Tilden Park Carousel Grand Re-Opening

Please join East Bay Regional Park District Board Member Nancy Skinner and the Regional Parks Foundation Board of Directors in celebrating the grand re-opening of the newly refurbished Tilden Carousel on Saturday, October 4, from 10 a.m. ­to 12:30 p.m. This free event is open to the public. Enjoy a free ride, ice cream and cookies.

The Tilden Carousel is re-opening after a six-month closure to restore the outer building structure, install new doors, renovate the carousel floor, and repair the North Tonawanda organ. Funding for this project was provided by voter-approved Measure CC, the Regional Parks Foundation, and a Partners in Preservation grant from American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Each year 150,000 visitors enjoy this 1911 Herscell-Spillman "Menagerie Edition" Carousel, one of only two still operating in the U.S. Since it was relocated from Southern California in 1948, the Tilden Park Carousel has delighted visitors with the opportunity to ride on and view its 59 hand-carved and hand-painted animals. This National Register-listed Carousel has provided generations the chance to live and re-live the joys of childhood.

Note: The Tilden Carousel is open now on weekends (I went there last weekend with my granddaughter), October 4th is just the celebration.

Tilden Carousel Closed For Renovation

Kid on carouselOn January 1, 2008, the East Bay Regional Park District began a six-month construction and renovation project on Tilden Regional Park’s historic carousel. This state-of-the-art project will include the construction of an attractive yet durable weather proof enclosure to protect the popular amusement ride from deterioration from wind and fog. In addition the carousel floor will be redone and the organ refurbished. The carousel built in 1911 is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its unique hand-painted carved animals are now all antiques. The District acquired the carousel in 1948, and it has been a popular destination for generations. The project should be complete by June 30 and will reopen to the public at that time. Read more on East Bay Regional Parks’ web site.