Next to the trains, I would say that my favorite mode of Disneyland transportation would be the Mark Twain Riverboat. Besides its physical beauty, I also love the relaxing and scenic journey that it takes you upon. These images were undated, but by some of the visual clues from other photos in the set, I was able to pinpoint them to late 1962/early 1963. In photo #1, you can see the guests in the foreground, crowded together, attempting to get a glimpse and a photo of the Twain as she rounds the corner, ending her previous journey.
These next two show the MT leaving the dock, embarking on a brand new journey. If you look at the accompanying zoom views, you'll get to see some of the construction walls for the Haunted Mansion.
Rounding the bend we see the Old Mill on Tom Sawyer Island. Appropriately enough, it looks old!
To the left of the boat is the Indian Village, where guests can be entertained and learn from authentic live Indians.
Now we get to my favorite part: the Burning Cabin!
Please forgive me while I zoom in to get a better look at the arrow through this poor sap's chest.
A friendly Indian waves hello!
Surprisingly enough, our photographer didn't take any shots of the Indian Settlement, so I supplanted his batch with a few from my collection from the same time frame.
This little brave watching over his family with his dog is a nice touch.
And now our photographer got busy; on the left side of the boat he captured the thundering falls of Cascade Peak:
and then went to the right to capture the Indian Burial site:
And then shot to the left again to get Cascade Peak again. So much to see...so much to photograph...I totally understand!
In this one, our photographer is back at the dock, and captured one final shot of Cascade Peak.
As I was putting together this post, I stumbled upon this old image that had been previously posted, showing the July 1962 construction of the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse:
Thanks for joining me on my tour of the Rivers of America!
See more vintage and current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland photo web pages.
Ha, looks old Jeb put on his brand new Arrow shirt to welcome the crowd.
ReplyDeleteDave, what a great tour.
Was the Indian burial site on the island behind the fort? I remember the scene but not which side of the riverboat. If I follow your directions, the burial scene is on Tom Sawyer's Island, is that correct?
JG
Funny you should ask; for years I swore up and down that this scene was on the same side of the river as the faux settlement, but one of my fellow bloggers corrected me and told me that it was on the Tom Sawyer Island side. Going back to my photos, I realized he was right!
ReplyDeleteA question answered I always wanted to ask but forgot. My memories always made me think it was near the settlement too. Good to know.
ReplyDeleteAwesome Treehouse construction pic.
Very neat to see that red structural steel going up for the Mansion.
ReplyDeleteI love your blog! My husband just posted a few family pictures of Opening public day Disneyland I thought you might enjoy:
ReplyDeletehttp://blackenedroots.com/blog/happiest-place-on-earth/
Nancy - thanks for sharing; those are fantastic! Could you email me when you get a chance? dvdpicasso@aol.com
ReplyDelete