Disneyland was built in 1 year. Construction began on July 21, 1954. Walt Disney hired a research team to find the best place to hold the vision he had for Disneyland. Anaheim California was the spot chosen to hold a mountain, rivers and the other various ideas Disneyland now contains.
Disneyland was built for a total cost of 17.5 million dollars. July 17 1955 - Disneyland opens with 18 attractions, including the Jungle Cruise, Tomorrowland, Autopia, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and the Mark Twain. The televised opening is hosted by Ronald Reagan, Art Linkletter and Bob Cummings. The 11,000 invitation only tickets to opening day are so easily duplicated that first day attendance shoots to 28,154, with an ABC television audience of 90 million. One entrepreneur folds a ladder over the park's backside fence and lets people in for $5. Official general admission cost $1. Cost of attractions ranged from 10c to 35c.
Some Disneyland Changes Over the Years
Many things have changed over the years. Space Mountain was added in 1977, the Matterhorn Bobsled ride was redesigned in 1978. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was added in 1979. In early 1983, Fantasyland was overhauled, giving it a classic European motif. Next came Captain E-O and one of my favorites, Star Tours.
In 1989 Splash Mountain was added to Critter Country - there you could find many of the Audio-Animatronic Characters from America Sings. In 1992 came Fantasmic! The Rivers Of America are the stage for this wonderful spectacular of sight and sound using the latest technology. Toon Town was added to the park just beyond It's A Small World and in 1995 Indiana Jones was introduced.
Ticket Books
Disneyland for years used ticket books for individual rides and attractions. This was an "E" Ticket reserved for the best of the best. This one lists rides such as Haunted Mansion, Submarine Voyage, Pirates of The Caribbean, and can you believe the Tiki Room?1954-2005
Disneyland's Main Street USA 1955 Almost Ready!
August 13: Excavation of the Disneyland site begins.January 15 1955Despite plans to open the park without it, Walt decides to go ahead and build Tomorrowland, saying that the park can only open as a complete experience. Admiral Fowler advised that the outlook for Tomorrowland was very grave, and despite the warnings, Tomorrowland was completed in six months and opened with the Autopia, Space Station X-1, and the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry.
October 27: "The Disneyland Story" airs (first episode of Disneyland television show).
July 17 1955
Walt and Lillian's 30th Anniversary celebrated at Disneyland.
Mark Twain makes its first circle of the Rivers of America.
The two Disneyland steam trains (C.K. Holliday and E.P. Ripley) make their first run around the Park.
Disneyland opens with 18 attractions, including the Jungle Cruise, Tomorrowland, Autopia, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and the Mark Twain. The televised opening is hosted by Ronald Reagan, Art Linkletter, and Bob Cummings.
The 11,000 invitation only tickets to opening day are so easily duplicated that first day attendance shoots to 28,154, with an ABC television audience of 90 million. One entrepreneur folds a ladder over the park's backside fence and lets people in for $5. Official general admission cost $1. Cost of attractions ranged from 10c to 35c
September 1955 One Millionth Guest Admitted (Elsa Marquez)
October 1955 Disneyland Hotel opens on 60 acre site next to the Park.
Ticket books available for the first time, containing A, B, and C Tickets.
November 1955 On Thanksgiving, the Mickey Mouse Club Circus debuts with a parade down Main Street USA but is poorly received and discontinued in early 1956.
December 1955Walt Disney leads first Christmas Parade
January 1956
Thirteen attractions open, including Tom Sawyer Island and the Skyway. Traditional "Fantasy in the Sky" fireworks display debuts. D Tickets added to Ticket Books. 5 Millionth Guest Admitted January 1957
Sleeping Beauty Castle's interior walkways, Frontierland Shooting Gallery and Fantasyland Autopia, where riders race at a top speed of 11 mph, are among eight new attractions. Fantasy in the Sky Fireworks debut, 25 pack mules bought for $50 a piece.
December 195710 Millionth Guest Admitted (Leigh Woolfenden)
January 1958Alice in Wonderland, Grand Canyon Diorama, Main Street Fire trucks, and the three masted Sailing Ship Columbia debut.
January 18: The Disneyland Kennel opens.January 195915 Millionth Guest Admitted.
June 1959 E Tickets added to Ticket Books.
January 1960
America the Beautiful, Nature's Wonderland (based on Disney's True-Life Adventure movies), Art of Animation debut.
20 Millionth Guest Admitted
January 21: The Disneyland special "A Gala Day at Disneyland" was released. It showcased the opening of the Submarines, Monorail, and Matterhorn.April 1961
25 Millionth Guest Admitted (Dr. Glenn C. Franklin) June, Tinker Bells First Flight.
December 1961Former President Eisenhower and his wife visit Disneyland.
January 1962Six tons of steel and 110 cubic yards of concrete become the Swiss Family Treehouse. Also opening are the Safari Game Shoot, the Pavilion Restaurant, and the Tahitian Terrace. "Audio animatronic" elephants arrive in the Jungle Cruise.
June 1963Tiki Room Opens
January 1964Fantasyland Theatre Opens
January 1965Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln comes to Disneyland. The audio-animatronic Lincoln production highlights the park's 10th anniversary.
July 1966New Orleans Square opens, the park's first new "land."
December 1966At 9:35 AM December 15, Walt Disney, 65, dies of cancer. Disney had been recovering from surgery a month earlier to remove one of his lungs. His brother, Roy, takes charge of the Disney entertainment empire.
January 1967Pirates of the Caribbean premieres. Tomorrowland opens six new attractions, including Carousel of Progress, Flight to the Moon, and a redesigned Rocket Jets. First daily operating PeopleMover system in the United States begins operation.
January 1968
Mark III monorails debuted. January 21: "Pirates of the Caribbean to the World of Tomorrow" aired. This special took viewers on their first ride through Pirates of the Caribbean and gave a tour of the newly reopened Tomorrowland. It featured lots of behind the scenes footage of the construction of both.
August 1969Haunted Mansion Opens
July 1970Disneyland's 15th Anniversary Celebration.
August 1970
Hippies protesting the Vietnam War invade the park August 6. Some parade down Main Street USA and speak of "liberating" Minnie Mouse. Others take over Fort Wilderness on Tom Sawyer's Island, yank down the 15 star American flag and raise a Viet Cong flag in its place. The protest escalates when the park is ordered closed at 7 PM and 30,000 guests are escorted out. Trash cans are set on fire and rocks and debris are thrown at police blocking the main gate. Police make 23 arrests.
December 1970 At 11:45 PM December 20, Roy Disney, 78, dies from a cerebral hemorrhage.
June 1971100 Millionth Guest Admitted. (Valerie Suldo)
January 1972
Main Street Electrical Parade, which uses 500,000 twinkling lights, winds its way through the park for the first time. Bear Country becomes park's seventh theme "land." Attractions include Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes, Indian Trading Post, and Country Bear Jamboree.
January 1973 Walt Disney Story opens on Main Street USA. The exhibit includes memorabilia and pictures from the family's archives and a short film on the park founder's life.
January 1974America Sings, a review of the nation's musical history, premieres in Tomorrowland's rotating Carousel Theater.
January 1975
Mission to Mars, an updated version of Flight to the Moon, opens. America on Parade, honoring the nation's bicentennial, premieres.
December 1976 Gorrilla's in Camp added to the Jungle Cruise Attraction.
January 1977Space Mountain opens after two years of construction. The $20 million attraction costs more than Disney spent to build the entire park in 1955.
January 1978Abominable Snowman added to the Matterhorn, November. Mickey Mouse turns 50 with a November celebration attended by 91,762 guests.
January 1979The two acre Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opens in Frontierland.
January 1982 The E ticket remains in the language but disappears from Disneyland. The passport, good for admission and unlimited use of park's attractions, is introduced at a cost of $12 for adults. July-Disneyland Band performs for the 50,000th time.
January 1983Revamped Fantasyland opens, adding Pinocchio's Daring Journey.
August 1985250 Millionth Guest Admitted. (Brooks Charles Arthur Burr)
January 1986
The 17-minute 3D film "Captain EO," featuring Michael Jackson, premieres in Tomorrowland. Big Thunder Ranch, a recreation of an 1880s horse ranch, opens in Frontierland.
January 1987 Star Tours is launched. George Lucas combines his "Star Wars" characters and space flight simulator technology to bring the attraction to life. Herbert Ryman brought out of retirement to draw conceptual sketches and themes for Indana Jones Adventure. Premier of Disney Dollars, First Disneyland State Fair.
January 1989 The 87-foot-tall Splash Mountain opens. The ride features a five-story drop down a simulated waterfall. September- 300 Millionth Guest Admitted. (Claudine Masson)
January 1992Fantasmic, Disney's $30 million fire, water and laser show, debuts in the Rivers of America.
January 1993
Disneyland's $100 million Toontown opens, the first new land since Bear Country in 1972. The cartoon village features Roger Rabbit's Toontown Spin, the Jolly Trolly, Donald Duck's boat and Chip 'n' Dale's treehouse.
Work begins in the parking lot of Disneyland. The monorail is rerouted about 40 feet closer to the center of the parking lot and some 10 foot deep holes are dug in the middle of a new fenced off area. A new ride based on the Indiana Jones character is being built.
The Jungle Cruise is shut down for refurbishment. Sign announcing Indiana Jones Adventure is put on guard wall. Work begins on Indiana Jones Adventure Queue area.
When Monorail is up running again, pilots ad lib spiel about latest greatest Adventureland attraction opening spring 1995.
January 1994 Disneyland records its 350 Millionth Guest.
January 1995 The $100 million Indiana Jones Adventure debuts. Guests board World War II transports for a ride past bubbling lava pits, mummies, snakes and a giant rolling boulder.
July 1997 400 Millionth Guest Admitted. (Minnie Pepito)
May 1998 The new Tomorrowland opens.
August 1999 Disneyland introduces Fast Pass, a way to bypass long lines by getting a pass with a set return time.
January 2000
One Day Adult Ticket Prices increase from $39 to $41. Animator Marc Davis with Disney since 1935 dies on 1/12. Marc played an active roll in the planning of Disneyland. He developed story and character concepts for many Disneyland attractions, including Pirates of the Caribbean, the Haunted Mansion, and It's A Small World. The Disneyland Kennel closes.
March 2001March 16 - 450 Millionth Guest Admitted. (Mark Ramirez of Lytle, Texas). Mark Ramirez, a civilian production management specialist for the U.S. Air Force, was declared the 450 millionth visitor by Mickey Mouse just as he passed through the turnstile. Ramirez was honored during a ceremony where he was presented with a lifetime pass to the Disneyland Resort (Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure), a stay at the new Disney's Grand Californian Hotel, and a gift pack. He was also given the honor of changing the official attendance sign at the Disneyland park Train Station from 400 million to 450 million. "I'll be able to point to the sign and say I made that change. It's great being a part of Disney history," he said. The family later rode in a cavalcade with Mickey Mouse down Main Street, U.S.A., led by the Disneyland Band. In addition, the Ramirez family was treated to VIP tours of both Disneyland and the newest park Disney's California Adventure.
April 2001
Disneyland announced that full-time city paramedics were being stationed at its Anaheim parks in case of emergencies. Disney officials said they would beef up emergency services by stationing city paramedics full time at the park, a plan that will cost them $1.4 million annually and speed response time.
July 2001Disneyland turns 46
December 2001
Walt Disney turns 100
July 2005 Disneyland turns 50!
