation and is now a tourist attraction in Los Feliz.

Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round. Image from: https://carouselhistory.com/ca-griffith-park-carousel-1926-spillman-engineering-looffcarmel/

Griffith Park bench on display. Image from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Griffith_Park_Bench.jpg

King arthur carrousel

At the time of the opening of Disneyland on July 17th, 1955, the King Arthur Carrousel was one of the first Fantasyland attractions to be featured on the broadcast, with dancers dressed as various signature Disney characters running to get a spot on it, along with many children. The carousel would sit right at the back of the castle in the entrance of Fantasyland, where it still stands today, despite Fantasyland’s full renovation in 1983. It would set the tone for Fantasyland as a place where you could discover the classic rides the world has come to love, as well as little nods to the fantastical, whimsical parts of the park.

The carousel itself was acquired from Sunnyside Beach Park in Ontario, Canada, where it had operated since 1922. It was built in 1875 by William Dentzel, who was a craftsman who specialized in carousel-making through his company, Dentzel Carousel Company. William’s passion and specialty was inherited from his father, Gustav Dentzel. William had a hand in building carousels for other notable locations, such as Knott’s Berry Farm, San Francisco Zoo, and Six Flags Over Texas.

When Disney purchased the carousel, they made their own modifications to it to make it bigger to accommodate more guests, and make it to fit the theming of the land, by adding motifs from Sleeping Beauty to it. It has only had two major refurbishments over the last 70 years, including the painting of all of the horses to be white in 1975 after the popularity of the only white horse at the time. The most popular horse today is the lead horse, Jingles, who was dedicated to Julie Andrews in 2008. In 2003, many of the mechanical operations were replaced for efficiency and accessibility.

King Arthur Carrousel in Fantasyland. Image from: https://www.wdwinfo.com/disneyland-california/king-arthur-carrousel.htm

Julie Andrews at the dedication of Jingles. Image from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvNjCHfSZIs

carousel of progress

The 1964 New York World’s Fair was a significant event in Disney’s history, as it was the location where so many classic attractions were born and technology was tested. Greatest Moments with Mr. Lincoln and it’s a small world debuted at the fair, as a part of Disney’s venture into audio-animatronics. Another branch of this exploration was the Carousel of Progress, which also debuted in 1964. The Carousel of Progress would be a love letter to each decade, showcasing clothing, décor, and technology that was available through each era and how electricity played a role each decade. General Electric reaproached Disney, after a failed partnership about a decade prior, and they sponsored the construction of this new attraction.

Something that drew guests into this attraction was the use of the carousel-like stage, that rotated clockwise to easily show different sets and animatronics that would interact with the audience. The first act is depicted at the beginning of the 1900s, showing inventions, family dynamics, and language at the time. The second act is set in 1920, showing off various innovations in cookware, radios, electric lighting, and more. The third act is in 1940s, which features the progression in refrigerators, dishwashers, and television. The final act was originally in the 1960s, around Christmastime in a New York penthouse. The final act has since changed to become more of a depiction of technology of the 21st century, with video games, computers, HD televisions, and more.

Carousel of Progress. Image from: https://www.polygon.com/2020/10/22/21529243/disney-world-carousel-of-progress-tomorrowland-walt-disney-futurism

The attraction did so well at the World’s Fair that it was moved to Tomorrowland in Disneyland 1967, taking over the location of the Space Bar. Some of the animatronics would receive a facelift, and the background of the final 1960s scene would feature a model of Disney’s EPCOT, intending to debut in Florida very soon. When Walt Disney World opened in 1971, a year later General Electric requested that the attraction move to the new park to capture a new audience. The Carousel of Progress is still in operation in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom today.

“Now we’re in the frantic forties, and it’s amazing how today’s household appliances are helping to take over the hard work.”

— Father in Carousel of Progress

prince charming regal carrousel

The Magic Kingdom would not be complete with just one carousel like attraction, as it needed a traditional version as well. Similarly to Disneyland, the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel (originally named Cinderella’s Golden Carousel), was purchased from an outside source. It was originally made in 1917 by The Philadelphia Toboggan Company. It was acquired in 1967 by Disney from Olympic Park in Maplewood, New Jersey. It was much larger than King Arthur Carrousel, featuring 90 unique horses, while King Arthur’s only has 72. To fit with the theming of the castle, this carrousel has artwork based on Cinderella painted on it instead. The name change came in 2010, in an attempt to stay with the lore of Cinderella and the Prince’s tendency to ride horses. Very similar carrousels to this one can be found in Tokyo Disneyland (Castle Carrousel) and in Hong Kong Disneyland (Cinderella Carousel).

With the popularity of Jingles in Disneyland, one of the horses at the Magic Kingdom started to draw attention and be named by fans and some Disney publications as Cinderella’s official designated horse. However, there is only speculation that this horse is dedicated to her specifically, as others have disagreed.

the lancelot carousel

Le Carrousel de Lancelot, or The Lancelot Carousel in English, is the carousel attraction of Disneyland Paris. It is one of the largest of them all of the Disney parks, including 86 horses in all. What make the horses of this one unique are that they are laid out in colorful rainbow order. The carousel shines through its use of gold leaf throughout and its shimmering lights above. It’s not dedicated to any princess or prince in particular, but plays songs from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin.

Caravan carousel

Tokyo DisneySea’s carousel is an homage to the characters and music of Aladdin. What makes it so incredibly different from the others is that it’s a two-story carousel, and is mostly enclosed into its own structure. There are windows cut out surrounding the cylindrical building, that look out onto the Arabian Coast courtyard. Another big difference is that it features not only horses but other animals too, like camels, elephants, and even a Genie every few rows. The building lights up from the inside each night and is a beautiful sight that ties perfectly into the Aladdin theme.

fantasia carousel

Fantasia Carousel stands in the Gardens of Imagination in Shanghai Disneyland, and was a part of the original design plans for the theme park. As it states in its name, it would be themed with the sounds and sights of Disney’s Fantasia, and would be the only ride to date that paid homage to that film. As guests ride around on the multicolor horses, they would be transported to different scenes from the films through paintings done on the interior of the carousel. Fantasia Carousel is slightly smaller than King Arthur’s Carousel, complete with 62 horses. The horses would also be designed differently than a traditional merry-go-round horse, as they have more of a Pegasus-like look to them, as another call back to the film.

jessie’s critter carousel

When California Adventure opened in February 2001, one of its opening day attractions in Paradise Pier was King Triton’s Carousel of the Sea. Instead of the traditional horse and chariot set-up for this carousel, it would feature sea creatures that were native to the California coast of the Pacific Ocean, to keep up with the theming of the park and the little nods to the state. This would be the only opening day attraction in California Adventure that was directly themed after a Disney animated film.

In 2018. Paradise Pier was renovated to become Pixar Pier, and many of its attractions that were California themed were converted into a Pixar theme, like California Screamin’ into The Incredicoaster. As a part of this renovation, King Triton’s Carousel of the Sea was refurbished and became Jessie’s Critter Carousel, featuring a huge statue of Jessie from Toy Story. There would be easter eggs for true Toy Story 2 fans among the ride, as the critters you could ride would be Jessie’s critter friends seen in the Woody’s Roundup episodes.