The Coolidge Park Carousel- Chattanooga, Tennessee

This beautiful outside stander has an elegant shield on its rump and regal crest adorning the front of the body.

For a city its size Chattanooga has a beautiful assortment of parks for its people. In fact a chain of them called the Tennessee Riverpark extend down the Cumberland River and offer locals great chances to relax their days away. Coolidge Park, one of the city's newest parks, is a great place to play. There is a large fountain for the kids to run through, lots of greenery to stretch out on and it is next to an attractive, almost art deco, pedestrian bridge. The park's focal point is the carousel, a machine that has a storied history and combines the old and new techniques of carousel carving.

However, this machine has not always been in Chattanooga. It was first carved in the shop of Gustav Dentzel in 1895. It ran as an all-standing machine in Rochester, New York for twenty years when it was shipped back to William Dentzel as electric lights were added and part of the deck was raised to accommodate two rows of jumpers. From then it ran in Massachusetts when it was sold to Atlanta's Grant Park. It served the town's children well until the 1960's when the carousel was worn down and the city fathers could find no money to adequately maintain it. As has been the fate of many beautiful carousels the horses were harvested by being sold piecemeal and the frame was forgotten about as it rotted away in storage. A local man named Charlie Walker was able to save most of the frame and in the early 1980's he told Bud Ellis about this beautiful machine that was deteriorating in storage. Ellis founded the "Friends of the Carousel" in Chattanooga and taught his friends and other supporters how to carve. Several years passed as the carvers created many different horse and menagerie figures, most in Dentzel's style, for the carousel. During this time the frame was also restored as much of it was salvageable.

When Coolidge Park opened the beautiful carousel was its centerpiece. After entering the newly constructed building guests were invited to take a seat on the comfortable rocking chairs that surrounded the machine. The ride utilized clear white lights, had a mirrored center column, beautiful brown sweeps and fifty-two hand-carved animals that adorned it. In addition to the carvings it featured two band organs, a Wurlitzer and a new Stinson 57-2. The menagerie machine has an amazing collection of animals to choose from. Some like the rabbit and cat are straight out of the Dentzel catalogue while others, such as a fish took his whimsy and put it in new figures. Some parts of the machine, like the mirrors, are new but because the machine was put together so painstakingly it is nearly impossible to tell what is old and what is new. This machine combines the 1895 carving techniques with 21st Century technology as the ride has a computerized soft start to ensure the starting and slow of the carousel puts as little wear on the mechanics as possible. In an age when so many cities talk about giving back to their people it is heartening to see that Chattanooga gave its people a priceless gift. Generations from now children who rode this carousel will take their grandkids for a ride on Bud Eliss's vision. We all worry about our legacies and what we leave behind. On the Stinson organ at the carousel guests read a line that was painted on the bottom read, “Dedicated to Children of All Ages.” What better gift to give people than a fixed site of future memories?


A great view of the mirrored rounding boards.	The restoration paid homage to the ride's creator, Dentzel.	The Wurlitzer Band Organ.	The Stinson Band organ is new but has a classic look.

This tiger is a wonderfully carved figure.	The park is a perfect place for the carousel.	The elephant has an Asian feel to it.