Nostalgia & History > "The Oakland Acorn"

How many remember their youth like I do in Oakland, Calif when your parents would take you down to "Peralta Park" at the South end of the Oakland Auditorium and then buy you a ticket on the STEAM-powered 'Oakland Acorn' 4-6-2 Pacific loco # 1950 and train ???

The track was 18" gauge and the locomotive was built by George Reddington of San Leandro, Calif. For a number of years, the engineer on the Acorn was a man named 'Wilson' ...

KRK's grandfather eventually built a better sounding chime whistle for the locomotive, based on SP prototypes. Infact, the entire train was painted like the SP Daylight.

Look back and remember, folks!

"Key Route Ken"...

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Photos taken by Marvin Maynard.. Mid=1950's..

Courtesy of Marvin Maynard Collection.

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Pulling up to the station.

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Here we go!!

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The Acorn being 18" was a misconception. Both of the engines built by Reddington (with Albert Blecha), the sister being Gene Autry's "Melody Ranch Special" (run by Chet Peterson in Griffith Park until the early/mid-80s) were always 16" gauge. This was confirmed by the present caretaker of both engines, who has been in contact with Mr. Blecha before his death. Cap Shaw started several rumors in his book concerning these engines, as well as many others, which have still never been put to rest.

The "Oakland Acorn", post-removal, passed through Winton Brown of Danville, who built several 1-1/2" scale and 3" live steamers in the '60s and '70s. The largest, and last, was a 2' rendition of his Mogul which ran for one season in Carlsbad, NM before being converted to internal combustion power. A 15" Winton still runs at Sonoma Traintown. I'm not sure what Winton did with it, perhaps just broker the sale, but the next owner I believe was Charles V. "Pop" Arnold of Junction City, OR, (Tiny Power Engines) who also built two 16" steam locomotives. The patterns and beginnings of a third locomotive found its way to Lee Merrick of Marshall, Wisconsin, as did the Acorn. It was restored and cosmetically altered to appear as a narrow-gauge engine, while the Melody Ranch Special was reboilered but still retained its streamlined Daylight appearance. Both still operate on the Whiskey River Railway around the "Little A-Merrick-A" amusement park. Merrick's is also home to a first-class light railway construction and restoration shop, which is currently building a new diesel locomotive for the Billy Jones Wildcat RR, espected within the end of the year. It was originally ordered 3 years ago from Custom Locomotive Works of Chicago, which went out of business before getting much of a start on its construction.

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I kind of figured that "OnTrackEd" would have a thought or two. Where do you get all this information from ??
If it isn't MacDermot, it's the Acorn..

What do you know about Bob Maxfield's endeavor in Calistoga ??

I knew Winton Brown very well. Have been to his house in Danville, CA. Knew years ago he had the Acorn, because he had it in his catalog and I think in Railroad Supply's catalog also.. At one time, he had it listed for $ 25,000 .......
Is the photo you just posted the original engine from "Oakland" ?? What a pity if it is-- the Acorn was a real beautiful engine. I got cab rides in it on a few occasions..

Do you remember "Ray Maker"... He made Park Trains too, but unfortunately he preferred gasoline engines to Steam...

Cheers.

"Key Route Ken"...

Ken, I've been researching the small scale (rather "Grand Scale" stuff) for going on six years now. It's quite common to find one bit of information that is completely irrelevant, then months or years later, be able to relate it in piecing together a puzzle.

Maxfield's "Calistoga Steam Railway" (though I only know it from old photos) sure appeared to have a lot of work put into it, and it's a shame it didn't last. I have seen the photos of the 1912 and 1913 in Erich Thomsen's shop in (West) Oakland after he purchased them from Billy Jones' estate, and the construction on the bucolic Calistoga site. While it may have failed, the Maxfield equipment was what gave Al Smith a start on the Swanton Pacific, and the turntable and motorcar he built for Calistoga are still proving their worth in Davenport. Even more interesting (and seldom forgotten) is the disposition of 1914, 1915, and 1500 (as well as Billy's Hunslet, 'Gwen') to Quentin Jervis of San Pedro. The 1500 ran briefly at the Orange County Fair in the '70s, and by the scattered folks I've talked to who knew about this operation or were involved, it was run into the ground there! Al Smith purchased the two Pacifics (and Neil Vodden the 1500) at the Jervis Estate auction.

Yes, I do know of Ray Maker, and it took several years of scrounging around to get enough clues together on him. He's still much of a mystery that I'd like to research. I know of his building of the Knowland Park "Aerotrain", as well as others...including steam profile trains (supposedly) which ran in Half Moon Bay (a GS-4) and Kennedy Park in Hayward. A Maker train, more or less, still operates every year in Half Moon Bay at Pastorino's Pumpkin Patch, much modified. I would like to scrounge up some news articles and more photo evidence of this guy and his trains...I hear he had several installations in drive-ins, including a monorail or two.

And yes, the engine in the photo is the original "Oakland Acorn". It is still called by that name. While it was the owner's wish to have it cosmetically altered, it's sister Reddington engine (a near identical twin) still has the Daylight paint and skirts. Some photos of both engines can be found below at Tim Boshart's site, as well as the other equipment on one of the country's premier "Grand Scale" steam railroads.
http://trains.uoregon.edu/pn/modules.php?set_albumName=littleamerrika&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php

I remember Ray Maker well. He ran a two car CZ at the Pleasant Hill drive in on Contra Costa Blvd throughout the '50's. He also had a CZ, possibly the same one, at a San Francisco department store (Macy's or the White House, I think)for Christmas. Even though it had an internal combustion engine, it was run inside. Co-incidentally, his daughter, Barbara was a friend of my mother's in the '60's-she mentioned that her father used to build trains and I made the connection. Mister Maker, as we called him, always offered free rides on his CZ but parental permission was given for only one or two in an evening and the rest were paid for. He was a kind and generous gentleman. His CZ was without domes.

Does anyone remember the Alco PA that ran in conjunction with the Oakland Acorn for a while? It had three corrugated cars including a vista-dome (not 3/4's but a short dome.) Old movies my father took show both trains at capacity along with a river boat that ran in the body of water surrounded by the tracks. I don't know if this was one of Ray Maker's works or not.

This INDEED sounds like one of Maker's trains, though I'd never heard of this one before. Maker's trademark was a sort of "half roof", and those domes were common. His streamliners, which weren't all he built, were among the largest ever to grace the 'park train' market. Arrow Development (Ed Morgan and Karl Bacon) in Mountain View built several streamliners in the late '40s and '50s (I have seen them as large as 2' gauge, a restored one still operates at Uesugi Farms in Morgan Hill), which are even dwarfed by Maker's trains.

Attached is a copy of an ad for a Maker setup from Rick Mugele. Erich Thomsen rebuilt the train in his shop, and apparently Bob Bianchi (who still operates a 12" Arrow Development streamliner in San Mateo's Central Park) owned it and/or was responsible for the sale as his crew moved it to its new home in Half Moon Bay. Bianchi also operated the (recently-reopened) "Jolly Trolley" at Fairyland on Lake Merritt, as well as two other miniature train concessions in San Francisco over the years. I believe he also ran the 2' Chance Rides "CP Huntington" train at Scandia in Cordelia, which was removed a few years back.

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Another Ray Maker train, this one operated for many years in Carpinteria at "Santas Kitchen" and is now in private hands. Its new owner supposedly plans to use it in a proposed animal park in the Santa Barbara area.

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OnTrackEd Wrote:
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> Another Ray Maker train, this one operated for
> many years in Carpinteria at "Santas Kitchen" and
> is now in private hands. Its new owner supposedly
> plans to use it in a proposed animal park in the
> Santa Barbara area.

Thanks for posting the info and photo of this train. I have very vivid memories of it back in the early Sixties.

I'm please to hear it still exists. Can you give us any other information on its possible future?

OnTrackEd Wrote:
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> Another Ray Maker train, this one operated for
> many years in Carpinteria at "Santas Kitchen" and
> is now in private hands. Its new owner supposedly
> plans to use it in a proposed animal park in the
> Santa Barbara area.


That little train ran right next to the main line in back of that complex. I remember standing in the vestibule of one of the coaches on The Daylight (99) on one of the trips with my grandfather (conductor) on the way to San Luis Obispo. For some reason we were going very slow through there and the train came around the buildings and ran along side of us for a few feet. I remember grandpa saying "Look there, a big and little Daylight right next to each other." I also remember wanting to ride in that tiny dome car and often wondered what happened to that little train. Are there any more pictures of it?

Guys: Somehow, working on the railroad still makes me feel young. Viewing these pictures and posts makes me feel old....great memories though! Thanks for sharing all this stuff!

God, I can't believe it.. I mention RAY MAKER and all kinds of reactions come forth.
Ok Mr.OnTrack Ed... Top this one.. "Ray Maker" also built and operated a streamliner on Foothill Blvd in East Oakland for a short time, on a vacant lot that existed between The Fremont High School Swimming Pool and the Foster Freeze joint...
This would have been on the West side of Foothill, South of High Street, and directly opposite the campus of Fremont High School..
C'mon whiz kids-- Anyone remember this operation by your old buddy, "Mr. Maker" ???


KRK

In the late 60's or early 70's I was southbound on Hwy 1 in Half Moon Bay. On the west side of the highway in a "vacant lot" were a PA and about three passenger cars, all in the Daylight paint scheme. They were stored in the open, side by side on the ground. Nearby were stacks of "snap track". I have been back three or four times looking for this train, but have never found it. It looked very similar to the two PA's in the photos. Does anyone know anything about this train?

For those who might wish to have a look at this area (Peralta Park), I suggest doing it soon. The city is about to embark on a full reconstruction of the 12th st. dam, as well as the 10th and 7th street bridges. The project includes reconstruction of a more naturalized channel between the estuary and Lake Merritt.

The Acorn's right-of-way can be clearly seen today. The small tunnel near 10th street exists, gated at both ends. One can also easily identify the passenger waiting/boarding area, where there is a railing made of 'real' rail, and a heavy steel construction featuring a locomotive wheel with driving arm. (See photo) All signs of the petting zoo are gone, but the path of the acorn can be followed as it loops around Peralta Park.

Sadly, this area today is a study in the decline of a great American city. The Oakland city council recently voted to CLOSE the HJ Kaiser Convention center (formerly the "Oakland Auditorium") as a cost saving measure. It's quite unclear at this point what will happen to this venerable WWI era facility or to Peralta Park itself.

Those of you who grew up in Oakland and remember these great places--please remember to email your thoughts occasionally to city council members. It does make a difference.

-Robert

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lynnpowell Wrote:
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> In the late 60's or early 70's I was southbound on
> Hwy 1 in Half Moon Bay. On the west side of the
> highway in a "vacant lot" were a PA and about
> three passenger cars, all in the Daylight paint
> scheme. They were stored in the open, side by
> side on the ground. Nearby were stacks of "snap
> track". I have been back three or four times
> looking for this train, but have never found it.
> It looked very similar to the two PA's in the
> photos. Does anyone know anything about this
> train?


When I was working for Alpha Beta in Half Moon Bay the equipment was still there. Shortly after I saw the equipment there was a little piece about it on the local San Jose television station saying it was for sale. I never saw it again.

Tony Johnson

That picture personifies what these little trains are all about. Look at those little kids riding those cars. There is nothing on their minds but the sight and sound of that steam engine blowing off it's valve. How well I remember riding the "Daylight" at the Los Feliz entrance to Griffith Park in Los Angeles. It wasn't steam, but I didn't care. I would beg my mom to let me take just one more ride. It was ten cents! Popcorn was a dime and a Coke was a nickel at the snack bar. Then I'd get a pony ride before we left. Then if mom timed it just right on the way back to Glendale, we'd have to stop while the real Daylight crossed Los Feliz on it's way to L.A. from San Francisco. There was no underpass then and the gates were operated by a man in a little tower on the south side of Los Feliz. Now THAT was a day on the town for a youngster! The little train is still there, but it's not red orange and black and it's not as complex as it used to be. I sometimes wonder if those who operate these park trains take the time to really look at the kids smiles and understand how much bigger than life they still are to the little ones. And just how much happiness they bring into the lives of children with just one spin around the park.

The massive Pastorino's Pumpkin Patch has been the home to an 18" Ray Maker train since about the early '70s, which has always been run on portable track which was put out and taken up each season. I rode the original train there many times during my youth. Unfortunately, a derailment damaged the train some time ago, and it had to be completely rebuilt. I was told the original Maker locomotive is stored. The new owner (who still operates it at Pastorino's) has built a new battery-powered locomotive which is used every October to pull it.

The Pastorino's train has always been painted for the Western Pacific. However, Hank Pastorino spoke of another Maker train which operated in Half Moon Bay that was in Daylight colors, which was among Maker's more attractive creations and was withering away on a vacant city lot. I seemed to remember it being a GS-4 (steam outline) by his description. Pastorino purchased the train from Bay Area park train operator Bob Bianchi (who operated trains in San Mateo, San Francisco, and Oakland's "Jolly Trolley", another thread to come about one of these operations in a few moments). He had plans to build a permanent railroad for it, but the snap track arrangement has been all that's used. Erich Thomsen rebuilt the train not too long before its sale (see earlier post of mine) in his Oakland shop, long before he established one at Tilden Park.

As for the Maker setup in Carpinteria, the new owner wrote into GSQ (the Grand Scales Quarterly) with their plans for it. This is the second or third owner since it left "Santas Kitchen". I believe one of the cars no longer exists (junked), but the locomotive and remaining two cars are intact. The park where the owner plans to use the train has not been built yet, so I don't expect to hear of it being put back into service anytime soon.

Ken, I've been trying to crack the "Ray Maker" mystery for YEARS. I still manage to know little about him, what he built, when he lived, and where half of the stuff he did build ended up! I would like to someday get a chance to scrounge through libraries to find whatever I can (news artices, etc) on him or anything he built. I hear the Oakland Zoo train is now in private hands who were planning to restore and run it. This report was a couple of years old.

As to mention of a possible Ray Maker train running with the Acorn at Peralta Plaground...interestingly enough, I know of (and the only one I know of) a 16" gauge Ray Maker streamliner now operating at a pumpkin patch in North Plains, Oregon. Almost all of the Maker trains I have seen (other than the custom jobs) have been 18" gauge. Perhaps this is the train which operated at Peralta Playground many years ago? The Oregon operation also has two 16" gauge GP-38s, one from Custom Locomotive and another homebuilt "clone" of it. Similar to the one at Casa De Fruta in Hollister. Their railroad is a completely different story which may make for a fun discussion if anyone remembers it! Once 12", and it once had steam to boot!

Lastly, Griffith Park...
The "Daylight" was the first model G-16 streamliner built by the Miniature Train & Railroad Company of Illinois. G-16s became the most widely-manufactured miniature streamliner of its time, and this one (#501) now operates on a giant private railroad in the Stockton area. At some point, new 18.5" streamliners (builder unknown, I had thought it was under the "All-American Streamliner" label, an offshoot of Chet Peterson's Railroad Supply) replaced the 16" on the Griffith Park & Southern. Elsewhere in Griffith Park on the 16" loop at Travel Town, the twin sister to the Oakland Acorn (the "Melody Ranch Special", built for Gene Autry) operated until about 1986, when it was in dire need of a rebuild. The original Reddington cars still operate at Travel Town, pulled by a little switch engine in Daylight colors and also lettered for the Melody Ranch.

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OnTrackEd:
Contrary to what you believe, there was NEVER a Ray Maker train operating at Peralta Park.
It was strictly George Reddington's SP Daylight STEAM locomotive # 1950 which he made in his shop in San Leandro, CA.
I have the original newspaper clipping that shows this.

When the City of Oakland decided on NO MORE TRAINS in Peralta Park, the "ACORN" was removed and trackage torn up.

You never got back to my question to you--
Do you remember the Ray Maker streamliner that operated on Foothill Blvd at 46th Avenue in Oakland, across the street from Fremont High School ?? Please advise.

Ray Maker had an aversion to STEAM.. He favored gasoline models. If he had been a clever guy like my grandfather, he might have gotten more noticed!

KRK