A Galesburg man with family ties to the inventor of the Ferris wheel hopes his upcoming appearance on a national television news program is the spark needed for Galesburg to recognize George Ferris and his lasting ride.
This Sunday, CBS Sunday Morning is scheduled to air a segment that “explores the history and enduring appeal of Ferris wheels.” CBS Sunday Morning runs from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Sunday on CBS TV.
The segment on the Ferris wheel will feature an interview with Galesburg’s Ron Peck, treasurer of the Galesburg Historical Society, along with brother Tom Peck and Ron’s son Cougar Peck.
The world’s first Ferris wheel was invented for Chicago’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. The invention’s namesake, George Washington Gale Ferris Jr., was born on Feb. 14, 1859, in Galesburg, the town founded by his namesake, George Washington Gale.
Peck said producers of CBS Sunday Morning originally wanted to come to Galesburg to do the segment.
‘What would George think of the Ferris wheel today?’
“We pretty much told them not to come, because there’s really nothing here dedicated to George Ferris or the Ferris wheel,” said Peck.
“But I told them there are a couple hundred Ferris Family descendants living in the area. I told them my paternal grandmother was a Ferris. The CBS producer asked if some of my family would come up to Navy Pier in Chicago for an interview.”
Peck said he and his son made the trip to Chicago several weeks ago where the CBS crew and Navy Pier staff “treated us like royalty.”
A Chicago-based CBS reporter conducted the interview with the Pecks, with the assistance a local crew and a producer from New York.
“The one thing the reporter asked several times was, ‘What do you think George would think of his Ferris wheel today?’” Peck said. She asked why I thought it was still in operation. That was kind of the main gist she was trying to get at.”
Peck said it was a hard question to answer.
“It’s definitely a family-oriented ride,” he said. “A lot of people’s first memories of attending their first carnival — from a small town carnival all the way up to Disney World — is the Ferris wheel.”
Peck noted he grew up in Abingdon and remembers being introduced to the Ferris wheel at the Abingdon Fall Festival. “We had a dinky little Ferris wheel with about 10 cars on it.”
Peck said his father’s mother was a Ferris and related to George Ferris. He noted there are few Ferris names left in Galesburg, but plenty of relatives.
TV appearance could spark Ferris wheel momentum in Galesburg
Asked if he believes George Ferris would be disappointed there isn’t a Ferris wheel or monument in his honor in Galesburg, Peck said, “Yeah, I think he would be disappointed. He only lived here for five years, but he was born here.”
And Peck said he believes Galesburg should have some kind of Ferris wheel presence in town.
“Absolutely, we should have something here,” he said. “Being involved in the historical society and a relative, I should definitely try to make something happen. We need to have some kind of recognition for George Ferris here.
“Maybe this will be the spark to get something done.”