When I scanned this Summer 1959 image and added it to my website (yes, I have a website BESIDES this blog!), I noticed that there was no Red Wagon Inn sign on top of the restaurant. I also noticed these two little girls that are definitely giving off some creepy Stephen King vibes.
But back to the topic at hand. Signage. Perhaps some value engineering prevented signage for this restaurant when the Park opened in 1955. Sometime around 1960 or 1961 that problem was rectified. This August 1961 shot is my earliest to show the new sign.
I wonder where this ended up when the name changed to Plaza Inn a few years later? And why wasn't “Inn” used in the title?
Based on this Vacation Magazine ad, it would appear that “Inn” was dropped for “Restaurant.” Maybe guests thought it was a hotel.
In this contemporary shot, it would appear that the glass has remained the same, but that the light fixtures and front doors have changed...or at least the hardware.
See more Disneyland Red Wagon Inn photos at my main website.
Never noticed the lack of a sign in early photos. Now I'll never be able to un-see it...um, that is, er, if you can un-see something that, uh, isn't there.
ReplyDeleteI've always liked this building. The Victorian style is expensive to do right, and Disney did it right.
ReplyDeleteJG