Carnival & Fair News

After 79 years in business, Garbrick Amusements, originally Garbrick Engineering and later Garbrick Manufacturing, is retiring. According to co-owner Teri Stratham, it all began when her uncle Jack worked for Nittany Amusements just before World War II. He enjoyed the work, even as what was then Garbrick Engineering received a military contract to produce mechanical sawbucks that allowed tanks to cut through dense forests overseas.

According to Stratham, “We would make those at our shop in Center Hall, Pennsylvania, take them to the railroad, and from there the train would head to the coast, where the parts were loaded onto ships and sent overseas. Uncle Jack served in the military, and after the war, our company's contract with the military ended. In 1947, my uncle went to my grandfather Lewis and said, ‘Now let's do something fun.'”

That “something fun” became the carnival business.

“For our very first ride, my uncle went to Nittany Amusements and gave the owner, Vernon, $50 for a dilapidated swing ride. They fixed it up, and it is still working well. We used it last summer,” Stratham says with a laugh.

Following that success, Garbrick built a ten-foot Ferris wheel and went on to produce Ferris wheels of various sizes, including eight-, ten-, and twelve-seat models. They also built Flying Saucers, an Astro Top, spinners, tank and car rides, small and large fire truck rides, as well as the company's well-known Merry Mixers.



She recalls, “My uncle saw a Scrambler at another show, came back to our shop, took a piece of chalk, and drew the Merry Mixer based on what he had seen.”

The company also faced challenges when developing its merry-go-round horses.

“We started with wooden horses, but they rotted over time. Then we tried plastic, but those melted in the sun. Eventually, we made them out of steel,” Stratham explains.



Garbrick also produced a tumbler ride, though only one, which the company still owns. Their Merry Mixers can still be found at carnivals around the world.

“At first, they were all round mounds, short on the bottom, until my father Henry studied engineering at Penn State. After that, the ride mechanisms became hydraulic,” she says.

Rides were shipped far and wide, including to the Ocean City, Maryland boardwalk, Knoebels Amusement Resort in Pennsylvania, and internationally to Canada, England, Australia, and even Saipan.

“About twenty years ago, a man showed up at our shop with an empty suitcase. He needed a part for a Merry Mixer he had in Saipan. He owned several rides that he transported from island to island. We got him the part, and he flew back home,” she recalls.

Garbrick also maintained the rides it sold. “When I was a little kid,” Stratham says, “my uncle was a pilot, and my dad, mom, uncle, and I flew to Knoebels when their Merry Mixer wasn't working properly. We landed in the parking lot. My mom and I rode the park rides while my dad and uncle fixed the Merry Mixer.”

The family engineering company, which had become Garbrick Manufacturing, transitioned into a carnival operation in the 1980s. “We stopped manufacturing at that time because of liability and focused on supplying our own rides for carnivals. Our route was initially just in Pennsylvania,” she explains, “until my brother married in South Carolina. Since then, we have operated in both states, although not in the areas in between.”

Stratham describes their route as primarily small firemen's and church carnivals, along with providing rides for the Grange Fair in Garbrick's hometown of Center Hall.

“The Grange Fair is a special one,” she says.

The annual nine-day August event is considered the last remaining tent fair in the United States. Founded in 1874, it features a traditional mix of carnival rides, shows, and agricultural exhibits, along with a unique live-on-site setup where families occupy more than a thousand tents and 1,500 RVs. Garbrick Amusements has been the ride provider there for 68 years, and most of its locations have remained part of its route for over 60 years.

At its peak, Garbrick Amusements operated three units. Stratham, along with her brother Tom and his wife April, managed the rides originally run by Uncle Jack. Her father operated another unit, while her grandfather, daughters, and their husbands ran a third.

“Across all three units, we had 36 rides. Our unit specifically handled the Grange Fair, with 20 rides this year,” Stratham says. She describes the season as beginning in early May and running through mid-September, with each unit operating a show every week.



“We are known for being a family-friendly outfit. We never had high prices, and we always allowed the committees that hired us to receive a percentage of what we made. We also avoided bringing in food items that would compete with local businesses,” she says. “In return, the organizations we worked with supported us in the same way. We offered cotton candy, sno-cones, popcorn, and candy apples, while my brother operated a milkshake trailer along with chocolate-dipped strawberries and frozen cheesecake.”

Garbrick Amusements also operated four to five games, and Stratham's brother continues to provide a few as needed, including Pick-a-Duck, Ring Toss, and a ping-pong game.

“Since announcing our retirement, other carnival companies have been very kind to us. We've received wonderful messages offering space for our food trailers or games in certain areas, so we are not completely stepping away,” Stratham says. “We decided to retire the carnival rides because operating costs have become too high. We were down to one unit and felt it was the right time to leave on a good note.”



She adds that finding drivers and help has become increasingly difficult, though the company enjoyed strong seasons following COVID. Garbrick is now selling its rides one at a time.

In addition to occasionally operating food and games, Stratham works as a teacher and hopes to write a book with her brother about carnival life in the future.

“We have so many stories to tell,” she says.

Back Row: Teri Garbrick Statham, Robert Statham holding Michael Statham, April Garbrick, Tom Garbrick holding Hannah Garbrick
Front Row: John Statham, Samantha Statham