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| Standing
north of the Science
Place II building is the Texas Star, the tallest ferris wheel
in the nation at 212 feet. Buster Brown, a carnival ride entrepreneur,
spent over two million dollars for the SDC Corporation to build it.
Constructed at the Italian city of Reggio Emilia, the ferris wheel
was completed in 1985 and shipped overseas in time for the state fair.
It had 44 gondolas which provided a total passenger capacity of 264,
causing Buster Brown to make the prediction that it would take between
seven and ten years to pay off his investment. |
The
Texas Star
Photo courtesy Clint Skinner, February 2016 |
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When
Buster was killed in an car accident in 1990, his wife Barbara and
her brother Mike Sandefur gained ownership of the ferris wheel and
continued the tradition of operating the attraction. The future
of the wheel remained uncertain during 2012 because the owners did
not renew their contract with the state fair. Fearing they no longer
had what it took to keep operating the ferris wheel, they advertised
their intention to sell it . However, when some of the potential
buyers expressed the desire to remove the ride from Fair
Park, Barbara and Mark decided to remove their offer then signed
a new long-term contract. Upon completion of the agreement, the
duo made it clear to the public that the ownership and operation
of the Texas Star would remain in the family.
December
5, 2016
© Clint
Skinner
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References:
1.Bigtex.com
2.Dallashistory.org
3.Dallas Morning News Archives
4.Fairpark.org
5.Slate, John H. Historic Dallas Parks. Arcadia Publishing, 2010.
6.Tshaonline.org
7.Watermelon-kid.com
8.Wikipedia.org
8.Winters, Willis Cecil. Fair Park. Arcadia Publishing, 2010. |
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| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and vintage or recent photos, please contact
us. |
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