Sunday Selection

I recently found a stack of black and white publicity stills from Disneyland. They're reprints, but there are still some neat images. I thought I'd share some of the best ones with all of you.

First up is this fascinating photo of the Matterhorn when it was just a skeleton of iron beams and girders. The distinctive shape of that famous mountain is already evident. It's hard to believe that this would soon be home to two different roller coaster tracks, as well as waterfalls (and later, ice caverns and an abominable snowman). A recent comment on another blog questioned whether the mountain was built around the Skyway...apparently it was not.


I originally thought that this image was from Disneyland's opening day. But they are riding in the cab of locomotive #3, the Fred Gurley, which went into service on March, 1958 (the same day the Grand Canyon Diorama debuted). There's Walt, and Fred Gurley himself (the then-current chairman of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe), looking mighty pleased. This engine, built in 1894, is the oldest piece of train equipment in use at any Disney park. It was purchased in working condition for $1300, but an additional $35,000 was spent restoring it to the magnificence seen here.