WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Smithsonian National Carousel on the National Mall reopened on April 24, 2026, after nearly three years of restoration and refurbishments. The first riders on the reopened carousel were a group of African American adults who arrived from Baltimore, having been among the first to desegregate the ride as children in the 1960s when it operated at Gwynn Oak Amusement Park.

The carousel was first desegregated at Gwynn Oak Amusement Park outside Baltimore in 1963. Gwynn Oak was integrated on August 28, 1963, after several years of protests by Black and white activists, the same day Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his "I Have A Dream" speech on the National Mall.

After Hurricane Agnes devastated the park's rides and buildings, Gwynn Oak closed in 1973 and the carousel went into storage. Shortly afterward, Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley decided to replace the aging carousel on the National Mall with the Gwynn Oak ride.

"As Ripley's original carousel began to show its age, the Smithsonian began looking for a suitably grand replacement. Gwynn Oak's hand-carved beauty, an emblem of the struggle for civil rights, fit the bill," said Lonnie Bunch III, Smithsonian Secretary.

Sharon Langley was the first African American child to ride the carousel at Gwynn Oak on August 28, 1963, when she was 11 months old. She later co-wrote a children's book about desegregating the carousel.

Langley said in an interview that the Gwynn Oak integration coincided with the March on Washington. "While that was occurring in D.C., quiet activism with little people was occurring on the same date," she said. Langley rode the restored carousel on a horse called Freedom Rider, named after the desegregating riders. "This is a monument for children to come and enjoy, ride and experience the pursuit of happiness," she said.

Janice Chance was 13 when she first rode the carousel in 1966. "My family, we used to go there all the time once they let us in," Chance said.

The restored Gwynn Oak carousel stands in front of the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building with 54 horses, a sea monster, a pig, and two chariots. One of the chariots is ADA-compliant and features Washington, D.C., landmarks.