National Carousel Day will be celebrated for the third year in a row on Thursday with free rides on the century-old carousel in Balboa Park.
Friends of Balboa Park is celebrating the annual event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on July 25 with musical entertainment, food vendors, children’s activities and free rides.
The nonprofit purchased the carousel in 2017, and has since raised $1.9 million to preserve the colorful landmark. The fundraising goal is $3 million.
Musical performances on Thursday will include the Hullabaloo Band, Creative 78 Dancers, Kathryn the Grape, Kumu Kahne’s Polynesian Dancers and, as a finale, the Sweet Adelines.
A pop-up store will sell a number of items, including a limited-edition commemorative poster painted by Karen Jones, a local artist based at the Spanish Village Art Center adjacent to the carousel. The poster can be purchased for $5 or will be included as a gift with any $10-plus purchase.
Next month, there ‘s a special lecture on the history of the carousel by local architect David Marshall. The event is on Aug. 17 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The Balboa Park Carousel is one of a handful in the nation that is a menagerie, meaning it features animals besides horses as the rides. It also boasts one of only 12 operating brass ring games on carousels in North America.
