 The Children 's Museum of Indianapolis acquired its first two carved animals from the ride in 1965 , and the last few wooden animals in 1973 . The museum planned to sell some to finance the restoration of others until the director of the museum , Mildred Compton , was convinced by carousel enthusiasts that the museum should instead restore all the animals and recreate the working carousel . Restoration of the carved animals began in 1966 and was only finished with the restoration of the entire carousel in 1977 . No space had been allocated for the display of such a large exhibit in the museum 's planned new building , which meant some re @-@ designing was necessary to allow its installation on the fifth floor . A 1919 Wurlitzer organ model 146B , a type manufactured only for carousels , was also installed . As restored , the carousel is 42 feet ( 13 meters ) wide and has a total of 42 animals , including – as well as the usual horses – goats , giraffes , deer , a lion , and a tiger . It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987 . 
