American Freedom Train Foundation
Certificates of Appreciation

The Foundation gave this Certificate of Appreciation to Ward Kimball.

Kimball was one of Walt Disney's "Nine Old Men" (lead animators from Disney's classic animation era), responsible for Pinocchio's Jiminy Cricket, among other characters. He was also a well-known railfan.

When Dan Schneider of the American Freedom Train Foundation called the Disney Studios in 1974 looking for help designing the AFT exhibit cars, his call was patched through to the resident train nut.

It was Ward Kimball who directed Schneider to designer Barry Howard. Kimball was very familiar with Howard's earlier work designing the California State Railroad Museum and thought he'd be a natural for the AFT project.

Kimball kept an eye on the AFT project the next couple of years and collected numerous documents on its development.

Image: Betty Kimball collection

The Foundation gave this large Certificate of Appreciation to a company that helped buld the AFT's interior displays - GRS&W Inc.

Curious that the seal is dated 1972 (probably the date the seal was made, as work on the AFT cars didn't get under way until 1974).

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