St. Catharines famous ‘Looff Lion’ now on a Canada Post stamp

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Published July 26, 2022 at 12:21 pm

The young girl on the lion doesn’t know this but she’s sitting on the original Charles I.D. Looff lion, just one of five existing Looff lions in North America and the only one that has its head turned towards the crowd. A second lion on the carousel was built by the Friends of the Carousel in 2004 to replace one stolen in the 1970s. (Photo: Friends of the Lakeside Park Carousel Facebook)

The Looff Lion is a rarity in in North American. Only five exist and only one has ever faced a crowd. That would be the one in St. Catharines.

So what is the Looff Lion? For the uninitiated, it’s one of the 68 carved animals on the five-cent carousel at the song-famous Lakeside Park down on the waterfront – land that was just last week transferred to the city by a federal ministry.

And who or what is a ‘Looff’? That would be Charles I.D. Looff, the famous carousel creator from Brooklyn, N.Y. back in the early 1900s, whose factory created all the hand-carved animal for the carousel that landed on St. Catharines’ shores back in 1921.

It was just announced that Canada Post decided to create stamps honouring vintage Canadian carousels – Lakeside Park’s, as well as four other carousels in Calgary, Burnaby, Roseneath, Ontario and Montreal.

“We are very excited to have our beloved carousel showcased on a Canadian stamp,” says Kathleen Powell, supervisor of historical services and curator of the St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canal Centre.

“It’s a proud moment for St. Catharines to have our carousel chosen to be featured alongside the other amazing historical works from across Canada.”

The Lakeside Park Carousel is one of approximately 350 antique hand-carved carousels still operating in North America – only nine of which are in Canada.

“The Friends of the Carousel couldn’t be happier with our Looff Lion being chosen. What a proud moment for our city and everyone who has worked so hard to keep our carousel in lively working order,” says Chair of the Friends of the Carousel Bonnie Cameron.

“Our hours of careful restoration and care are well worth an honour such as this.”


The Friends of the Lakeside Park Carousel spend hours meticulously restoring the 68 carved animals during the off-season.

Today, the St. Catharines Lakeside Park Carousel is famously still just a nickel to ride.

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