In the late 1940s, Charley Atkins, a Recreation and Parks employee, and some rail enthusiasts came up with the plan that a full-size steam locomotive would be an attractive addition to the miniature railroad ride at Griffith Park. The City of Los Angeles Harbor Department had two small locomotives destined for scrap that seemed to be suitable for this purpose. These locomotives had worked at a quarry on Santa Catalina Island, California, carrying stone to be used building breakwaters for the Port of Los Angeles. With the support of former Recreation and Parks Department General Manager George Hjelte and Superintendent of Recreation William Frederickson, Atkins initiated contacts with major railroads in California to ask what equipment they could donate. At that time, the steam locomotive era was drawing to a close, and Atkins found a good response. The earliest locomotives were made accessible for children to climb on them. Travel Town was inaugurated on December 14, 1952, in an area used as an internment camp during World War II. The locomotives were accessible day and night until fencing was installed in 1955 to prevent vandals from breaking glass windows and gauges.A Union Pacific Railroad dining car donated in 1954 was available for birthday parties. The park's 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge Crystal Springs & Southwestern Railroad operated two locomotives from Oahu on 0.62 miles (1 km) of track beginning in 1955, but these locomotives were later returned to Hawaii for display. In 1965, Travel Town's exhibits were regrouped and the park was rededicated.