WATERLOO — The big July Fourth celebrations are planned for a year from now when the country marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Gabe Haberkorn, left, who oversees parks in Waterloo, and Waterloo Area Historical Society president Maureen Giese, stand outside the building that holds a 1911 C.W. Parker Amusement carousel. On July Fourth, the carousel will offer rides for $1 to celebrate its 100th year in Fireman's Park.
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Gabe Haberkorn opens one of the 14 doors surrounding the C.W. Parker carousel at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The carousel was nearly lost to a 2008 flood but was restored and began operating again in 2011 after being moved to higher ground.
Lee Columbus and Maureen Giese share a ride on the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel at Fireman's Park in Waterloo. The carousel is open for rides every Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. but on July Fourth will offer rides from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. for $1.
A 1915 band organ from the North Tonawanda Musical Instrument Works provides the soundtrack for riders on the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The organ has 10 songs on its perforated paper roll.
A 2-minute, 45-second ride is just $1, whether you choose to straddle one of the 28 wooden horses or sit in one of the two chariots adorned with dragons on the C.W. Parker carousel in Waterloo.
Real horsehair tails adorn wooden riding horses on the C.W. Parker carousel in Waterloo.
A chariot bench bears the name of the maker of the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel. It was purchased from a carnival in Cuba City and moved to Waterloo in 1925.
Photos: The 1911 C.W. Parker Amusement carousel in Waterloo
Waterloo Carousel
Lee Columbus and Maureen Giese share a ride on the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel at Fireman's Park in Waterloo. The carousel is open for rides every Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. but on July Fourth will offer rides from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. for $1.
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Historic images of the 1911 C.W. Parker Carousel in Waterloo, Wis. greet visitors to the attraction Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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The 1911 C.W. Parker Carousel in Waterloo, Wis. Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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Vintage mirrors of the C.W. Parker Carousel comprise the upper tier of the carousel at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo, Wis. Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Waterloo Carousel
Real horsehair tails adorn wooden riding horses on the C.W. Parker carousel in Waterloo.
Waterloo Carousel
A 1915 band organ from the North Tonawanda Musical Instrument Works provides the soundtrack for riders on the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The organ has 10 songs on its perforated paper roll.
Waterloo Carousel
Gabe Haberkorn, left, who oversees parks in Waterloo, and Waterloo Area Historical Society president Maureen Giese, stand outside the building that holds a 1911 C.W. Parker Amusement carousel. On July Fourth, the carousel will offer rides for $1 to celebrate its 100th year in Fireman's Park.
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Waterloo parks coordinator Gabe Haberkorn operates the C.W. Parker Carousel in Waterloo, Wis. Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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Contributions made by riders of the C.W. Parker Carousel collect in a box at the attraction in Waterloo, Wis. Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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Few have ridden the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel more than Maureen Giese, 92, who grew up a few blocks from the park and is the spry president of the Waterloo Area Historical Society. She is pictured at the attraction at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo, Wis. Tuesday, June 17, 2025. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Waterloo Carousel
A 2-minute, 45-second ride is just $1, whether you choose to straddle one of the 28 wooden horses or sit in one of the two chariots adorned with dragons on the C.W. Parker carousel in Waterloo.
Waterloo Carousel
A chariot bench bears the name of the maker of the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel. It was purchased from a carnival in Cuba City and moved to Waterloo in 1925.
Waterloo Carousel
Gabe Haberkorn opens one of the 14 doors surrounding the C.W. Parker carousel at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The carousel was nearly lost to a 2008 flood but was restored and began operating again in 2011 after being moved to higher ground.
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Chuck Wolfgram, left, and Sean Hennessy carefully move a restored carousel horse from storage to a waiting trailer for a trip to Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The 28 horses and the 100-year-old C.W. Parker carousel have under been restored over the past three years after being damaged from a flood in 2008. The carousel, which was moved to higher ground, will reopen on July Fourth.
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Volunteers recently installed the 28 restored horses on the 1911 C.W. Parker carousel that has been in Waterloo’s Firemen’s Park since 1925. The carousel was damaged by a flood in 2008 but the 1915 band organ, center left, was spared because it was undergoing restoration in Merrill.
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Roger Riege, foreground, and Chuck Wolfgram secure a horse to the carousel.
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Chuck Wolfgram, left, and Roger Riege secure a horse to the recently restored C.W. Parker carousel.
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Waterloo historian Maureen Giese wipes the dust from a carousel horse. It cost $58,000 to restore the 28 horses damaged from the flood of 2008. Another $201,000 was spent repairing and restoring the carousel and moving the building that houses the ride to higher ground at Firemen’s Park in Waterloo.
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Sean Hennessy, president of the Waterloo Friends of the Carousel, used cushions to pad the restored carousel horses during their trip from storage in an old shoe factory less than a mile from Firemen’s Park in Waterloo. The horses were restored, four at a time, over the last three years at the suburban Chicago restoration studio of Lisa Parr.
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Roger Riege steadies a wooden carousel hourse during a transfer to its newly-restored home at Firemen's Park in Waterloo.
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Jenna Christenson, 6, of Waterloo, marvels at the carousel during a recent test run.
Barry Adams covers regional news for the Wisconsin State Journal. Send him ideas for On Wisconsin at 608-252-6148 or by email at badams@madison.com.
