Charles I. D. Looff

Charles ID Looff ( born May 24, 1852 in Bramstedt, † July 1, 1918 in Long Beach, California; actually Carl Jürgen Detlef Looff ) was a builder and operator of hand-carved carousels and amusement parks in the United States. Looff and his son Arthur are considered the fathers of modern amusement parks.

Looff was in what was then Bramstedt, Bad Bramstedt today, was born. In his baptism record in the parish registers are Bramstedter Jürgen Detlef Looff Christian, blacksmith from Rendsburg, and called Catherina born Ralfs as parents.

He learned the art of wood carving and emigrated already with 18 years of in the United States. On August 14, 1870, he arrived in New York City. There, he lived first in the Leonard Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and worked as a carver in a furniture factory. In New York he learned and married her on December 6, 1874 in Manhattan also coming from Germany Anna Dolle. After working in the factory Looff turned in homework wooden horses forth, which he mounted on a carousel, and put this in 1876 at Bader's bathing pavilion at the West Sixth Street / Surf Avenue on. This was the first carousel at Coney Iceland.

From these humble beginnings, a highly successful company history, not only to further roundabouts (about 40 Looff be attributed ), but led to entire theme parks. Developed One of the best known is probably the opened on the Santa Monica Pier, the Looff and his son Arthur in 1916.

Today should be approximately ten carousels are in the U.S., which were created by Looff. Many have been destroyed (about 1943 in Long Beach by fire ) demolished and others. Some were also obtained through public resources. Today, single figures of Looff fetch high prices at auctions and apply as an art object. Even the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has taken a figure ( a greyhound ) in its holdings. Rarely has come all the carousels for sale, 2008 was one for auction.