Carolwood Pacific and Other Backyard Railroads

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

From ImagineeringDisney...

Carolwood Pacific and Other Backyard Railroads

Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 2:21PM Posted by Mitch

Large image 1900x2050.

Extra large image 3800x4100.

Take a look at specific pieces of Walt Disney's backyard miniature live steam train. Enjoy amazing photos of similar railroads from decades ago and miniature railroads still in use today.

Above you see a graphic we've produced showing the basic layout of the Carolwood Pacific in Walt Disney's Holmby Hills backyard. No other graphic quite like this is known to exist. Below you see the layout of the home and railroad being compared to the current property. Note that the Disney home was no small house. But compare it to the current monster house and it looks tiny.

With these visuals you can more-easily get an idea of what the Carolwood was really like. If you look closely at the photos and the map above you'll see that the train rode the tracks in both directions. I don't know if Walt had his prefered direction or route when showing off this great toy. But you'll notice the train is going clockwise when crossing the driveway and counter-clockwise on the same track when crossing the trestle. The fact that the train went in front of the house was news to me. The tunnel was much longer than I would have expected. They say Lillian's flower beds were dug up in order to make that tunnel.

Walt and Lillian purchased the Holmby Hills homesite in 1949. It was the last home in which either of them permanently lived. Although, at the time of Walt's death in 1966 the Disney couple was staying in the home of daughter and son-in-law Diane and Ron Miller who had recently moved to a larger home. They purchased the Miller house as a temporary place to stay as they remodeled their home on Carolwood.

Upon seeing the Carolwood location for the first time, Walt expressed that the large backyard "will do". Lillian later said that he had the idea of a miniature railroad on his mind when he chose the property. And remember, Disneyland didn't come about for another half-decade. Walt was not yet known for such "three-dimensional entertainment".

Lillian lived in the Carolwood home until her death in 1997. When the Disney family sold the house and property Diane was wise enough to relocate Walt's barn to Griffith Park where it can be visited today. New property owners tore down the Disney home and landscaping in order to build a larger, newer house (as seen in the 2nd photo). They reportedly kept the tunnel near the house and use it for storage. The new owners are supposedly "Disney fans" (which we know can mean anything). I'd love to meet them.

The following photo is from the collection Michael Broggie, son of Disney Legend Roger Broggie pictured here with Walt. The 17"x11" printed photo was given to me years ago by Micheal Broggie through a friend. Thanks Michael Broggie!

Famous Neighbors

Holmby Hill was and is no stranger to celebrities. Some former Carolwood Drive residents include Frank Sinatra (320 Carolwood Dr.– across from Disney), Michael Jackson (100), Elvis Presley (144), Marilyn Manrow (141), Sonny & Cher (141), Burt Reynolds (141), George Harrison (265), Barbara Streisand (301– next to Disney to the east), Clark Gable (325), Gregory Peck (375– next to Disney to the west), and Rod Stewart (391).

Other "Backyard" Railroads

Here we can feast our eyes on some great pics from the Los Angeles Live Steamers.

Live Steamers of Today

Reporter for The Orange County Register and friend of the blog, Mark Eades, recently sent us one of his articles about The Steamers. Attached to the article was this fantastic video.

In another post by Mark we get an excellent look inside Walt's Carolwood Barn as it sits today. Thanks Mark Eades!

A Piece of Carolwood Pacific

A piece of the original track from Walt's backyard as seen in one of our previous posts called "Little Box of Treasures".

http://www.imagineeringdisney.com/blog/2011/9/8/carolwood-pacific-and-other-backyard-railroads.html

[dblr....Rennie 224]

If any one is interested in trains they should take The Magic Behind the Steam backstage tour at the MK it is a very interesting tour plus you learn alot about Walt's home railroad. I also got the book about Carolwood Railroad and it has some great pictures of it.