Exhibit Type
Permanent Exhibit
Exhibit Location
Upper Level: The Lighter Side
Displays
Work Shop, Arleland
The Kinetic Creation of Arle Ziske

Growing up in rural Chickasaw County during the 1930s, Arle Ziske depended upon and was fascinated by steam engines used in farming. The first Christmas after WWII, Arle’s wife, Ellen, presented him with a gift that fed his fascination and led to the creation of this imaginative exhibit. That gift was an operational steam engine toy.

Over the years, machinery, carnival rides, figures and paraphernalia were acquired along with additional steam engines with which to power them. Now permanently located at the Carnegie, Ziske’s creation is presented in a two-tiered exhibit. The top tier portrays a workshop setting with a myriad of machines and little tin men to operate them while the lower tier depicts an amusement park scene comprised of carnival rides, whirligigs and game booths. With the flip of a switch, everything springs to life in a mesmerizing display of pulleys, belts, spinning rides and laboring men and machines. This engaging exhibition is sure to awaken “the child within” of even the most stoic adult.