Harry G. Traver
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Harry Guy Traver (1877-1961)[1] was inspired to create the Circle Swing by seagulls circling a mast of a ship he was lying on.[2] and built by the Traver Circle Swing Company[3] Similar to an earlier version of the ride created by Charles Braaf and a carousel maker, Traver's version was faster and gained popularity after patenting it in 1904 and starting the Traver Circle Swing Company in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.[2][1] The ride was "to provide the occupants with the pleasurable sensation of the ordinary roundabout with increased speed and gradual rise from and return to the ground."[4] The vehicles on the rides were either boats (airships), baskets, or cars. In 1919, he grew the company by partnering with J. W. Zarro and later, buying out his factory for $140,000 (over $2.5 million in 2024). He expanded the factory and created Traver Engineering Company. By 1924, the company was the largest producer of amusement rides. In 1922, he patented the "Collapsible Passenger Carrying Car for Aeroplane Swings,"[5] which could be the vehicles of the Airplanes ride. The company closed in 1933 after suffering losses due to the Great Recession.[2]
See Also
- Amusement apparatus. (1904) U.S. Patent No. 758,341 https://patents.google.com/patent/US758341
- Car for swings. (1904) U.S. Patent No. 790,989 https://patents.google.com/patent/US790989A
- Circle-swing. (1905) U.S. Patent No. 830,687 https://patents.google.com/patent/US830687A
- Roundabout. (1905) U.S. Patent No. 830,688 https://patents.google.com/patent/US830688A
- Amusement apparatus. (1905) U.S. Patent No. 842,276 https://patents.google.com/patent/US842276A
- Collapsible passenger carrying car for aeroplane swings. (1922) U.S. Patent No. 1,436,371 https://patents.google.com/patent/US1436371
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Oswald, Alison. "A Swinging Amusement." Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Published 20 September 2019. Accessed 5 August 2024. https://invention.si.edu/swinging-amusement
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Snedden, Jeffery. "Harry Traver took Beaver County on thrilling roller coaster ride." The Beaver County Times (Beaver County, Pennsylvania). Published 24 May 2016. Accessed 8 August 2024. https://www.timesonline.com/story/lifestyle/around-town/2016/05/24/harry-traver-took-beaver-county/18574055007/
- ↑ "Sue for Royalties." Columbus Evening Dispatch. 2 February 1906. Pg. 10. Retrieved from the Columbus Dispatch Digital Archives.
- ↑ Traver, H. G. (1904). Amusement apparatus. U.S. Patent No. 758,341. https://patents.google.com/patent/US758341
- ↑ Traver, H. G. (1922). Collapsible passenger carrying car for aeroplane swings U.S. Patent No. 1,436,371 https://patents.google.com/patent/US1436371