Today we are back in Town Square at Disneyland, with these three vintage images from 1956. The Fire Engine/Chemical Wagon which is now permanently on display in the Fire Department is out for a spin.
Looking at this contemporary shot, I notice that the badge is missing, but the wagon has picked up a few bells somewhere over the years. Maybe there was more than one Chemical Wagon at Disneyland.
This cute little girl in blue with a box of Disneyland popcorn is probably getting a lot more friendly with the horse of the horse-drawn streetcar than she should.
I can't quite tell what she is offering the horse. "First taste free!"
Even more vintage (and current!) Disneyland Town Square images at my main website.
Great stuff, Dave. Thanks as always.
ReplyDeleteDave, those large silver objects underneath the driver's seat in the modern photo aren't bells - they're intended to look like flame-retardant chemical tanks. Not sure why they wouldn't be there in these photos, but if you look at the fourth photo, the one with the hand pointing to the "Fare 10¢" sign, you can see the cradles under the seat that would hold them.
ReplyDeleteThis Summer 1955 photo shows the tanks in place, while this March 1956 photo shows them missing. Today's photos and two in your online collection, all from 1956, are the only ones I've ever seen without the tanks in place.
Looks like these capture a brief period of time that the tanks were removed for some sort of maintenance (or perhaps to be filled with chocolate pudding for ballast). Thanks for uncovering another piece of Disneyland history I'd never heard of!
I should have looked closer and would have noticed that these were tanks sitting on their sides. Thanks Chuck!
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