Although there is an overwhelming abundance of Disneyland fans/admirers/geeks/enthusiasts, NOBODY tops the knowledge of Jason Schultz, the unofficial Disneyland archivist supreme. Recently, his twitter feed featured a vintage 1950’s image from my collection that shows both Ron Dominguez AND the Dominguez palm. Below, you can see Ron on the right:
…and this detailed view shows the Gullywhumper Keel Boat, Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House, and the Dominguez Palm (2nd tree from the right).
If you don’t know about the Dominguez Palm Tree, here’s the 411: Ron Dominguez grew up on ten acres of orange trees that were sold to Walt Disney to build Disneyland. After a year of construction, that acreage became part of Frontierland and Adventureland. The Dominguez family asked Walt to keep this one tree, as it had been planted in 1896 as a wedding gift to Ron’s grandparents. The Dominguez Palm is located to the right of the Jungle Cruise boathouse.
Ron also has a Main Street, U.S.A. window:
Inscription: Orange Grove Property Mgt. - “We Care For Your Property As If It Were Our Own” - Ron Dominguez - Owner
Ron Dominguez was raised on a grove where the Rivers of America is now. He began working at Disneyland in its early days and eventually became Executive Vice President of Disneyland and “Mayor of Our Community.”
Thanks for knowing more about my collection than I do, Jason!
See more photos at my main website.
