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Prospector panning gold, Buena Park, CA, circa 1952

Subjects
Amusement ParksWorkers & Occupations
Card type
Lithograph
Date
c. 1952 (Chrome)
Front of Prospector panning gold, Buena Park, CA, circa 1952, Knott's Berry Place, CA, USA, c. 1952 lithograph postcard
Front
Back of Prospector panning gold, Buena Park, CA, circa 1952, Knott's Berry Place, CA, USA, c. 1952 lithograph postcard
Back

About this postcard

An older bearded prospector in a wide-brimmed hat, blue shirt, and overalls crouches beside a stream, holding a gold pan filled with gravel and water. A leafless branch and low hills frame the scene, placing him in a romanticized Western mining camp. The setting is Ghost Town at Knott's Berry Place in Buena Park, a Southern California attraction that recreated a Gold Rush town for mid-century tourists. Visitors could try panning at the Gold Mine, where a costumed prospector helped them find actual gold nuggets near the sluice box and creek, an experience framed as a return to "the Days of Old, the Days of Gold, the Days of '49."

Postcard Details

Message · English, in pen

One of the most intriguing & educational attractions in Ghost Town is the Gold Mine. Here the old prospector helped us pan actual gold nuggets near the Sluice box at the Creek. We felt like those real pioneers during the Days of Old, the Days of Gold, the Days of '49.

PublisherLithochrome
GHOST TOWN Knott's Berry Place, Buena Park, California
Addressed to

No address detected

Postcard record

PublisherLithochrome
ConditionExcellent
Place mentionedKnott's Berry Place, Buena Park, CA
PublisherLos Angeles, CA
NotesWhite border; artist signature in lower left; smooth surface. No postmark; unused card. Divided back with 'PLACE 2 CENT STAMP HERE' box. Chrome-era Kodachrome/Lithochrome card, likely 1950s. White border. Light foxing/toning; dealer pencil '#59' lower right.

Cite this card

Prospector panning gold, Buena Park, CA, circa 1952, postcard, c. 1952. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/prospector-panning-gold-buena-park-ca-circa-1952. Accessed November 2, 2026.