Historic Carousel Gardens and 1906 Flying Horses

Why is it significant?

Arrive before the cheerful storybook entrance of the Carousel Gardens Amusement Park, one of the oldest and most charming family recreational grounds in the American South.

Key Facts

Open the walk

Arrive before the cheerful storybook entrance of the Carousel Gardens Amusement Park, one of the oldest and most charming family recreational grounds in the American South. The crowning jewel of the park is its historic wooden carousel—universally known to generations of New Orleanians as the "Flying Horses"—housed inside an ornate circular wooden pavilion that has delighted children and families continuously since 1906.

Look at the hand-carved wooden animals through the pavilion windows: this carousel is officially recognized on the National Register of Historic Places as one of only approximately one hundred antique hand-carved wooden carousels still operating in the United States.

Crafted in 1906 by master carver Charles Looff of Brooklyn, New York, and featuring subsequent detailed carvings by the celebrated Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC No. 48), the carousel features fifty-six exquisitely carved figures. Instead of ordinary molded plastic, these horses are carved from solid linden wood with genuine horsehair tails, sparkling rhinestone bridles, and whimsical expressions. Alongside the galloping prancers, riders can mount two carved chariots, a fierce lion, a giraffe, a regal camel, and a galloping sea dragon. Music is provided by an authentic antique Wurlitzer 153 band organ, whose brass pipes, drums, and glockenspiel churn out joyful turn-of-the-century marches, waltzes, and ragtime tunes. Surrounding the carousel pavilion, the amusement park features a vintage miniature narrow-gauge diesel train that has circled the lagoons of City Park since the 1940s. Hand-painted scenic panels encircling the carousel roof depict pastoral Louisiana bayou landscapes, historic riverboats, and playful Creole folklore characters, celebrating regional folk culture.

Listening to the upbeat chime of the Wurlitzer organ as the brightly painted wooden horses glide gracefully around the central mirrored column, the innocent nostalgia of childhood in historic New Orleans comes alive. It is a precious living artifact of American folk craftsmanship.

Walk southwest along City Park Avenue to the Carrollton Avenue streetcar terminus.