Bill Castellano, age 10, of Johnson City, Tenn., for his question:

WHO INVENTED THE FERRIS WHEEL?

Would you believe that a man named Mr. Ferris invented the Ferris wheel? Well, it's true. A mechanical engineer from Galesburg, Ill., named G.W. Gale Ferris built what remains the largest of all Ferris wheels in 1893.

Mr. Ferris wheel was built for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The wheel was 250 feet in diameter. Each of the 36 cars held 60 persons.

This famous Ferris wheel was also used at the St. Louis exhibition in 1904 and then it was sold for scrap metal.

Today's Ferris wheels are wonderful amusement rides that consist of large upright wheels that rotate on permanent stands and have seats suspended freely around their rims so as to remain horizontal as the wheels revolve.

Present day Ferris wheels, found at fairs, carnivals and amusement parks, usually stand about 40 to 45 feet high and carry 12 to 16 two person seats. The wheels are turned by gasoline powered engines.

In 1900, a man named William Sullivan began making Ferris wheels in Jacksonville, I11. The company he founded, the Eli Bridge company, is the largest maker of Ferris wheels.