DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say — and this one's got some character to it. Settle in. Now, if you've ever wound your way down into Palo Duro Canyon, you know the place has a way of stopping you cold.
The colors, the silence, the sheer drop of it all. But for more than forty years, there was something else waiting for you down on that canyon floor — something that rattled and rolled and told you stories the whole way through. They called it the Sad Monkey Railroad.
The name alone deserves a moment. Somewhere up on a cliff in the canyon, there's a rock formation that looks — to the right eye, on the right day — like a sad monkey. Whether you see it or you don't, somebody did, and that name stuck.
That's the kind of place Palo Duro is. Now, the origin of this little railroad is where things get interesting. In 1953, a man named J.H.
Buchanan — owner of the Ford dealership over in Canyon — went up to Illinois and purchased a narrow-gauge passenger train from a drive-in theater. A drive-in theater. Think about that for a second.
Whatever that train was hauling between double features, it was about to find a far grander stage. Harold E. Grear and James M.
Bailey took that train and installed it right there on the floor of Palo Duro Canyon, operating under a contract with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. And in June of 1953, the Sad Monkey Railroad opened for business. The route was two miles long.
The ride took twenty minutes. And the whole time, conductors recited a narrative — history, geology, ecology, folklore — educating and entertaining every soul on board. This wasn't just a joyride through pretty scenery.
It was a moving classroom with wheels, and people loved it. In 1964, a Canyon man named Earl Burtz purchased the railroad and operated it for more than twelve years before his son took over the reins. Generation to generation, the little train kept runnin', kept tellin' its stories, kept carryin' park guests through one of the most spectacular canyons in the state of Texas.
Visitors loved it. Residents claimed it. It was regarded — by the people who knew it best — as a local treasure and a state treasure both.
Decades went by. Memories stacked up. And then, as it so often goes with things worth keepin', the costs caught up with it.
Insurance requirements and costs ultimately resulted in the closure of the railroad in 1996. More than forty years of service, and just like that, the whistle went quiet. But here's the part that says something about the people of that region.
After the railroad was removed, the train and several passenger cars didn't disappear. They sat out on the highway leading into the park — welcoming travelers, as if they hadn't quite gotten the message that the ride was over. And community efforts to restore the railroad began in earnest.
By 2017, the engine, the tender, and one seven-row passenger car had been installed at Neblett Park for display. The Sad Monkey Railroad never ran again, but it didn't vanish either. It sits now as a monument to those forty-plus years of twenty-minute rides, canyon stories, and a little train that somehow made it from an Illinois drive-in theater to the floor of Palo Duro Canyon — and stayed memorable every mile of the way.
What the marker says
Located in Palo Duro Canyon State Park, the Sad Monkey Railroad served as a tourist attraction for the many travelers to the park for more than 40 years. In 1953, J.H. Buchanan, owner of the Ford dealership in Canyon, purchased a narrow-gauge passenger train from a drive-in theater in Illinois. Harold E. Grear and James M. Bailey installed the railroad on the floor of the canyon, operated under a contract with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Named for a rock formation on a cliff in the canyon, which is said to resemble a sad monkey, the railroad began operation in June 1953. Earl Burtz of Canyon purchased the railroad in 1964 and operated the attraction for more than 12 years until his son took over. Traveling along a two-mile route, the train took park guests on a 20-minute ride through the canyon. Conductors recited a narrative that educated and entertained, including history, geology, ecology and folklore. Although visitors and residents regarded the railroad as a local and state treasure, insurance costs and requirements ultimately resulted in the closure of the railroad in 1996. After its removal, the train and several passenger cars sat on the highway leading into the park, welcoming travelers. Community efforts to restore the railroad began and the engine, tender and one seven-row passenger car were installed at Neblett Park for display in 2017. For decades, the Sad Monkey Railroad served as one of the memorable and significant attractions for residents and travelers, contributing to the visitor experience at Palo Duro State Park. (2019)