Tombstone Junction

I have one last western themed brochure to share, it's Tombstone Junction in Cumberland Falls, Kentucky.  This park was notable for having a full-size operating steam train that ran on a 2½ mile track.

I was a little skeptical of the "See the World's Top Country & Western Stars Perform" claim (see the yellow circle above), but after checking out the Wikipedia entry it seems this was totally true.

When other small parks fold up they usually just quietly go bankrupt, but it sounds like Tombstone Junction went out in a blaze of glory.  The place caught fire twice - once in 1989 which caused serious damage, and again sometime around 1991 which was the final coup de grâce for the park. Then according to the wiki entry even the wooden train cars were intentionally burnt to salvage the scrap metal in 1992. Although it's reported the burning cars rolled away uncontrolled and crashed in a flaming heap.  I think I might have bought tickets to see that.

Ghost Town in the Sky

Continuing with the western theme for this month here's a brochure from 1979 for Ghost Town in the Sky in Maggie Valley, North Carolina. This park has been in bankruptcy for the last few years, and if you care about such matters you can read about the whole mess here.




If you want to see what Ghost Town in the Sky looked like in 2007 (which I think was the last year the park was open) here's a link to a pictorial "TPS Report."

Stagecoach Stop USA

Hope this isn't too much of a disappointment for anyone, but I'm taking a little break from the Western River Expedition animation this week.

But in keeping with the western theme this month here's a brochure from the now defunct Stagecoach Stop USA in Irish Hills Michigan...




It's sad that this roadside attraction closed back in 2009. It was a fun place for a family to visit on a quick day trip. Along with the Prehistoric Forest this is another Irish Hills attraction that's a victim of the recent "economic downturn."