Disneyland Comin' at Ya! Summer 1955, The Grand Finale!

We’ve covered Main Street and Fantasyland, now it’s time to see the rest of the Park circa July/August 1955 in glorious Faux©D! This view of Adventureland was taken at the entrance, looking inside the themed area. As always, the 3D version and the stitched panorama below. That little boy was thirsty!



A closeup of the Tiki's Tropical Imports souvenir stand:



A shot of the stand and its wares from March 1956:



A view of one of the Bull Elephants from the Jungle Cruise attraction:



Not as exciting without the 3D effect!



The Indian Village was once located near Adventureland, in the approximate spot that Indiana Jones would eventually take over:





Below is the New Orleans Street area of Frontierland, which now houses the River Belle Terrace Restaurant.





This location housed Casa de Fritas (opening August 11, 1955) until it moved in 1957 and was replaced by the Silver Banjo BBQ. Initially, I thought the singing group was the Gonzales Trio (with a fourth member added in for good measure), but let’s just say I’m not 100% sure on that!



The Mark Twain riverboat:





It is so jarring to see autos inside the Park in many of these early shots taken during the first few months of operation:



Last one shows the entry area to Tomorrowland, featuring tile from the Clock of the World at left and the atomic symbol on the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry at right:





And that’s all, folks! I hope you enjoyed this FauxD© look at early Disneyland!

 See more photos at my main website.

The Hall of Chemistry at Disneyland

Welcome to Tomorrowland, circa 1955, where you are greeted by the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry! Don’t you just love the low-tech fence from year one?



Zooming in, you can see not only the interior of the exhibit, but the reflection of the Clock of the World. Flipping the photo, maybe some braniac out there can tell me the complete date/time of this photo! It certainly is not me!



Here’s a previously posted color shot of the Hall of Chemistry from 1959:



For all you newbies out there, a color shot of the Clock of the World, which also shows the Hall of Chemistry at right (which is now Star Tours):



…and the Circarama on the left (now Buzz Lightyear):



Didja’ know: Bayer bought out Monsanto in 2018, removing the name from all of their products, but continuing to sell the same delicious chemicals that have made the company extremely controversial. Two other tidbits I recently learned: In 2009 Michael R. Taylor, food safety expert and former Monsanto VP for Public Policy, became a senior advisor to the FDA Commissioner. I’m sure that there was no conflict of interest going on there. In 2012, California's Proposition 37 would have mandated the disclosure of genetically modified crops used in the production of California food products. Monsanto spent $8.1 million opposing it, making them the largest contributor against the initiative. The proposition was rejected by a 53.7% majority. Labeling is not required in the US. What a surprise!

I wonder if Walt would have allowed them to sponsor an exhibit in 2022? See more Disneyland Hall of Chemistry photos at my main website.

Two Tars in Tomorrowland

This August 1958 image shows two sailor on leave, enjoying a day in the Park, possibly heading to see the Circarama exhibit. Guest stood in the center of a huge room with a 360 degree screen surrounding them. Through the miracle of Circarama, they could get views of the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. As always, I have to wonder where the pictures are today that the sailor on the left shot with the camera hanging around his neck.

Note the signage, too, promoting the Tomorrowland exhibits in alternating colors of red and yellow: Circarama (sponsored by American Motors), Satellite-View of America, The World Beneath Us (sponsored by Richfield), Color Gallery (sponsored by Dutch Boy), and The Art Corner.

Here’s a previously posted shot from February 1959 showing the Satellite - View of America exhibit:

Note the K-7 Spaceman sitting in the ticket booth:

See more vintage Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my main website.

How to Date a Clock

Sometimes it takes a bit of careful sleuthing to identify the date of an unmarked Disneyland slide. Fortunately, this image of the Clock of the World at the entrance to Tomorrowland yields a few clues. The Avenue of Flags were moved to the entrance in 1956, and the patriotic bunting on the lightposts in Central Plaza tell us this image was taken in July. You’ll also note the attraction poster for The Mickey Mouse Club Theater move “3D Jamboree” which debuted in 1956.

The back of the white sign in front of the castle gives the best clue of all, though.

Here’s another 1956 image of the Castle:

This type of  map/sign was gone by 1957.

Looks like the colorful image leading our post today was from July 1956. NOW I can rest easy!

See more vintage Disneyland Clock of the World photos at my main website.

Central Plaza Details

The first view from today shows Central Plaza in 1956. Yes, the kids are adorable, but I love that “Be A Fireman” sign!

This shot of the Omnibus at the base of Snow Hill (which would eventually become The Matterhorn) also shows the House of the Future. I believe this shot is from December 1957. Construction of the House of the Future didn’t start until January 1957, and the other shots from this batch show Christmas decor.

Two gents survey Disneyland from Snow Hill...without the Snow.

Look at the crowd of folks near the House of the Future! And of course the little boy in the Tom Sawyer hat.

From the same batch as the previous photo we move over to Tomorrowland to see the ever popular Clock of the World.

Now a closer look (as always):

Besides the nuns, check out the Noel decor on front of the Hall of Chemistry and the Kaiser Aluminum sign. This is the first time I’d noticed that sign; checking my collection though, I realized I have a color shot of it!

See more Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my main website.

Telling Time in Tomorrowland

This wacky 15 foot high clock was what guests first saw as they entered Tomorrowland up until it got revamped in 1966. This clear as a bell Summer 1959 shot shows the iconic Clock of the World. I sure wish I knew what happened to it.

Seeing the detail of the moon art on the top of this clock makes me wonder even more. SURELY somebody has it.



If you thought you could peep into the windows of the Monsanto House of the Future, think again. The drapes are closed.



See more Disneyland Clock of the World photos at my main website.

Gems from Disneyland August 1961

Today we journey back to August 1961 to view a few gems from one photographer's collection. I am also going to include some of the hand-written inscriptions from the back of the slides. This one was labeled: "Town Square." Well, kind of close to Town Square. I was hoping to get a vintage glimpse of Esmeralda but no luck. She's been upstaged by a horse.



How about this energetic shot of Tomorrowland? The Monorail, Subs, Matterhorn, Skyway...so much to see!



Love this one: "Home of the future - all plastic. Real neat."



At the entrance of Tomorrowland once stood the Clock of the World:



A closeup of the Clock:



as well as the entrance to America the Beautiful:



Fantasyland yields this exceptional shot of a cast member working the Snow White attraction, dressed as Snow herself:



A great detail of the original mural:



More to come in the future from this great set of vintage Disneyland shots!

More vintage (and current!) Disneyland photos at my main website.