Nassau County Delivers the Historic Nunley's Carousel to its new home on Museum Row

The historic Nunley's Carousel opens in its new home on Museum Row on May 2nd and 3rd as part of the 3rd Annual Museum Row Family Festival. The Carousel has been painstakingly restored to its former glory through the magnificent efforts of Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, Nassau County Legislator Joseph Scannell and 11 year old Rachel Obergh who helped raise some of the restoration funds through "Pennies for Ponies." Built in 1912, the 40 horse carousel has entertained generations of Long Islanders in its Baldwin home for over 50 years. Nassau County has put a tremendous amount of resources to not only restore the carousel but also build a beautiful new home on Museum Row to compliment the Cradle of Aviation Museum, the Long Island Children's Museum and the Nassau County Firefighters Museum. The official opening is slated for Saturday, May 2nd at 12 noon, when County Executive Tom Suozzi and Legislators Joseph Scannell and Roger Corbin will be on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony and the first ride.

The History of Nunley’s Carousel

Nunley’s Carousel was created in 1912 by the Stein and Goldstein Artistic Carousell Co. of Brooklyn New York; the same year that the Luxury Ocean Liner Titanic made its fateful maiden voyage. The art of the carousel reached its grandest scale in America during this period. The carousel productions of Stein and Goldstein are among the greatest; their muscular aggressive horses gracefully gallop around a blur of painted landscapes.

The carousel was installed on the Brooklyn waterfront in Canarsie’s Golden City Park, there it was known as “Murphy’s” carousel. Timothy Murphy and William Nunley were partners in the Merley Corporation, operators of numerous carousels in the northeast. Murphy’s carousel operated in Golden City Park for 26 years.

In the late 1930s, master builder Robert Moses was in the process of building the Brooklyn-Queens Circumferential Highway, know today as the Belt Parkway. The route of the highway went right through the center of Golden City Park; the property was condemned by New York City in 1938. In December of that year, Golden City Park was leveled. Earlier, Murphy’s carousel and a large framed carousel building were moved to the Baldwin site on Sunrise Highway where in the Spring of 1940 it reopened as Nunleys Carousel.

After delighting three generations of riders, in Baldwin, Nunley’s Carousel and Amusements closed in 1995. The kiddie rides, games and miniature golf course were all sold off. The carousel, standing alone, was in danger of being auctioned off in pieces. The County of Nassau, recognizing the significance of the carousel, and what it meant to thousands of Long Islanders, purchased it as a historic artifact.

Nunley’s Carousel is a historic object of outstanding design, workmanship and artistry; it will continue to be a revered landmark in Nassau County. The fully restored Nunley’s carousel begins life anew at Nassau County’s Museum Row. Undoubtedly, several generations to come will understand the love affair that their forbearers had with this beautiful carousel.

Fun Facts

• Nunley’s Carousel has 41 horses and one lion.
• The entire carousel is suspended from the center pole.
• The carousel is 42 feet in diameter.
• One bell means the carousel is ready to start, two bells means that it is beginning to turn.
• American carousels turn counterclockwise, but in England, carousels turn clockwise.
• The outward facing side of the carousel horse is more heavily carved than the side facing inward.
• Between 2000 and 3000 carousels were produced in the U.S. during its golden age of wooden carousels (1880s to 1930s); today, there are less than 150 still operating.
• Golden age carousel figures were not carved out of a single block of wood, instead several body panels were connected producing a hollow body.
• To relax before taking off on his solo non-stop trans-Atlantic flight in 1927, Charles Lindbergh ventured to Coney Island to ride a carousel