50th Anniversary Treasures: Under Construction

The 50th Anniversary promo kit also included these images showing the park under construction. Walt proudly shows off the Peter Ellenshaw concept artwork for Disneyland. The next photo from my collection shows Ellenshaw working on it; it is interesting to go back and forth between the two to see what was added/removed.



The kit also included this aerial view, showing what Anaheim looked like BEFORE Disneyland came to town.



Main Street under construction:



The TWA Moonliner being put into place:



The Sleeping Beauty Castle behind scaffolding:



Zooming in, a spire is on the ground, waiting to be put on top:



The Opening Day ceremony, with Walt at the mic:





A few years later, Walt poses in front of a model of the Matterhorn:



The Matterhorn under construction:





I hope you enjoy these construction shots as much as I do!

See more vintage & current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland web pages.

Disneyland Diary, 1955

Today begins another series, which comes from a binder called "Disneyland Diary." This interesting binder contains facts and figures year-by-year, from 1955-1984; what a great resource! Sort of a Reader's Digest version of Disneyland History. Today's entry will start off with year one, 1955. The binder begins with Walt's famous quote that is typically trotted out by The Mouse whenever a new attraction replaces an old one, or whenever a beloved tradition ends to make way for a new one:

"Disneyland will continue to grow, to add new things, as long as there is imagination left in the world."

Walt Disney
July 17, 1955

"DAY ONE" After more than 20 years of dreaming and planning, Walt Disney opened Disneyland to a very curious world on July 17, 1955. At dedication ceremonies, Walt was joined by California's Governor Goodwin Knight, many of Hollywood's most celebrated personalities and other distinguished guests. Total attendance on DAY ONE was 28,154 visitors.

ATTRACTIONS Disneyland presented 18 major attractions, along with three "free" attractions, at its opening. The adventures presented on opening day were:

MAIN STREET, U.S.A. -
• Santa Fe and Disneyland Passenger Train
• Santa Fe and Disneyland Freight Train
• Horse-drawn Streetcars
• Fire Wagon
• Main Street Cinema
• Surreys (since removed, shown below)



FANTASYLAND
• King Arthur Carrousel
• Peter Pan Flight
• Mad Tea Party
• Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
• Canal Boats of the World (later redesigned as Storybook Land Canal Boats, visible in photo below)
• Snow White's Adventures



TOMORROWLAND
• Autopia
• Space Station X-1 (later Satellite View of America - since removed)

FRONTIERLAND
• Stage Coach (since removed)
• Mule Pack (since removed)
• Mark Twain Steamboat



ADVENTURELAND
• Jungle Cruise



Free attractions offered on opening day included:
• Circarama (later "America the Beautiful" and new "American Journeys") - Tomorrowland
• Main Street Arcade - Main Street, U.S.A.
• Golden Horseshoe Revue (now Golden Horseshoe Jamboree) - Frontierland



Other attractions opened later in 1955 included:
• TWA Rocket to the Moon (updated to "Mission to Mars") - Tomorrowland
• Main Street Shotting Gallery (since removed) - Main Street, U.S.A.
• Phantom Boats (updated later to "Motor Boat Cruise") - Fantasyland
• Casey Jr. Circus Train - Fantasyland
• 20,000 Leagues Exhibit (since removed) - Tomorrowland
• Dumbo Flying Elephants - Fantasyland
• Conestoga Wagons (since removed) - Frontierland
• Mickey Mouse Club Theatre (since removed) - Fantasyland
• Mike Fink Keel Boats - Frontierland



INVESTMENT $17 million on opening day.

HIGHLIGHTS After seven weeks of operation (in early September), the Park welcomed its one millionth guest, a rather impressive accomplishment for a project that some predicted would be a spectacular failure.

Disneyland's first Christmas season opened with a colorful Thanksgiving Day Circus Parade.

The Mickey Mouse Club Circus, running for a few months at the end of the year, featured a live circus and television's Mouseketeers.

FAMOUS GUESTS Among the dignitaries visiting Disneyland during its first few weeks of operation was Vice President Richard M. Nixon (July).



See more vintage & current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland web pages.

Early Days of the E.P. Ripley

Although undated, I am hazarding a guess that these two shots are either on or before Opening Day, July 17, 1955. Why would I think that? To begin with, the not-too-full parking lot and the tow truck; the bunting and duo of flags on the front of the E.P. Ripley, the scaffolding on the front of the Opera House at left on the photo...that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Zooming in, the engineer in the cab of the Ripley almost looks like Ward Kimball. The guy is wearing a bowler hat instead of the typical engineer garb.



In this second shot, not only do you see the second set of tracks that originally was part of the Disneyland Railroad, but you see two crazy renegade gals crossing the tracks. Where they are standing is the same area that the Kalamazoo Hand Car is parked today.



See more vintage & current Disneyland Railroad photos on my Disneyland Railroad web pages.

Opening Day: The Michael Black Collection

Disneyland's Opening Day for the general public was July 18, 1955. Michael Black was kind enough to share his family photos (and the accompanying story) from that historic day:

While looking through a set of photos from the 1950s that once belonged to my grandmother, Dorothy (McMurry) Black, I found a fun surprise—three photos of my father and his family visiting Disneyland just one day after its grand opening day. Disneyland had its grand opening on July 17, 1955, but only press and invited guests were allowed in the park on that day. The next day—July 18, 1955, was the first day that the public was allowed into Disneyland, and these three photos were taken on that day. My grandparents, Vernon and Dorothy (McMurry) Black took four very lucky children to Disneyland that day: their two children (Keith and Gary), their foster son (Richard Bearden), and their nephew (Jude Laspa). Richard, the oldest, was 14 years old. Keith was 12, Jude was 11, and Gary was 6. Vernon and Dorothy were both 38, but children for the day, I’m sure!

The first image shows (left to right) Keith, Jude, Richard, and Gary standing in front of the Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship restaurant (which was once docked in Fantasyland, approximately where the Dumbo ride is now—see map below). Note the scaffolding still in place against the ship; the park staff was not able to get the ship completely painted by opening day, so they would have been putting the finishing touches on the hull when this photo was taken. The (rear) staircase from the dock also hadn’t yet been built.

Note that they are standing in sand, not the ubiquitous concrete of today. They would have been standing on the north side of the ship, looking towards the Casey Jr. train ride behind the photographer. The second image below is of the four boys and Vernon standing on the bridge leading to the entrance to Frontierland.



NOTE FROM DAVELAND: This photo from my collection taken from the same angle, same day, provides a colorful counterpart to Michael's shot:



The third photo shows Vernon, Richard, Gary, Keith, and Jude standing on the top deck of the stern of the Mark Twain river boat. The flagpole is clearly visible, as is a bit of red, white, and blue bunting at the base of the flagpole. Vernon is holding a large roll of papers (Disney posters, or shooting targets from the Main Street Shooting Gallery?), a Disneyland map, and perhaps a pamphlet. Keith has a Disneyland map and a boxlike item of some sort. Jude also has a boxlike item, perhaps the same as Keith’s.





The brochure map below (which came from http://andeverythingelsetoo.blogspot.com/2010/07/disneyland-55.html) dates to the opening day of the park, so it shows the layout of the park as my dad and his family would have seen it on that day.









To see more from Michael's collection, be sure to visit his blog.

See more Disneyland Opening Day photos on my Opening Day photo web page.

July 18, 1955 Extravaganza, Pt. 4

Today wraps up this series with a blowout of Frontierland and a smidgen of Tomorrowland images. The Mark Twain is at the dock of the Rivers of America in our first shot. Zooming in, you can see an out of context automobile parked in front of the Golden Horseshoe Saloon. With the trunk open, I can only imagine what item(s) are being delivered last minute.



Unlike today, there is even a stampede of guests to enter the Frontierland gate.





Davy Crockett fever had spread across the land, and in a nod to the mania, Walt named this "Museum" after him. From my understanding, it was more of a shop than a museum.



Two views of a Stagecoach, loading up with guests for a trip through the wilds of the Frontier:





Back in the day, bales of cotton added to the atmosphere of the Rivers, making this area appear to be a true port of trade.



Please ignore those cars parked along the side of the River.



A view of New Orleans Street, which is still at the park today:



Zooming in you can see the signage for the Oaks Tavern eatery:



Located approximately where New Orleans Square is today stands the Chicken Plantation Restaurant.



Guests of the Blue Bayou Restaurant will note that this building was the inspiration for the design of the faux building seen inside:



Another zoom shot provides a view of guests packed on a little footbridge as well as a pickup truck.



A few more vintage pickup trucks and a ton of overhead wires do not make for good show!



The final shot of Frontierland appears to have been taken from the Mark Twain and shows the Miniature Horse Corral, which would eventually become the Shooting Gallery:



Unfortunately, Tomorrowland got the shaft with this set. Only one shot, showing a directional sign for the "20,000 Leagues" exhibit:



I hope this little series made you feel as if you were there! See more vintage and current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland web pages.

July 18, 1955 Extravaganza, Pt. 3

Welcome to Adventureland! You can't miss the theming here; I have always loved this particular entrance.



Even without the lure of Dole Whip or the air conditioned Tiki Room, this entrance was quite congested on Opening Day.



Guests check out the merchandise at General Lee's Bamboo Alley:



The Adventureland Bazaar has been packing in the shoppers for almost 60 years! Although they are difficult to see, inside there are three overhead signs that say "Welcome," "Aloha," and "Bienvenidos."



The Tahitian Terrace was almost a decade away; in the meantime, this outdoor Pavilion still served up tasty fare for hungry guests.



The very young landscaping is in evidence here at the base of the photo:



A contemporary view of the same area:



Over at The Jungle Cruise (known at this time as the "Explorer’s Boat Ride through the rivers of Mexico, Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and Australia"), the skipper awaits his next batch of guests:



Zooming in, you can see the edge of the aforementioned Pavilion Restaurant:



Last shot for Adventureland shows the lanai area of the dock:



See more vintage and current Adventureland photos on my Adventureland web pages.