Paramount Ranch has served as a backdrop for Westerns since 1927. But in the wake of the devastating Woolsey Fire, it appears that the frontier facades have burned down.
According to the Santa Monica Mountains division of the National Park Service, Paramount Ranch’s Western town in Agoura Hills is no more.
We are sorry to share the news that the #WoolseyFire has burned Western Town at #ParamountRanch in Agoura. We do not have any details or photos, but it is our understanding that the structures have burned. This area is an active part of the incident and we cannot access it. pic.twitter.com/oC4n7KR8ZT
— Santa Monica Mtns (@SantaMonicaMtns) November 9, 2018
The location rose to prominence in the ’30s as an “exotic” backdrop for films, and the Western town continued to appear in modern media, including Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and, more recently, Westworld. Among Angelenos, it also served as a popular trailhead for both hikers and horseback riders.
NEW: Paramount Ranch in Agoura Hills, Calif., the historic Western town area at where productions including "Westworld" have filmed, burned down Friday in the #WoolseyFire, according to @SantaMonicaMtns https://t.co/M3JzL4R9jT pic.twitter.com/0LfRCsV3jz
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) November 9, 2018
Sad for fans of @WestworldHBO and shows like Dr Quinn Medicine Woman, the Paramount Ranch western town movie set has burned to the ground in the Woolsey Fire @CBSLA #westworld #Woolseyfire pic.twitter.com/DhZWaGbr6g
— John Schreiber (@johnschreiber) November 9, 2018
As of Friday afternoon, the still-ongoing Woolsey Fire had forced over 140,000 residents from their homes, many of whom squeezed onto the Pacific Coast Highway to flee east. The fire has continued to ravage Thousand Oaks, Agoura Hills and Malibu. In addition to the everyday residents who’ve been displaced, the fire has grabbed headlines for threatening the mansion from The Bachelor and prompting evacuations among celebrities like Alyssa Milano, Guillermo del Toro, Lady Gaga and Kim Kardashian; others, including Caitlyn Jenner and director Scott Derrickson have already reportedly lost their homes to the blaze.
In addition to Paramount Ranch, the nearby comfort food spot the Old Place as well as Cornell Winery appear to be threatened.