The last several posts we have talked about Travel Town in Griffith Park in Los Angeles. I think we may make this the last such post and then move on to some other super-duper things is the City of Angeles.
This is Southern Pacific’s ALCO locomotive #3025 at Travel Town. This is a might cool engine, and it is especially interesting to those of us in the Capital District as it was build in Schenectady in 1904. The present site of the old factory has a casino, which is certainly a far cry since the time when that city was a center of railroad manufacturing.
This example of ALCO’s work is a 442 Atlantic, which steam locomotive aficionados will understanding as having 4 leading wheels, 4 drive wheels, and 2 tailing wheels. This machine is a stunner, and standing next to it is an experience all by itself. The drive wheel are 81 inches in diameter. This gigantic size was required to get the engine up to the high speeds necessary for the famous Southern Pacific Starlight and daylights trains that flashed up and down the coast.
Travel Town is located on what I call the north side of Griffith Park. It is easy to get to. Well, it is as easy as any place in the Los Angeles area. You can check out the the official LA Parks Travel Town Web site at www.laparks.org/traveltown/.