The Walker Ranch

Placerita Canyon, California

Two early Movies, involving Duke
Range Feud and Two Fisted Law
and scenes from Stagecoach and Sands of Iwo Jima
were filmed here.

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History
In the early 1900's, several homes were built in Placerita Canyon
by Frank Evans Walker and his family.
The only remaining building intact is the one which is referred to as Walker's Cabin.

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From early in the history of Hollywood, the ranch was rented out to movie-makers,
which afforded the Walkers extra income.
In 1949, Frank Walker sold the property to the State of California.

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In recent years, the state transferred the ownership of the park to the County of Los Angeles. [It was in Placerita Canyon that gold was first discovered in California.
The Oak of the Golden Dreams monument stands at the site,
although the actual site is on the Walt Disney Golden Oak Ranch,
which is a short walk from the monument.]

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Use
Contrary to published reports, most, if not all,
of the Walker Ranch was used for filming, especially by the early low-budget companies,
such as Spectrum.
Many of the buildings (houses/cabins) on the property were used.
However, only the Walker Cabin still exists in its entirety
(you can find the remains of another building with fireplace intact on the property).
The Walker Cabin was used by William Boyd and others and they
referred to it as their on-screen hideout.
The road that ran along the front of the cabin and the road
on the other side of the creek (the south side)
were used for the chase scenes by most companies using the property.

Information and Copyright by Jerry L. Schneider
except for a select number of photographs
and/or images which are copyrighted by their
respective owners.

For more details:-
The Walker Ranch (http://employees.oxy.edu/jerry/walker.htm)
Click here for comprehensive list
Exterior-Locations (http://employees.oxy.edu/jerry/homeloc.htm)

Janns Conejo Ranch

Conejo Valley, California

The Man Who Shot Libert Valance, Sands of Iwo Jima,
scenes from other Duke movies, and many popular TV westerns,
including Bonanza and The Rifleman were shot here

Once located in beautiful Conejo Valley, the Janss Conejo Ranch
was a popular filming site used in countless TV series and films for decades.
The ranch is featured in 75 episodes of the series from 1959 through 1968.
The opening credits of all four Cartwrights riding down the dirt road were filmed
in April 1959 and used for the first two seasons of the series.
In 1910, Harold and Edwin Janss purchased about 10,000 acres of land
of what is now called central Thousand Oaks from the heir of John Edwards,
who had purchased the land from the de la Guerra heirs
(all of the land was originally a portion of the Ranch Conejo Land Grant).

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The ranch, called the Janss Conejo Ranch, was utilized as a farm
and to raise thoroughbred horses with the Santa Susanna Mountains
and Simi Hills framing it.
The TV-Western "The Rifleman" used the ranch, with the three-sided outbuildings
built on the north section.
The large saddleback mountain is a prominent geographical landmark
seen in everything made at the ranch.
In 1969, the Hawaiian Land Corporation bought the ranch for developing
into the vast city of Thousand Oaks.

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Portions of the land were developed, but much was set aside for open space.
There's still a trail known as Stagecoach Trail that was used for many
stagecoach crashes and falls over the cliff in Westerns.
Wildwood and the adjacent Hill Canyon
( it was part of the MGM ranch, and used to film many Westerns, i
ncluding segments of "Gunsmoke" ), are open to hikers, mountain bikers
and horseback riders.

It is now known as Wildwood Park.

Information from Jerry L. Schneider
except for a select number of photographs
and/or images which are copyrighted by their
respective owners.

For more details:-
Janss Conejo Ranch- Bonanza-Scenery of The Ponderosa (http://ponderosascenery.homestead.com/janss.html)
Click here for comprehensive list
Exterior-Locations (http://employees.oxy.edu/jerry/homeloc.htm)