[1958 HOME MOVIE TRAIN TRIP TO SAN DIEGO & LOS ANGELES / DISNEYLAND VIA SANTA FE RAILROAD]

Genre: home movie

Year Published: 1958

Description: Dating to 1958, this elaborate home movie shows a trip to California and Disneyland made via the Santa Fe Railroad. This was shot just three years after Disneyland opened. 1958 saw the addition of the Columbia Sailing Ship and the Grand Canyon Diorama. From scenic ride aboard the Santa Fe Rail Line to San Diego, footage sweeps Raton’s Pass, the Sangre De Cristo Mountains, El Cortez Hotel, San Diego’s Broadway Central Naval Base and into Disney. The gleeful charm of the theme park shines in this tour beginning on main street winding through an array of attractions. The end returns to San Diego, coastal beaches near the San Diego Presidio and into other Californian cities including Glendale. Vintage cars and fashion style fill the Southern Californian tour. 00:00 The train enters Raton’s Pass on the Colorado, New Mexico border. It is a historically significant landmark on the Santa Fe trail. The “Raton” sign follows on New Mexico’s Goat Hill (1:24). Street scenes in vintage shades capture Raton’s Historic Downtown. The Golden Rule and New York Store” off South First offers Lee Brand Jeans (1:28). Travelers arrive (1:35) at the Santa Fe Railroad Depot (1:44). Built in 1903 in mission revival architecture, it is part of the National Register of Historic Places remaining an active station as the northernmost stop near the Colorado border. A pink Ford Fairlane sleeps against the depot (1:47). Footage sweeps Old Town Las Vegas (1:52). A marker mentions the Rough Riders (2:19). Many of Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders of the First US Volunteer Calvary Regiment from the Spanish American Civil War came from here. Starvation Peak follows (2:34), part of the Santa Fe Mountains, a subrange of the Sangre de Cristo’s (2:51). A rail car receives maintenance (3:54). El Cortez Hotel stands on Ash Street (5:15). Saved from demo in 1990, it was placed on the US National Register of Historic Places. A couple lingers on Ash near the Naval Supply Center Broadway Complex Warehouse (5:23). The USS Cahuilla (5:37), McDonnell F3H Demon (6:03) and USS Hector (6:13) appear at the nearby Navy Pier. Disney (6:35) footage begins on the south end of Main. Horse drawn carriages pass (6:45) City Hall. The double decker Omnibus (6:50) follows. Eastman Kodak’s shop (6:56) was installed as part of their sponsorship and collaboration with Walt Disney. Jerry Azrouni managed it. It played a major role in the park’s opening. Monsanto House (7:08), part of the Tomorrowland attraction was designed to entice guests on Monsanto’s vision of the future. The House of Tomorrowland, made of plastic, (7:25) showcased futuristic home goods. The TWA Moonliner (7:26) and Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroads Viewliner follow (7:47). Trains ran between Tomorrowland and Fantasyland from 1957 to 1959. Alice and Wonderland (7:57) attractions captured scenes from the 1951 animated film (8:03). Storybook Land (8:55), canal boats (9:07), Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship (9:55), Casey Jr. Circus Train (10:02), Mad Tea Party Ride (10:26), Davey Crockett’s Frontier Arcade (11:19) and Adventureland’s Jungle Rivers follow (11:24). The Mark Twain River Boat (12:13), Sailing Ship Columbia (12:28), Indian Village (13:39), Settler’s Cabin (13:45), Fort Wilderness (14:11), Frontierland (14:21) and Autopia Ride (15:09) are filmed. Campus Chuck Wagon Motel (16:24) and Lafayette Hotel (16:40) appear on El Cajon Boulevard. Lafayette attracted guests like Bob Hope and was added to the National Register of Historic Places. San Diego’s Gas and Electric building on Century Park Court (17:56), historic Hotel San Diego on Broadway (18:18), Grant House (18:28) and Bradley’s Pizza (18:39) follow. The San Diego Presidio (19:00) is a historic fort established in 1769 by Gaspar de Portola (19:08). The Large Adobe Cross (19:19) and Arthur Putnam’s Indian Sculpture (19:24) follow. A 1956 Ford Country Sedan (20:01) passes Point Loma Lighthouse (20:09). The end shows the travelers touring Glendale department stores (23:56).

Online Copy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZmT7uy6boI

Metadata Source:YouTube