John, as far as I know there isn't a Crown at Durango. There is a small 4-4-0 there that was actually built by Bob Harpur (the former Disney Imagineer) in 1968 for Astroworld Theme Park in Houston. It's significant to me because it came north in the 1980s to become Silverwood Central #68. When I was at Durango last year I looked for it as much as I could, but I guess it's tucked away too far back in the yard.
I really like your idea of cutting open a little live steamer, though. Besides the advantages you listed, it would be easier for people to take in the full picture of the machine than they could if confronted with a monstrous 0-8-0. You could even put the drivers on an electric motor so people could watch the piston and valve motion.