BACKSTORY: There are currently 5 locomotives at Disneyland:
#1: C.K. Holliday: Named after Cyrus Kurtz Holliday (1826–1900), founder of the Atchison & Topeka Railroad in 1859, the predecessor of the Santa Fe Railway. The locomotive is a 4-4-0 American built in 1955 by Retlaw Enterprises at Burbank, CA. In service since July 17, 1955.
#2: E.P. Ripley: Named after Edward Payson Ripley (1845–1920), first President of the reorganized Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway in 1895 and recognized as a pioneering railroad executive. The locomotive is a 4-4-0 American built in 1955 by Retlaw Enterprises at Burbank, CA. In service since July 17, 1955.
#3: Fred Gurley: Named after Fred G. Gurley (1889–1976), President of the Santa Fe Railway from 1944–1957. He and his good friend Walt Disney were responsible for the initial sponsorship of the Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroad in 1955. The locomotive is a 2-4-4T Forney built in 1895 at Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, PA. In service since March 28, 1958.
#4: Ernest S. Marsh: Named after Ernest S. Marsh (1903–1975), President of the Santa Fe Railway from 1957–1966, and a strong advocate of the relationship between Disneyland and his railroad company. The locomotive is a 2-4-0 built in 1925 at Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, PA. In service since July 25, 1959.
#5: Ward Kimball: Named after Ward Kimball (1914–2002), Oscar winning Disney animator and lifelong railroad enthusiast. In 1938, Ward and Betty Kimball became the first private citizens to own a full-sized steam locomotive, an 1881 Baldwin mogul. The locomotive is a 2-4-4T built in 1902 at Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, PA. In service since June 25, 2005.
Interested in Walt and his railroad(s)? Check out carolwood.org.
Daveland Blog reader David Pacheco left this comment on my post about this photo:
My father worked for the Santa Fe Railroad and was commissioned by the RR to design and build the boxcar for the 10,000 pennies. He was given a week to complete the entirely hand made project. This included casting the tracks and wheels in metal (after weighing the 10,000 pennies). We were invited to the ceremony and had a special place on the platform. Afterwards Walt Disney came by to greet us. He apparently knew I was in attendance as he had a gift of a Super Chief electrin train set waiting for me. I didn't know who Walt was at the time. My kiddie show hero was Engineer Bill who I watched every day. As Walt was shaking my hand and handing me the train set all I could see was that Engineer Bill was walking away from the crowd. I never did get to meet him but I still have the train set.
Here is the text from the Live Narration of a Guided Tour, circa 1962:
Welcome to Disneyland…my name is________ and I'll be your guide on your tour through the Magic Kingdom. We'll be visiting each of the four lands, ending our tour in Tomorrowland. If you have any questions about the park along the way, please feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer them for you. Also, if I'm walking too fast or not speaking loud enough, please tell me. Now, if you're all ready we're first going to board the Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad for an exciting trip encircling the entire park.
MAIN STREET STATION (Waiting for Train)
Here you get a view of our parking area. We have 67 acres in the amusement area of the park and 100 more in this our parking area, which can accommodate more than 9000 cars and 40 busses. The helicopters you may see flying ovehread today offer daily flight service to and from the Los Angeles International Airport. The helicopter landing pad is adjacent to the Disneyland Hotel just across West Street. The elevated concrete beamway you see is a portion of the Disneyland-Alweg Monorail system which will be part of our tour a little later. Disneyland has many services with which you may not be familiar. Kennel-Land is located just to the right of the Main Gate as you enter. In this direction (point) is Town Square, where construction on Disneyland was first started, July 17, 1954. The Main Gate to Disneyland was opened exactly one year later. An impressive Retreat Ceremony takes place here in Town Square each evening with the Disneyland Band taking part. To date, the total population that is, the number of guests who have visited Disneyland, is over 32 million. Our record breaking day was July 4, 1959, when there were 59,845 guests in the park in one day. Across the street in this direction is our Bank of America, open for your convenience until 4 o'clock this afternoon. This bank is unique in that you may do your banking on Saturday, Sunday or Holidays…anytime the park is open. Just down Main Street we even have a cinema where six silent movies are shown continually. The large brick building across Town Square is Disneyland's City Hall. If you have any problems you may take them there, because we all know, City Hall has ALL the answers.
To resume your vintage tour, please go to the Frontierland Station page.
From the Disney Parks Blog:
Recently, I asked Ms. Loren about this visit. “It was my first visit to Disneyland,” she said. “It was such a great joy to be with my family, all together and having an unforgettable time.” As for what she thought of Walt’s Magic Kingdom all those years ago, she said, “It’s a dream world.”
