Pioneertown was established in 1946 when Dick Curtis shared his dream for a "Living Breathing Movie Set".  Shortly after, seventeen investors including Curtis, Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, The Sons of The Pioneers, Russell Hayden, Frank McDonald, Tommy Carr, Terry Frost, and Bud Abbott each invested $500 and incorporated. The company then purchased 32,000 Acres of land which would soon be known as Pioneertown.

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Their goal was simple and unique to create a place where they could work (and play) with friends, family and co-workers.  A functioning 1880's themed town which was easily accessible from both Los Angeles & Palm Springs and

would serve as a filming location, vacation destination & permanent residence for people working in the entertain-ment industry, ranchers and desert lovers alike.

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Orginally they had planned to call the town "Rogersville" in honor of the Roy Rogers" singing group (and fellow investors)  The Sons of The Pioneers.  However, a member of the group named Tim Spenser wrote a catchy tune by the name of "Out in Pioneertown" to help promote the endeavor.  They recorded the song the following year.  It was that catchy tune which gave birth to the name "Pioneertown".  Eager to begin construction, they broke first ground on September 1st, 1946.  The San Bernardino County Sun ran a full-page ad on March 25th, 1947 which invited people to invest in Pioneertown along with Dale Evans, Roy Rogers & The Sons Of The Pioneers.

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The first structures established were fully functional businesses which included White's Grocery, The Townhouse Motel, the Red Dog Saloon, the Golden Stallion Restaurant, Maggie's Feed Barn, Nell's Ice Cream Palace, Pioneer-town Likker, the Klip 'N' Kurl Beauty Shop, Pioneer Bowl, Trigger Bill's Shooting Gallery & the Pioneertown Gazette,

just to name a few.

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Ranch sites with utilities available and road access already establlished were offered starting as low as $900 for over

an acre of land!  Pioneertown became a fully functioning town with an established community and big plans for expansion.

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Those grand plans to expand were short lived however, as Dick Curtis stepped down from President in 1948 after the corporation decided to put community production on the back burner and focus strictly on catering to production companies.  Immediately, both land sales and productions plummeted.  Just when it seemed like the dream was already beginning to fade, a movie producer by the name of Philip N. Krasne who was producing the Ciso Kid series happened to travel through town.  He enjoyed the place quite a lot.  Well enough, in fact, to sign a 25 year lease which renewed interest & development in Pioneertown.

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More than 50 films & serials were filmed in Pioneertown during the 1940's and 1950's.  There have been over 200 productions in town - the total number is unknown as entertainment productions were not as well documented as they are these days.  All of the Gene Autry Flying A television productions through the 1950's where shot here; the Pioneertown Bowling Alley being a favorite filming location of Autry's.  Some other local titles were "Ciso Kid", "The

Range Rider", "Annie Oakley", "Cody of the Pony Express", "The Adventures of Judge Roy Bean" and "Buffalo Bill Jr."  As it sits on a movie set; the Pioneertown Post Office is said to be the most photographed PO in the USA!

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​Note:  This information was taken from https://visitpioneertown.com/the-story