Airplanes
Airplanes
| Other Name(s) | Aeroplane Airplane Ride Circle Swing |
|---|---|
| Type | Rotating Ride Swing Ride |
| Built | 1904 |
| Opened | 1927 |
| Closed | 1937 (park closure) |
| Manufacturer | Traver Circle Swing Company |
| Designer | Harry G. Traver |
| Architect | North Penn Iron Company |
| Width | 120 ft. (36.6 m) diameter |
| Height | 90 ft. (27.5 m) |
| Speed | 40 mph (64 kph) |
| Vehicle Type | Cars (airplane design) |
| Number of Vehicles | 6 |
| Riders per Vehicle | 8 |
| Inversions | 0 |
Around 1927, the Circle Swing, invented by Harry G. Traver, at Olentangy Park was most likely changed from boat-shaped cars to airplane-shaped cars and rebranded as Airplanes. The vehicles were most likely the ones Traver patented in 1922, called the "Collapsible Passenger Carrying Car for Aeroplane Swings."[1] The ride was moved to the Haenlein Brothers' Zoo Amusement Park in 1938.[2][3] and was razed at Zoo Park in 1956 after Floyd E. Gooding of the Gooding Amusement Company bought the park after the death of Leo Haenlein. According to Elmer Haenlein, it was the oldest of its kind at the time - most likely meaning the original 1904 structure with airplane vehicles.[4] There are no existing original Traver Circle Swings left.[5]
Related Patents
- 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
Notes
- The Traver Engineering Company also offered the Seaplane Deluxe in the 1920s that had seaplane vehicles[6] and named "Sea Plane Whirl" at some parks.[7] This ride is similar and could be the Airplanes ride, however photos of the ride appear to be larger and have more metal supports in the tower.[8]
- Whalom Park in Lunenburg, Massachusetts, updated their cars to metal rockets, and after the ride was decommissioned sometime in the 1960s, the tower and a car were kept on display. [9]
See Also
References
- ↑ Traver, H. G. (1922). Collapsible passenger carrying car for aeroplane swings U.S. Patent No. 1,436,371 https://patents.google.com/patent/US1436371
- ↑ Barret, Richard E. "Olentangy Park: Four Decades of Fun." Columbus and Central Ohio Historian. Vol. 1. April 1984. Pg. 17.
- ↑ "Zoo Amusement Park Has Established Its Popularity." Columbus Dispatch. 2 June 1929. Pg. 14-A.
- ↑ "Airplane Ride is Razed." Columbus Dispatch. 24 April 1956. Pg. 8B.
- ↑ "The Rarest Amusement Park Rides: Circle Swing." National Amusement Park Historical Association. Operating Classic Amusement Park Rides section. Accessed 5 August 2024. https://www.napha.org/Resources/Facts-Figures/Operating-Classic-Amusement-Park-Rides
- ↑ "If this Tower could talk!" Amusement Parks and Beyond! Published 4 October 2017. Accessed 6 August 2024. https://amusementparksandbeyond.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/if-this-tower-could-talk/
- ↑ "Cascade Park: The Rides." Mike's Historic Amusement Parks. Accessed 12 August 2024. http://cascadepark.mikeshistoricamusementparks.com/amusement-park-history/
- ↑ Boardman, David. "The Seaplane Deluxe." Our Manchester. Shows photo by Ray Chadwick. Accessed 6 August 2024. https://manchesterhistory.net/bellevue/seaplane.html
- ↑ Ollikkala, Ted. "Canobie's Original Circle Swing Ride." Whalom Park Memories. Posted 28 February 2018. Accessed 8 August 2024. https://www.facebook.com/groups/WhalomParkMemories/