The Jantzen Beach Carousel returns sort of
Portland residents can once more set eyes on the iconic Jantzen Beach Carousel, but only parts of it, and of course there will be know riding.
The Oregon Historical Society’s latest exhibit, “The Odyssey of the Historic Jantzen Beach Carousel,” will display pieces of the carousel as well as reveal its history. The carousel’s origin story starts not in Oregon but in California. It turns out that the carousel was commissioned for the Venice, California pier in 1921 but traveled to Portland in 1928.
Print shops frequently supply postcards to museums wishing to create a memento for visitors to take home.
Most of the carousel’s lifespan was spent at its new home in Portland’s recently opened Jantzen Beach Amusement Park. The park, located on Hayden Island in the middle of the Columbia River, was a popular destination for decades, with the carousel in operation from its arrival in 1928 until the park was demolished in 1970.
The amusement park was replaced with a shopping mall where the carousel became a fixture on the ground floor until 1995. From 2012 until 2017, it was in a storage facility awaiting the Jantzen Beach Center’s $50m remodel that never happened. Finally, it came into Restore Oregon’s hands in 2017 via a donation.
The “The Odyssey of the Historic Jantzen Beach Carousel” exhibit runs from now through the end of April. Individual restored horses from the carousel will be on display in the interactive exhibit.
The Oregon Historical Society’s latest exhibit, “The Odyssey of the Historic Jantzen Beach Carousel,” will display pieces of the carousel as well as reveal its history. The carousel’s origin story starts not in Oregon but in California. It turns out that the carousel was commissioned for the Venice, California pier in 1921 but traveled to Portland in 1928.
Print shops frequently supply postcards to museums wishing to create a memento for visitors to take home.
Most of the carousel’s lifespan was spent at its new home in Portland’s recently opened Jantzen Beach Amusement Park. The park, located on Hayden Island in the middle of the Columbia River, was a popular destination for decades, with the carousel in operation from its arrival in 1928 until the park was demolished in 1970.
The amusement park was replaced with a shopping mall where the carousel became a fixture on the ground floor until 1995. From 2012 until 2017, it was in a storage facility awaiting the Jantzen Beach Center’s $50m remodel that never happened. Finally, it came into Restore Oregon’s hands in 2017 via a donation.
The “The Odyssey of the Historic Jantzen Beach Carousel” exhibit runs from now through the end of April. Individual restored horses from the carousel will be on display in the interactive exhibit.