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Secnic [sic] Railway, "Dragon Gorge," at Ocean Park, Cal.

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Secnic [sic] Railway, "Dragon Gorge," at Ocean Park, Cal.

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Identifier	post_00177
Title	Secnic [sic] Railway, "Dragon Gorge" at Ocean Park, Cal.
Creator	unknown
Date Created	1911-1912
Subject (Topic)	Amusement rides--California--Los Angeles; Roller coasters--California--Los Angeles;
Subject (Name)	Dragon Gorge (Santa Monica, Calif. : Amusement ride);
Subject (Place)	Ocean Park (Santa Monica, Calif.);
Type	image
Form/Genre	Postcards
Physical Description	1 postcard : Color ; 9 x 14 cm.
Institution	Department of Archives and Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Country of Creation	US
Copyright Status	public domain
Copyright Statement	http://library.lmu.edu/generalinformation/departments/digitallibraryprogram/copyrightandreproductionpolicy/#d.en.3004
Publisher	Newman Post Card Co.
Place of Publication	Los Angeles, San Francisco
Language	eng
Description	A view of the entrance to the Dragon Gorge scenic railway amusement ride in Ocean Park, California. A sign reading "Dragon Gorge" appears in the center. Two sculpted green dragons flank the entrance. People in early 20th century style clothing are visible near a ticket booth in the bottom center portion of the image. The upper portion of the façade is ornamented with two pagodas. Elevated tracks appear on the right edge of the image.
Historical Background	The area south of Santa Monica became known as Ocean Park in 1895, and was originally developed as a seaside resort by Abbot Kinney and his partner Francis Ryan. In 1898 Kinney and Ryan built the Ocean Park Pier, the first of several pleasure piers to be built in Los Angeles County. Kinney built the successful Venice pleasure pier in 1906. In 1911 the L.A. Thompson Company acquired property in Ocean Park and built the Dragon Gorge Scenic Railroad on the beach on Ocean Front Walk. The building took up several blocks and also incorporated an Auto Maze ride, a Grotto Cafe and House of Mystery. The Dragon Gorge ride was similar to the ride with the same name built in New York's Coney Island. The Dragon George in Ocean Park was destroyed by a massive fire on September 3, 1912.
Additional Printed Matter	On back: "On the road of a thousand wonders".
Publisher's Identifier	Series number: F 115
Additional Notes	Publication date from the years of operation of the Dragon George Scenic Railway. Postmaked 1912.
Contributors	Van Ornum Colorprint Co.
Source	Werner von Boltenstern Postcard Collection