This may sound like sour grapes, but... I don't think the Epcot G gauge display shown here is up to the Disney standard. It looks like a very nicely arranged display of mostly commercial products. This does NOT look as if it was created with the whimsy or design sense of the Imagineers of WED Enterprises. Still, it's fun to see. Thanks for the pictures.
Well, I'd argue that since WED has been gone for a number of years that nothing has been done to Disney Standards in the parks...probably since Epcot was built, but at least since the early 90s. But that's not a train related topic, so I won't continue it. I will say, in defense of the railroad that all of World Showcase is/Was sponsered by the countries. All the stores are sponsered as well often being offshoots of actual stores in the referenced country. The LGB trainset at Epcot is the same it was 100% sponsered by LGB. They provided everything, so it is in essence a Large window display of product. That is why it is commercial products mostly. It is intended to be and always was intended to be that. It was part of how Disney was able to afford Epcot Center back in the days before they were rolling in cash. As for the original lilly belle, it is a ride on live steam model based on Central Pacific's Engine #173. The first that they built (rebuilt) in California. As for the Disneyland Railroad, your guide is correct...partially. There are 5 engines in Disneyland. The first 4 are named after people associated with the ATSF which originally sponsered the ride. Engine #1 The C.K. Holliday is an exact duplicate of the Lillybelle and thus #173. She's built to 3/4 scale so she can run on narrow gauge track. Engine #2 The E. P. Ripley is also a 3/4 scale 4-4-0. She has a straight stack and rounded cab roof and is Green instead of red, but is otherwise exactly the same. Both have WED builders plates and I believe they are still owned by the Disneys. The other 3 engines however were not built by Disney, they are real world industrial locomotives. I think they all came from sugar plants, but I could be wrong about that. I'm also pretty sure at least one of them is a baldwin. They are all 3 small engines with small drivers unlike the WDW engines. They are all 4-4-0s I think. They are named the Fred Gurley and the Ernest S. Marsh. The most recent addition as of a few years ago was the Ward Kimball. Named after one of Walt's Nine old Men of Animation, Ward shared and in fact sparked Walt's love of Trains. Ward had his Grisley Flats railroad which was a narrow gauge railroad and Walt tried to get him to donate his Emma Nevada 4-4-0 to DL. He refused. Ward's trains were donated to the Orange Empire Railroad museum in Perris California.
YoHo is correct about the G scale garden at Epcot. From what I read in Garden Railway Magazine the Garden G scale was originally sponsored and was for many years by LGB since it is right next to the country of Germany. So since it was sponsored by LGB it won't be whimsical or made up by a imagineer and rather made of commercial products that LGB may want to promote. Since LGB was the main supporter of this Garden railroad, I'm sure Disney wouldn't have any say aout how it was done. On another note you still can't take away the great job of plants, the running water, the bridges, the structures and how it was arranged. I'm sure it takes alot of time and man power to take care of a Garden railway of this size, let alone to build it. I believe it's definately a garden railway to model after and wish for. But everyone has a view and own opinion of everything and thats ok because that what makes the world go around.
LGB did do a run of Ward Kimball's Grizzly Flats forney and some open sided tourist cars about ten years back. We bought them for my Father to run around the Christmas tree.
