Those fun-loving Greenhorn Valley Red Hat Ladies stepped out in all their glory to pay a visit to the carousel at Pueblo City Park on Thursday, July 7. Eighteen of the lively ladies, all decked out in their purple and red, met at the historical carousel for a program by Mike Sexton and some time for carousel rides.
The Greenhorn Valley Red Hat Ladies is a social club for ladies who like to be young, have fun, eat, and drink.
The Red Hat Ladies enjoyed hearing the story of the historical carousel’s background, relocations, and restoration. The ladies then mounted up on the horses, the chariot, and the spinning tub and enjoyed several rides accompanied by the music of the original band organ.
The Pueblo City Park Carousel was the 72nd carousel built by the Charles Wallace Parker Amusement Devices Company of Abilene, Kansas. The carousel was built in 1911 and first came to Pueblo for the Lake Minnequa Amusement Park in 1914. It was relocated to Pueblo City Park, although in a different location, in 1951. It has 36 horses, one chariot, a spinning tub, a band organ, and intricately decorated woodwork. Set on a base of Pueblo bricks, the carousel is now housed in a protective building at Pueblo City Park.
The two inner rows of horses pre-1915 Parker style. The outside row of horses was carved by Solomon Stein and Harry Goldstein in Brooklyn, New York, circa 1907. The two different sizes of horses indicate they may have been from the first and second rows of another machine. Exchanging horses on carousels was standard practice due to usage and transport damage. Replacement horses cost an average of $35 to $50 in the 1920s. All 36 horses have metal horseshoes and tails made from real horsehair.
Once located outside at Pueblo City Park, the carousel had deteriorated to the point that, in the 1980s, the park was considering selling it. A group of concerned citizens led by George Williams undertook a huge fundraising project and moved and restored the carousel. In 2018, it was renamed the George R. Williams Memorial Carousel.
The building where the carousel is housed displays many items that were once housed at the Lake Minnequa Amusement Park, as well as many historical pictures of the carousel in its former locations.
After enjoying their rides, the Greenhorn Valley Red Hat Ladies took a moment to marvel at the carousel and share memories, then departed to meet for lunch.