Iconic Brooklyn waterfront carousel celebrates 100th birthday

An iconic Brooklyn carousel celebrated its 100th birthday Saturday with a gala ceremony and some horsing around by the mayor. The ride, known as Janes Carousel, is named after Jane Walentas, the late artist and wife of DUMBO developer David Walentas. She bought the carousel in 1984 and spent more than two decades exquisitely

Explore More

An iconic Brooklyn carousel celebrated its 100th birthday Saturday with a gala ceremony — and some ‘horsing around’ by the mayor.

The ride, known as “Jane’s Carousel,” is named after Jane Walentas, the late artist and wife of DUMBO developer David Walentas. She bought the carousel in 1984 and spent more than two decades exquisitely restoring it.

Mayor Eric Adams, who was the keynote speaker, credited the ride for becoming a “cornerstone” to help attract people to live, dine and enjoy Brooklyn and the rest of New York City.

“Jane started it all. You talk about a Field of Dreams? The Field of Dreams is right here in DUMBO,” said Adams, before taking a ride one of the carousel’s 48 exquisitely carved horses.

“She said if you built it, they will come, and they arrived here and enjoyed [it].”

He also declared Saturday “Jane’s Carousel Day” in the Big Apple.

Mom and daughter team Christine and Marie celebrate the first annual Jane’s Carousel Day. Gabriele Holtermann
David and Jed Walentas, Mike Duffy, and Regina Meyers pose with Mayor Adams; the Walentas family donated the carousel to the state. Gabriele Holtermann

The Walentas family donated the carousel to the state, as it was in the process of building what is now city-run Brooklyn Bridge Park, envisioning it as future draw to both the park and DUMBO, where they own many properties.

The carousel is located within a massive, illuminated glass pavilion designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel. It overlooks the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges.

The carousel made its debut in 2011 despite outcry from some local activists who were then infuriated that the park would be losing existing trees and prime waterfront lawn space to make room for it. However, the ride has gone on to become a big hit with both tourists and New Yorkers, attracting about a million visitors a year.

Dad David Wu and son James are all smiles on the first annual Jane’s Carousel Day. Gabriele Holtermann
Jane’s Carousel made its debut in 2011 despite outcry from some local activists concerned about the natural landscape. Gabriele Holtermann

ncG1vNJzZmimqaW8tMCNnKamZ2Jlf3N7j25maW9fnrCwusicZJuqn6S4rcXNZq6arJWns7O7za1knJmipMK0sctmmp6klZe%2FosDErGRqaGCptW6uyKuroZyRrnw%3D

 Share!