Vintage Disneyland Christmas

Let’s travel back in time with this assortment of vintage images showing Christmas at Disneyland through the years, beginning with this December 26, 1955 image. It almost boggles my mind to see the simple decorations that initially hung on Main Street. In this December 1956 image, we see the area that is now Indiana Jones Adventure. Once known as Magnolia Park, it had a bandstand in the center that featured the Christmas Bowl show, which eventually morphed into the Candlelight Celebration.



Dancers, musicians, and a choir were all part of the show:



The Y’s Men was the name of the band; get it?



This family shot inside the INA Carefree Corner from December 1959 looks anything but carefree.



Three lovely carolers in the Park, from December 1960, are standing near Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House:



The legendary Matterhorn Christmas Star, as seen in December 1961:



This December 1969 Town Square shot has me perplexed; the area where the white Christmas tree is located appears to be backstage. Was it moved out into the Park after it was decorated?



These ornaments aren’t going to hang themselves!



From my first visit to Disneyland on December 27, 1970, my oldest brother’s photo shows the Sleeping Beauty Castle decorated for the season:



I’m on the right, sitting in front of the Castle with my Grandmother and my cousins, wearing those damn “corrective” shoes which didn’t correct a damn thing. Just made me look goofy.



The white Christmas tree in the background has a few barely visible ornaments hung on it:



Since the 80s are now vintage (yikes!), here’s one of the Castle from December 1980:



Merry Christmas to all who celebrate!

See more Disneyland at Christmas photos at my main website.

Frontierland Friday: BBQ and Pancakes

Did anyone hear me let out a “whoop” when I saw this image in a batch of random vintage Disneyland slides? This January 1959 shot shows what was then known as New Orleans Street and consisted of Don DeFore’s Silver Banjo Barbecue and Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House restaurants. Although this detailed view shows the Aunt J sign, in the background on the pink portion of the structure  at top you can see the banjo sign and down below the other signs for the Silver Banjo Restaurant.

Aunt J is promoting her wares with all those boxes in the window:

The placard in front of the Silver Banjo reads: “Silver Banjo Barbecue • Beef•Pork•Ham•Chicken and Spareribs • [can't read this one line] Dinner Sandwiches

The Silver Banjo closed in 1962, with Aunt Jemima following suit in 1970. This area is now the River Belle Terrace.

See more vintage Disneyland Silver Banjo Barbecue photos at my main website.