A SIDE TRIP FROM
Yesterland

Walt’s Disneyland

at The Walt Disney
Family Museum

It’s the 65th anniversary of the opening of Disneyland. The invitation-only “International Press Preview” event was July 17, 1955. Millions watched the 90-minute live broadcast on ABC. Disneyland opened to paying guests the next day.

Walt Disney’s dream had become a reality. But Walt wasn’t done. For the rest of his life, Walt envisioned wondrous enhancements. Many became realities during his lifetime; others were added after his death in 1966.

The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco has a spectacular model called “The Disneyland of Walt’s Imagination.” It’s one of the highlights of the museum. Disneyland and the museum are both temporarily closed due to COVID-19, but that’s sure to change.

Today, to recognize Disneyland’s 65th anniversary, Yesterland looks at “The Disneyland of Walt’s Imagination.”

Werner Weiss, Curator of Yesterland, July 17, 2020


Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

“The Disneyland of Walt’s Imagination” model

By the time visitors to The Walt Disney Family Museum arrive at “The Disneyland of Walt’s Imagination,” they’ve already passed through a series of engrossing galleries representing Walt Disney’s life during the first half of the twentieth century, beginning with his birth in 1901 and continuing with his many achievements up to 1950.

Then, visitors arrive in the largest gallery, where they find the amazing model. Those who take the time to study and enjoy its details are amply rewarded—but they may also be puzzled.

The model isn’t meant to be an accurate representation. It’s actually better than that.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

Museum label explaining what the model represents

The official website of The Walt Disney Family Museum has a terrific recap of a 2011 museum event about the creation of “The Disneyland of Walt’s Imagination,” including what Diane Disney Miller and her family had in mind. Here’s a paragraph from it:

“In 2007, the Miller family decided that they wanted to include a model of Walt’s park in our museum. They wanted their model to be different from the more realistic architectural models of the park, such as the model on display in the Opera House in Disneyland. Veteran Imagineer, Bruce Gordon, came up with the first concept, a mechanical model with sections that would flip over to show the continued evolution of the park throughout the years. Ultimately, the concept was discarded due to mechanical maintenance concerns and the untimely death of Bruce Gordon. Imagineer Tony Baxter came up with the idea of creating a Fun Map-style model. Fun maps depicted the park as a colorful, cartoony collection of exciting destinations, highlighting each without regard to size or scale.”

Great concept. Great execution.

Let’s take a closer look from various angles.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Main Street, U.S.A. and beyond

On the model, Main Street gets considerably narrower as it approaches the Plaza. It’s long been said that the real Main Street at Disneyland uses this forced perspective trick to appear longer when looking toward Sleeping Beauty Castle and shorter when looking toward Main Street Station. Satellite photographs do not show appreciable narrowing—certainly not like on the model—but it’s a “fun map” model, so exaggeration is fine.

Continuing the “fun map” idea, the Main Street Opera House is missing its roof, to reveal an oversized Abraham Lincoln. You’ll see missing roofs with oversized show scenes throughout the model.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

Adventureland

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Frontierland

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Teeter-totter Rock on Tom Sawyer Island

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Rainbow Ridge

Rainbow Ridge was the starting point for the Mine Train and Pack Mules through Nature’s Wonderland.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Nature’s Wonderland

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Cascade Peak at Nature’s Wonderland

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Living Desert and Conestoga Wagons

On the model, the path for the Conestoga Wagons goes over a small mountain range that straddles the railroad track. The path continues outside the berm. There has never been such a ride path at Disneyland. This might be the most puzzling part of the model.

The explanation is that the model includes attractions that did not co-exist. The Conestoga Wagons and Rainbow Mountain Stage Coaches went away in 1959. The Rainbow Caverns Mine Train was expanded with Cascade Peak and other enhancements in 1961 to become the Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland. The model creatively makes room for all these attractions by straddling the railroad track.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Rainbow Caverns without its roof

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

Fantasyland

The model’s Fantasyland looks much like Disneyland’s Fantasyland did during Walt Disney’s life. There’s no direct connection to Frontierland.

If you look closely, you’ll see that Storybook Land has miniature versions of the ride’s miniatures.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

“it’s a small world”

Walt Disney presided over the opening ceremony for “it’s a small world” on May 28, 1966. The intricate model even includes the plentiful topiaries that graced the grounds.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

East side of the Plaza

As already noted, the model does not represent a particular year. This Tomorrowland is filled with features that never actually co-existed. Most of Disneyand’s Tomorrowland was shut down September 5, 1966, to begin its transformation to the New Tomorrowland of 1967. So, at the end of Walt’s life, Tomorrowland was a construction site.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Skyway buckets through Matterhorn Mountain

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Rocket to the Moon and Carousel of Progress in Tomorrowland

The model has the old twin-domed Rocket to the Moon structure and Moonliner (in its original TWA livery), with the Flying Saucers ride adjacent to them. But it also has the PeopleMover, the General Electric Carousel of Progress, Adventure Thru Inner Space, and other New Tomorrowland features which would not open until summer 1967.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Space Mountain, as envisioned in the mid-1960s

Space Mountain opened at Disneyland in 1977, more than ten years after Walt Disney died—but he already had concept art for Space Mountain toward the end of his life. Space Mountain in the model resembles that art, not what was actually built.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Jets on the outside of Space Mountain

The track of the actual attraction is entirely indoors, but the model includes track on the outside. It’s fun to think how different the ride might have been.

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Flying Saucers

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

On the move

Walt’s Disneyland at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2018

Orange grove just outside Disneyland

There’s an orange grove outside the park berm, with plenty of ripe oranges. It’s a reminder that Disneyland was built on land that had been orange groves, and that plenty of groves continued to surround the park in the 1960s.


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Updated July 17, 2020.