Previous Find of the Month March

March 2021

A Canberra Day Gift

The Civic Merry-Go-Round

The Canberra Merry-Go-Round in Petrie Plaza - 19881

The Civic merry-go-round is a well-known landmark of our city centre that was opened to Canberra residents and visitors on Canberra Day 1974. By this time however the carousel had already been operating in Melbourne for nearly 60 years. So why would the Commonwealth purchase and transport ageing amusement equipment of this type and set it up in the middle of Canberra? The decision was not without its detractors and there was some opposition from locals in Melbourne to the carousel leaving their city. Our March Find of the Month draws from files documenting the relocation and renovation of one of Canberra’s most loved attractions.

The carousel went up for auction on Friday 28 September 1973. It was not working at the time but was still located where it had always operated at the Fun Parlour on the St Kilda Esplanade in Melbourne. Mr James Pead, Chairman of the ACT Advisory Council, John Brigg the Assistant Director of the City Services Branch of the Department of Capital Territory and M Cantalli an engineer from the Traffic Branch inspected the merry-go-round on the preceding Tuesday. Their report considered that the merry-go-round was in fairly good condition and could be brought back to good working order with some restoration and that:

  • its appearance, age and historical association would, when transplanted into the Canberra scene, provide some of the element of gaiety, variety and nostalgia needed in the planned but nevertheless sterile atmosphere of the city. [i]

The vitality and attraction of the city precinct had been on the mind of planners and business owners for many years previous. The ACT Advisory Council and National Capital Development Commission (NCDC) were making plans for pedestrian concourses in Civic to be developed into ‘an area with life in it, with coffee shops or boutiques and this sort of thing.[ii] The Canberra Times reported in October 1971 that “Canberra’s main Civic shopping area will become a pedestrian plaza for a four-month trial period” and “could become a permanent feature of the city area”.[iii] The pedestrian concourses remained and two years later James Pead found himself in Melbourne bidding at auction to purchase a merry-go-round for the people of Canberra and visitors to enjoy in Civic.

An artist's impression of the proposed plaza in Petrie Place, Civic - Canberra Times2

The carousel was originally known as “Weniger’s Steam Riding Gallery”, first erected in St Kilda in 1914. It included an organ and hand carved horses and elephants that were imported from Germany and brass uprights from Scotland. When the auction was held in 1973, the carousel was also thought to hold historical significance due to the builder of the steam engine that originally powered it, Herbert Thomson, who designed and built one of the first steam powered cars in Australia.[i] Another advantage of the merry-go-round was that its design allowed for it to be easily dismantled and ready to be transported in eight hours. James Pead submitted the winning bid at auction of $40,000 on behalf of the people of Canberra.[ii]

Promotional Pamphlet - Department of Territories 19833

However, the purchase didn’t go unnoticed and generated quite a bit of commentary in the Melbourne newspapers. The day following the auction the Melbourne Sun newspaper reported that ‘efforts will be made to keep the St Kilda merry-go-round in Victoria’. The Regional Museum in the Shire of Knox was the main opposing bidder and its chairman commented that

we think the merry-go-round is part of Melbourne’s history and should stay in the city. Even if it did not go to the Regional Museum it should stay where it belongs.[i]

Four days later The Age quoted a spokesman for the Melbourne Steam Traction Engine Club requesting, on behalf of its members who had hoped to restore the roundabout, that the Federal Government surrender its claim to the roundabout. Having conceded that the new owners showed ‘remarkable perception’ in buying the merry-go-round, he argued that:

It is part of Melbourne’s cultural and historical heritage, having been on its present site on the Esplanade for 60 years… more than a million people have enjoyed a ride on it.[ii]

While some newspapers’ tongue-in-cheek reports suggested the merry-go-round should go in front of, or on top of, Parliament House, the plan had always been to use it in Civic. By January 1974 the NCDC and the Department of the Capital Territory were making plans for a suitable location. This involved:

The closure to motor vehicles of Petrie Street between Alinga Street and London Circuit and Alinga Street between Petrie Street and Ainslie Avenue. In conjunction with the closure of these streets some temporary landscaping similar to that in Garema Place will be carried out and it is also proposed to locate the recently acquired merry-go-round at the intersection of Petrie and Alinga Streets.[iii]

This was all planned to be completed before the Canberra Week celebrations in March of the next year. The merry-go-round also needed repairs and maintenance for it to be operational for its official opening on 13 March 1974. This was achieved due largely to efforts by many volunteers, and many Canberrans enjoyed their first ride on the new attraction on Canberra Day. The merry-go-round was shut down later that year for further repairs and restoration work and was then covered to protect the machinery. Unfortunately, the historic steam engine is no longer in use but remains on site with the merry-go-round in Petrie Plaza.

Plaque marking the 30th Anniversary of the Canberra Opening4

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File References

  • ArchivesACT: ZA74/204 - City Services Branch - Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 1
  • ArchivesACT: 2012/10931 - INFORMATION MANAGEMENT - Committees - Minutes - ACT Advisory Council - Meeting Number 570 – 591 - 17 May 1971
  • ArchivesACT: ZA75/196 Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 2
  • ArchivesACT: 1961/57#01 Civic Square & City Area - Merry-go-Round - Part 1

References

I ArchivesACT, ZA74/204 - City Services Branch - Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 1

ii ArchivesACT, 2012/10931 - INFORMATION MANAGEMENT - Committees - Minutes - ACT Advisory Council - Meeting Number 570 – 591- 17 May 1971

iii Canberra Times - 19 October 1971; http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110682630

iv ArchivesACT, ZA74/204 - City Services Branch - Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 1

v ArchivesACT, ZA75/196 Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 2

vi ArchivesACT, 1961/57#01 - Civic Square & City Area - Merry-go-Round - Part 1– Melbourne Sun 29 September 1973 – ‘Fight for a roundabout’

vii ArchivesACT, 1961/57#01 - Civic Square & City Area - Merry-go-Round - Part 1– The Age 3 October 1973 – ‘Club pleads to retain St Kilda carousel’.

viii ArchivesACT, ZA74/204 - City Services Branch - Merry-Go-Round - General Correspondence - Part 1

Images

  1. ArchivesACT, OSG4070 – Merry-go-round 1988
  2. Canberra Times - 19 October 1971; http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110682630
  3. ArchivesACT, RTA-460 - Publication - Production - Commonwealth Series A7411/2 - Pacific Games Canberra 1977 - Your Guide to Canberra.
  4. ArchivesACT – Civic Merry-Go-Round

Links

New Look For Main Shopping Centre - Pedestrian plaza for trial in Civic (1971, October 19). The Canberra Times (ACT: 1926 - 1995), p. 1. Retrieved February 24, 2021, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110682630.

Museums Victoria Collections – https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/items/404812 - Accessed 24 February 2021.

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