Saturday, July 22, 2006

Main Street, USA


I just love this early photo of Main Street (undated again). The warm light of late afternoon gives Disneyland the nostalgic glow of a golden summer from yesteryear...if we didn't already know that we were looking at the park, one might think that this was a real main street in the midwest.

My dad's side of the family is from Minnesota, and when you drive through the farmlands of that state, you'll still pass little towns with their main thoroughfares looking not much changed from the 1930s. I was really surprised how much some of them reminded me of Disneyland. Just not so clean and bright!

Check out the horse-drawn streetcars, and the Gurr-mobile (followed closely by an Omnibus), as well as the girls and ladies in their poofy 50's skirts. It's a photo that inexplicably makes me happy

4 comments:

  1. Wow - that's kinda postcard perfect, isn't it?

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  2. I would think this slide dates to 1959 or 1960 as everything looks pretty new. The Omnibus was added in 1958.

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  3. Hey Matterhorn, I read that the first Omnibus was added in 1956 and the second in 1957....I assume this is not correct?

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  4. I wanted to write a brief comment before this photo disappeared. It is the simpler attractions that I enjoy the most. Although Disneyland is VERY unique, I can ride a rollercoaster, flume ride, carrousel, etc., anywhere. But there is no where in the world, which I'm aware of, that I can still ride a horse drawn streetcar. Whenever I visit I take everyone on this attraction because it is my favorite. The clip-clop of the horse hooves, the feeling of wheels gliding over smooth rails, the turn of the century architecture and music all pass by so very slowly. In a busy world it is this moment that provides me the opportunity to escape before standing in line for everything else. This image captures that feeling perfectly. Thank you!

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