C J Spooner, Burton on Trent
Born in 1871, Spooner started his career as a woodcarver in the thriving Burton-on-Trent brewing industry, producing dray and hand carts. The quality of his carving work brought him to the attention of George Orton, a carriage maker who specialised in Gypsy, and later, showman wagons. This latter diversification meant that Orton had to produce increasingly ornate and decorative carriages, with them being used not only as living quarters for the travelling showmen, but with the exteriors acting as show fronts and advertising for the rides. Orton partnered with Spooner whose expertise and peerless technique as a carver led to some of the most famous rides of the age. Spooner took the tradition of the carousel mount and fused it with modern and popular references, creating rides that were carved with the faces of well-known public figures and early celebrities, an idea that is still seen in modern fairgrounds today. His set of centaurs, featuring the likenesses of prominent Boer War generals, caused such a stir upon their unveiling at the Neath fair in 1900 that they made the national press.
