Wyoming
Decades-old, newly restored Smithsonian carousel reopens — to children’s delight
The Smithsonian Institution’s carousel is back open for business Friday after being closed for nearly three years for restoration and refurbishments.
Brightly painted ponies have been going round and round, delighting children, for centuries. But the joys they bring haven’t always been accessible to everyone.
The ribbon-cutting at the Smithsonian National Carousel nodded to this fact.
William A. Smith / AP
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AP
The first to ride the reopened carousel was a group of African American adults who arrived from Baltimore. In the 1960s, when many of them were kids, they were among the first to desegregate the carousel when it was located at Gwynn Oak Amusement Park outside of Baltimore.
“My family, we used to go there all the time once they let us in,” said Janice Chance, who was 13 when she first rode the carousel in 1966. Chance’s son was a Marine who died in Afghanistan in 2008. She said to have the carousel back on the National Mall means a lot to her and the many others who fought for “the freedoms of this country.”
“We are together, we’re having fun, but we remember the struggle and how we got here,” said Chance.
Desegregating Gwynn Oak Amusement Park took several years of protests by Black and white activists: It was finally integrated on Aug. 28, 1963, the same day that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr gave his “I Have A Dream” speech on the National Mall.
“So while that was occurring in D.C., quiet activism with little people was occurring on the same date,” said Sharon Langley, who was the first Black child to ride the carousel that day. She was just 11 months old. Years later, Langley co-wrote a children’s book about it. This week, she rode again, on a horse called Freedom Rider — after the desegregating riders. She believes it’s fitting the carousel should be “with all the monuments of freedom… This is a monument for children to come and enjoy, ride and experience the pursuit of happiness.”
After Hurricane Agnes devastated Gwynn Oak’s rides and buildings, the park closed in 1973 and the carousel went into storage. Shortly after, then Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley decided it was time to replace the aging carousel on the National Mall. “As Ripley’s original carousel began to show its age, the Smithsonian began looking for a suitably grand replacement,” Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III wrote in Smithsonian Magazine. “Gwynn Oak’s hand-carved beauty, an emblem of the struggle for civil rights, fit the bill.”
With 54 horses, a sea monster, a pig and two chariots, the restored Gwynn Oak carousel stands again in front of the Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries Building.
Its Civil Rights history might’ve been lost on the kids rushing onto the platform to mount their favorite horses at the ribbon-cutting this week. Seven-year-old Lucas Platt from Virginia gives the carousel high marks. “It’s actually one of the fastest carousels I’ve really been on,” he said. “Usually they’re much slower than this. It’s great. I really like it. Nothing bad about it.”
Copyright 2026 NPR
WYOMING, Mich. — Starting May 1, the city of Wyoming is implementing odd-even outdoor water restrictions for homes and businesses to minimize the burden on its water treatment plant during upcoming water main construction.
The restrictions impacts the following neighborhoods:
- City of Wyoming
- Olive Township
- Blendon Township
- Holland Township
- Georgetown Township
- Jamestown Township
- Gaines Township
- Byron Township
- City of Hudsonville
- City of Grandville
- Western portion of the City of Kentwood
Under the upcoming restriction, residents and businesses with an odd-numbered address can water outdoors on odd days of the month. Those with an even-numbered address can water on even days.
The mandate limits activities like watering lawns, landscaping or filling pools. It does not impact water used for drinking or bathing.
“Municipal leaders ask for the community’s support of the outdoor water use restriction during construction which will increase capacity and reliability,” a statement from the city reads. “In this interim, compliance with the restriction will help avoid an outright ban for everyone on outdoor irrigation.”
The restrictions will remain in effect through June 15.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Gov. Mark Gordon says that while there has been a lot of concern about data centers using water “and rightfully so,” southeast Wyoming data centers are making adjustments to address water consumption concerns.
The governor told Wake Up Wyoming host Glenn Woods on Wednesday that ”Related Digital, for example, their new data center, is only going to have six bathrooms of consumptive use.”
Related Digital, on a project website for the Cheyenne Facility, says “Our design uses high-efficiency air cooling technology instead of high-water-use evaporative cooling systems.”
The governor goes on to say that Microsoft ‘has just redesigned some of their work, they are going to yield up 566 million gallons of water from just better design, and not using water consumptively, air cooling. We’re up high so our cooling needs are less.”
Microsoft recently announced plans for a 3.200 acre expansion of it’s operations in Cheyenne. On the website for the Cheyenne expansion project, the company says “Microsoft will minimize its water use and replenish more water than what is used.” The article goes on to say it’s Wyoming operations use direct evaporative cooling, adding “This design uses water for cooling less than 10% of the year, with the latest datacenter designs going even further, in some cases eliminating the need for ongoing access to water for cooling after an initial fill.”
What About Electricity?
The governor says in regard to electricity, companies like Microsoft and Related Digital and others have entered into a Large Power Contract Service tariff agreement with Black Hills Energy ‘so they are paying for everything to do with the upgrades, the service and so on. The demand… isn’t going to change in terms of what it is going to do to price.”
Gordon says the state is working with Black Hills Energy “so that rate payers are not affected.”
Hear Glenn Woods’ Interview With Gov. Gordon here
2026 WHSAA Wyoming State Wrestling Championship
Gallery Credit: Kolby Fedore, TSM
Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites, and Trails has officially released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for professional appraisal services to evaluate concession facilities at Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis, Wyoming.
These appraisals are mandated by 2026 Senate Enrolled Act 27, Section 335, which requires appraisals of the “capital investment” and “ongoing concern” for the businesses known as the Star Plunge and the Hot Springs Hotel and Spa.
Qualified professional appraisers are encouraged to review the full requirements. Proposals must be submitted through the State’s Public Purchase online bidding system by 2:00 p.m., May 18, 2026. To view the full RFP (Number 0270-M), please visit https://www.publicpurchase.com/gems/wyominggsd,wy/buyer/public/home.
For additional information, contact Wyoming State Parks’ Visitor Services Manager Stephanie Dillmon at (307) 777-5734 or by email at Stephanie.Dillmon2@wyo.gov or learn more about Wyoming State Parks at wyoparks.wyo.gov.
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