 In 1965 The Children 's Museum of Indianapolis , then located in a building at 30th and Meridian Streets , acquired two horses from the carousel . Mildred Compton , the museum director , had seen the carousel in Broad Ripple Park before 1952 , and hoped to secure the surviving animals , but the park district was initially unwilling to part with more than two , as the district was using five or six animals in the annual Christmas displays at Monument Circle . During the first half of 1966 , the two horses were refinished by a museum volunteer . Both were stripped of old paint , one was repainted , and the other was refinished with lemon oil to feature the carvings on the animal . Compton obtained real horse tails from an Indianapolis slaughterhouse to replace the lost originals . By September 1966 the two horses were ready for display in the museum 's front entrance . 
