Traveltown in Griffith Park - Gene Autry's Melody Ranch Railroad

Back to LA to see Charley Atkins' Traveltown in Griffith Park. And a look at Gene Autry's Melody Ranch Railroad. OOPS! In the video we say it was in the hills above Santa Monica however it was in Placerita Canyon in the hills above Santa Clarita.

From their web site:
https://www.laparks.org/traveltown
In the late 1940s, Charley Atkins, a Recreation and Parks employee, along with a handful of rail enthusiast friends, had the idea that a steam locomotive would make an attractive addition at the Griffith Park miniature railroad ride. The original intention of the Museum was to be a "railroad petting zoo," an opportunity for the children of Los Angeles to "imagineer" themselves as engineers. The City of Los Angeles Harbor Department had two little engines destined for scrap that seemed to fit the bill. The idea escalated as Atkins, with the enthusiastic support of former Recreation and Parks Department General Manager George Hjelte and Superintendent of Recreation William Frederickson, initiated contacts with major railroads in California to determine what equipment they might be willing to donate. At that time, the steam locomotive era was drawing to a close, and Atkins found a good response. Travel Town was dedicated on December 14, 1952. The concept of a combined transportation museum and recreation center blossomed, and wishes for donations were generously fulfilled. In 1965, Travel Town's exhibits were re-grouped, and the park re-dedicated. Today, Travel Town is in a state of new growth and development. Charley Atkins passed away in 1959, but he left Los Angeles a grand legacy at Travel Town.

In 1975 In the Gene Autry's Melody Ranch Railroad, an 16 inch live steam park railroad, was moved to Traveltown. Gene Autry also collected full sized steam locomotives at his movie ranch including Denver and Rio Grande K27 463 now operating on the Cumbers and Toltec Railroad. Autry's locomotive was later sold to The Whiskey River railroad in Wisconsin.

Gene Autry had plans near the end of his life to turn his movie ranch into a western museum where visitors could see relics of bygone days and watch movies being made. Autry's plans literally went up in smoke in 1962. His dream did finally come true, though, (sans watching movie production) in 1988 — in L.A.'s Griffith Park with the building of the Autry Museum of the American West in Griffith Park.

https://theautry.org/

https://scvhistory.com/scvhistory/lw2165.htm

Видео Traveltown in Griffith Park - Gene Autry's Melody Ranch Railroad канала Toy Man Television