Disneyland’s Diamond anniversary celebration is kicking off one month from now, so this seemed a perfect time for us provide a brief look back at the past 60 years of the original Magic Kingdom. We’ll have another post in the next few days looking forward to all of the ways the park will be celebrating this year, including recently announced ride updates, special contests, new parades, and more, but for now let’s focus on the first 60 years of Disneyland.
The history of Disneyland is something that could fill books (and has, see our interview with Disneyland author Chris Strodder), but we figured we would provide a rough timeline of the history, so those unfamiliar can get a sense of how Disneyland got to where it is today, and what they’re celebrating for the diamond anniversary.
The future site of Disneyland.
We’re not completely sure when Walt Disney’s idea for Disneyland first started, but it is believed he was at least partly influenced by taking his own daughters to ride the carousel in Los Angeles parks, his father’s experience working the Columbian Exposition in 1893, and his own miniature railroad he installed at his home. Whatever it was, Disney had an initial idea for a Mickey Mouse Park, and after visiting amusement parks throughout the world, he acquired 160 acres of orange groves in Anaheim, CA. By 1954 construction had started on the park. Disneyland was dedicated on Jul 17, 1955, and opened to the public the next day.
Opening Day!
Most of the layout of the park was the same originally as it is today, with Main Street USA leading to the Sleeping Beauty Castle in the center of the park, surrounded by the major “lands.” Fronteirland, Adventureland, Fantasyland, and Tomorrowland were all original areas of Disneyland. Some of the original rides that still stand today include beloved classics like the Jungel Cruise, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, and the Disneyland railroad.
Walt Disney showing off the layout of the park.
The park grew during the early years, adding what would become some of Disneyland’s best-known attractions. Roller coaster manufacturer Arrow Dynamics got their big break when the Matterhorn Bobsled ride opened in 1959 using their track design. The same year the iconic Disneyland monorail opened (my own favorite “ride” as a little kid). The early 1960s saw multiple major milestones. In 1963 the Enchanted Tiki Room opened, the first attraction to use the new audio-animatronic technology that is nearly synonymous with the Disney today.
Walt Disney in the new Enchanted Tiki Room.
In 1966 the first new “land” appeared when New Orleans Square opened. Sadly, that same year Walt Disney passed away, and his brother and business partner Roy took over. 1967 saw the opening of Pirate’s of the Caribbean, and two years later the Haunted Mansion opened, including the brand new omnimover vehicles seen on numerous modern Disney dark rides today.
Haunted Mansion poster
The 1970s saw less expansion than the previous decades (partly due to the opening of Disney World in Florida), but may be the most important for roller coaster fans. In 1972 Bear Country (now Critter Country) opened, and the beloved Main Street Electrical Parade debuted the same year. Then in 1977 Space Mountain opened. The next year, 1978, the Matterhorn underwent a major refurbishment that made improvements like new computer control and the decoration of the interior (including the addition of the snowman), and in 1979 the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad debuted as the third Disneyland roller coaster.
The Main Street Electrical Parade was one of the most popular attractions at Disneyland after it’s introduction in the ’70s.
the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened in 1979, the third roller coaster in the park.
1981 saw the 200 millionth guest at Disneyland, and by 1984 park prices had risen to as high as $56. The following year Disneyland was open year round for the first time in history. In 1987 Star Tours opens to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Star Wars, becoming an iconic ride in Tomorrowland. By 1989 300 million people have been to Disneyland, and the fourth Disneyland peak opened, Splash Mountain.
Splash Mountain ended up officially opening on Disnyeland’s birthday, July 17, 1989
The early 1990s saw more popular attractions added. The Fantasmic night time show first appeared in 1992 and 1993 saw the opening of the Toon Town area inspired by “Who Framed Roger Rabitt?”. Then in 1995 my favorite ride at the park opened, Indiana Jones Adventure, the most advanced dark ride at the time featuring motion vehicles and an intricately detailed queue area.
The Temple of the Forbidden Eye exterior to the Indiana Jones Adventure, one of the most advanced Disneyland rides ever built.
This is generally viewed to be the highwater mark in this period of Disneyland, as the park suffered a decline shortly after. The Electrical Parade ended in 1997, and Tomorrowland’s update in 1998 included a frequently down centerpiece ride. In 2001 California Adventure opened next to the original park to mediocre reviews and numerous guest complaints, and park maintenance was on the decline. On the plus side 1999 saw the introduction of Fastpasses, a god send for people sick of lines.
The original entrance to Disney’s California Adventure. You probably never saw it, because no one went to the park…
However, the downward trend reversed in the early 2000s when new management took over the Disney company (primarily the replacement of Michael Eisner as CEO with Bob Iger), and Matt Ouimet, now CEO of Cedar Fair, took over running Disneyland resort. The maintenance schedule for the park was restored, and cosmetic maintenance returned to the park. 2005 saw the opening of Buzz Lightyear’s Astroblasters and the completion of a major refurbishment of Space Mountain, both coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the park. In 2007 California Adventure was heavily re-designed to more closely match the quality of Disneyland.
The re-dedication in 2012 was Disney’s acknowledgement that California Adventure had been a bust, but also that the failure had been corrected. It’s symbolic of the change in the resort management and the rejuvenation of both parks.
Buzz Lightyear in 2005 at the new Astroblaster ride.
The remaining decade leading up to today saw numerous refurbishments of exisitng rides, like the 2011 refurbishment of Star Tours and the 2013 refurb of Big Thunder Mountain, as well as the major expansion and redesign of California Adventure (most notably Cars Land opening in 2012).
And that pretty much brings us today. Of course, we skipped over lots and lots of details of the park, but even in this brief form it’s clear Disneyland has an impressive history. One of the things that always amazes me is how many of the early rides are still major centerpieces of the park, with limited upgrades and refurbishment. It really speaks to the quality of the original design and vision of Walt Disney and the Disney Imagineers.
So, there you have our look back at Disneyland, stay tuned for our look forward at what to expect for the Disneyland 60th anniversary celebration when it kicks off next month!
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