Roeding Park and the rideable train

[jjjmom]

Hello fellow lost fresnans! When I was little my favorite part of Roeding Park was the miniature train that traveled around the park. I remember it being called the Rotary Chief. One day I asked the train engineer if I could sit up front with him but there wasn't room. I found this old photo of the Rotary Chief, looks pretty cool even by today's standards.

[Lost Fresno Guest]

Here's another shot of the Roeding Chief crossing the fabled Dinky Creek.

[Lost Fresno]

The train below isn't the rideable one but when I was a kid you could climb all over it and even twist the knobs and wheels in the engineer area. It's the Southern Pacific 1238 but now it's all fenced in.

[Ghost of Al Radka]

Didn't the rideable train go through a tunnel?

[Lost Fresno]

Why yes, I think it did. I only rode it once, seems like a million years ago now.

Switching topics here, as owner of Lost Fresno, I want to welcome the Ghost of Al Radka to the forum. If I am not mistaken, you are responsible for writting many of Al Radka's jingles. Am I correct?

[sjvalleydave]

The train still goes through a tunnel on Playland at Roeding Park...

[iloverabbits]

Here is a map of Roeding Park dated 1964. I can see the miniature train tracks at the lower left. Although I grew up in Fresno in the 50s and 60s and went to Roeding a hundred times, I never had the honor of riding that train!

[Lost Fresno]

Take a ride on the train! There's no admission fee for playing this video.

[Elizabird]

Also n Roeding Park in addition to the train display was an old boxcar with the numbers "40 and 8" stenciled on the side. This was in honor of the Fresno men who served in World War 1, and there was a sign indicating the name of the regiment or honor society which had donated the boxcar. The term 40 and 8 meant the boxcar could hold 40 men and 8 horses. The French military called this designation the old Quarante et Huit, which is French for....40 and 8. My kids loved to climb around the couplers and pretend they were going somewhere chuffa-chuffa. Is the old boxcar still there?