In Highland Park in Meridian, Mississippi, the Dentzel Carousel and its shelter preserve an unusually complete example of early American carousel art and architecture. Built by the Dentzel Carousel Company about 1896 for the 1904 St. Louis Exposition and operating in Meridian since 1909, the carousel is regarded as the world’s only surviving two-row stationary Dentzel menagerie. Its hand-carved animals, original paintings, and rare original building—constructed from a Dentzel blueprint—make it exceptional. After major restoration in the 1980s and 1990s, it remained a working ride, preserving the Dentzel family’s influential legacy in the development of the carousel business in the United States.

Meridian, Mississippi · USA