Up next in my agenda for the Knotts Preserved All-Day Event was the book signing of Chris Merritt’s FANTASTIC book, Knotts Preserved (see link at end of post to order on Amazon). Not only is it jam-packed (please pardon the pun) full of info and rare photos, but it is extremely well-designed. And of course, more of the Disney bloggers showed up to support Chris. This photo reads like an All-Star list: David from Gorillas Don't Blog, Chris from Meet the World (aka Tokyo Magic), Tim of Vintage Disneyland Tickets, Patrick (the guy who started it all) of Stuff from the Park, and Jed from Vintage Disneyland Goodies (currently in blog retirement).
On hand to sign the book were co-author Eric Lynxwiler, Tony Baxter, Steve Knott, and Chris. Signing occurred inside the restaurant (where later I would be devouring a Fried Chicken dinner).
The light was hitting just right inside to cast this shadow above a portrait of Walter & Cordelia Knott.
After the signing, there was a short tour of Grand Avenue, the main street in front of Knotts, expertly spearheaded by Tour Guide Phil Brigandi.
Hidden in the shops is this historical little oasis, complete with waterfall, recreation of Washington’s fireplace, and other historical memorabilia. This area was recently restored and spruced up specifically for this tour. The care and work put into this project was greatly appreciated by this group.
And no tour of Knotts would be complete without the steps to nowhere:
After Grand Avenue, Chris of Tokyo Magic took me around the Independence Hall recreation and gave his own expert tour. This guy is a wealth of info, as he also used to work at the park. Having grown up near Philly, I was really interested to see what Walter Knott had done with his replica; it truly is amazing, and for children who might not have the opportunity to travel east, this building and its faithfully recreated interiors surely provide a fun living lesson in history.
Nearby is the area that used to be Jungle Island. Here's a vintage photo:
And how it looks today:
If I were these chickens, I’d get far away from this area! Strutting near a Fried Chicken restaurant is extremely risky!
See more Knott's Berry Farm photos at my main website.
6 comments:
Wow, another great post, I'm glad you took so many photos! What's the deal with the steps to nowhere? And I love any photo of the "woodimals" on Jungle Island.
Wow, photos of all my heroes! Thank you Dave.
Glad you had a good time. Wish I could have gone too.
Best regards to all.
JG
waglact
Thanks for the kind words, Dave. I really enjoyed hanging out with you that day. I didn't comment on yesterday's post, but I agree with everyone's else.....I'd definitely be up for another one of these Knott's events! Your photos are fantastic (as usual!). I hope there are many more "parts" to this series!
Awesome post to go with an awesome event! Love the Chicken pics! The cast shadow thru the window came out excellent! Thanks for talking these.
TokyoMagic sure does know his Knott's! What a blast it was to hang out with the bloggers!
Oh, I just finished the book last night, its excellent as well!
I'm truly glad to see there are those that care about the history and what is going on at the farm. the turnout was amazing. The audience was so kind. I'm hoping the book will spark some interest in the value of what they all have there. We all had a great time seeing each other from 30 years ago and of course meeting many of you in person. Chris and Eric did a great job. I learned alot as well, you can't help it, the farm has so many layers to it. I used to love roaming the warehouses of antiques and other things they just had lying around. There will never be another Knott's.
Eddie Sotto
Thanks for documenting this day so well (my photo excepted). Thanks to you, I have a terrific record of a great day.
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