North Tonawanda is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 31,568 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is named after Tonawanda Creek, its south border.
A carousel or carrousel, merry-go-round (international), Galloper (international) or roundabout is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The "seats" are traditionally in the form of rows of wooden horses or other animals mounted on posts, many of which are moved up and down by gears to simulate galloping, to the accompaniment of looped circus music.
Book music is a medium for storing the music played on mechanical organs, mainly of European manufacture. Book music is made from thick cardboard, containing perforated holes specifying the musical notes to be played, with the book folded zig-zag style. Unlike the heavy pinned barrels, which could only contain a few tunes of fixed length, that had been used on earlier instruments, book music enabled large repertoires to be built up. The length of each tune was no longer determined by the physical dimensions of the instrument.
A barrel organ is a French mechanical musical instrument consisting of bellows and one or more ranks of pipes housed in a case, usually of wood, and often highly decorated. The basic principle is the same as a traditional pipe organ, but rather than being played by an organist, the barrel organ is activated either by a person turning a crank, or by clockwork driven by weights or springs. The pieces of music are encoded onto wooden barrels, which are analogous to the keyboard of the traditional pipe organ. A person who plays a barrel organ is known as an organ grinder.
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments from Germany for resale in the United States. Wurlitzer enjoyed initial success, largely due to defense contracts to provide musical instruments to the U.S. military. In 1880, the company began manufacturing pianos and eventually relocated to North Tonawanda, New York. It quickly expanded to make band organs, orchestrions, player pianos and pipe or theatre organs popular in theatres during the days of silent movies.
A fairground organ is a musical organ covering the wind and percussive sections of an orchestra. Originated in Paris, France, it was designed for use in commercial fairground settings to provide loud music to accompany rides and attractions, mostly merry-go-rounds. Unlike organs for indoor use, they are designed to produce a large volume of sound to be heard above the noises of crowds and fairground machinery.
The Bartola Musical Instrument Company of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA, was a producer of theater pipe organs during the age of silent movies.
The Allan Herschell Company was a company that specialized in the creation of amusement rides, particularly carousels and roller coasters. The company manufactured portable machines that could be used by traveling carnival operators. It was started in 1915 in the town of North Tonawanda, just outside Buffalo, New York, USA.
Wurlitzer Building may refer to:
A street organ played by an organ grinder is a French automatic mechanical pneumatic organ designed to be mobile enough to play its music in the street. The two most commonly seen types are the smaller German and the larger Dutch street organ.
A dance organ is a French mechanical organ designed to be used in a dance hall or ballroom. Originated and popularized in Paris, it is intended for use indoors as dance organs tend to be quieter than the similar fairground organ.
A mechanical organ is an organ that is self-playing, rather than played by a musician. For example, the barrel organ is activated either by a person turning a crank, or by clockwork driven by weights or springs.
The Riviera Theatre is a historic, 1140 seat entertainment venue in North Tonawanda, New York. The theatre hosts live concerts, theatre, dance shows, and movies. The Riviera's “Mighty Wurlitzer” theatre organ has been restored, is maintained by volunteers, and is famed as being one of two original Wurlitzer demonstrator organs, which the company would use to show off to potential clients in the height of the silent film era.
Gavioli & Cie were a Franco–Italian organ builder company that manufactured fairground organs in both Italy and later France.
Herschell Carousel Factory Museum is a historic carousel factory building located at North Tonawanda in Niagara County, New York. The factory complex was constructed between about 1910 and 1915 and consists of six primary structures and five contributory additions. The primary structures are: the Mill Building, Carving and Pattern shop, Paint Shop and Storage Building, Roundhouse, Machine Shop (1915), and Assembly and Testing Building (1915). Also on the property is the Special Number One Three Abreast portable carousel, built in 1916.
Limonaire Frères were an amusement ride, street organ and fairground organ builder, based in Paris, France, during the 19th and early 20th century.
Baron Frederick Joseph Eugene de Kleist, was a pioneering German organ builder, who in founding the North Tonawanda Barrel Organ Factory, started the American style of Band organs.
The American Treasure Tour is a tourist attraction established in 2010 and opened to the public for guided tours. Visitors travel through a large private collection that encompasses an eclectic variety of smaller collections. Included is one of the world's largest private collections of automatic music machines: nickelodeons, band organs, calliopes, photoplayers, and music boxes. There are also classic cars, circus art, dolls and dollhouses, and a large assortment of popular culture miscellanea. It is located in the 422 Business Center in the community of Oaks, Pennsylvania, west of Valley Forge National Historical Park just off of U.S. Route 422.
The Lakeside Park Carousel is a historic carousel located in Port Dalhousie, Ontario, Canada, a community in the city of St. Catharines.
