Thursday, December 26, 2013

Miscellaneous Knott's Berry Farm

Today I have a random assortment of vintage photos from Knott's Berry Farm - "leftuggies" might be a more accurate term for them!

This first slide is dated "March 3, 1958", and it looks like things were pretty chilly that day. Whiskey Bill and Handsome Brady don't seem to mind, but those two street characters are huddled for warmth nearby. No other souls are to be seen!


One might not expect to see seals in a ghost town, but that's what makes Knott's so awesome! Look at those barking fools, they'll do anything for a little piece of fish. I wonder where these guys spent the night. Was there a backstage area where they could sleep in warmth and safety?


No collection of Knott's photos would be complete without at least one shot of the sluice where guests could pan for real gold. The denim-shirted prospector is showing one boy the "color" remaining is his pan, soon to be poured into a little glass vial to take home. 


3 comments:

Alonzo P Hawk said...

Great pics. I remember as a kid hearing the barking seals walking in and then feeding them sardines (or whatever they were selling to feed them).

But alas, over the years the seals got fat (like me) on fried chicken and boysenberry pie. They probably made them swim down to Sea World (to burn some calories) when they shut down the exhibit.

Melissa said...

The human characters are one step away from burning the wooden characters for warmth. Jack London would've loved it.

Dave said...

WOW! The seals sure bring back (rapidly fading) memories. One of my earliest memories is Mom taking me to KBF back when it was still free, riding the Model T ride then going to see the seals. Not 1958 mind you, I was 3 or 4 so we're talking '66, '67 here, I'm old, just not THAT old.