California
Charles I. D., meanwhile, had become enchanted with the possibilities for amusement parks on the West coast and in August 1910 moved to California, leaving Helen and Charles Simmons, son Charles and Emma Looff to manage the family properties in Rhode Island. Charles I. D. Looff settled in Long Beach and built a factory on West Sixth Street. He purchased property at The Pike, an amusement area on Long Beach’s waterfront, and built a magnificent merry-go-round there. The family lived in an apartment above the ride. Son, Arthur, also operated Lite-a-line, a type of Fascination (game) at the Pike. In 1943, the carousel was destroyed by fire and replaced with another Looff merry-go-round.
In 1916, Looff with his son, Arthur, designed and built Looff's Santa Monica Pier along the south-side of the city’s long, narrow, municipal pier. They constructed a large Byzantine-Moorish style "Hippodrome" building to house one of their ornate carousels, now known as the Santa Monica Looff Hippodrome. The Looff‘s also erected the Blue Streak Racer wooden roller coaster on their new pleasure pier, along with The Whip and the Aeroscope thrill ride.
In addition to Santa Monica and the Pike, Looff built and operated amusement parks and carousels at Ocean Park, Redondo Beach, Venice Beach, Santa Cruz (still in operation), and San Francisco, California. Other merry-go-rounds were located in Spokane and Seattle, Washington. Looff built merry-go-rounds and roller coasters for the Oklahoma and Texas State Fairs. Charles I. D. Looff died on July 1, 1918 in Long Beach, California. After his death, his son, Arthur, continued to manage the family's West coast operation, including building the Giant Dipper Roller Coaster at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
The Santa Monica Looff Hippodrome and the Santa Cruz Looff Carousel and Roller Coaster were both designated National Historic Landmarks in 1987.
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