Saturday, December 13, 2008

Rivers of America, August 1959

I wonder why Walt Disney didn't just call the river in Frontierland "The Mississippi"? After all, Mark Twain and riverboats and New Orleans are all associated with the Big River. Instead it is "The Rivers of America". That's right, it's more than just one. Neat trick, I say! It's also the Ohio, the Missouri, and the Crimea. Get it, "Cry me a" river?

Anywhoo, the fishing dock looks kind of lonesome, all of those cane poles are just sitting there. And check out that empty shore across from us, there's nothing really there except for Frontierland Station.


If we glance to our left, there's the Swift Plantation House. How can it be swift when it just sits there? At any rate, after tearing around on Tom Sawyer Island for 20 minutes, I've worked up a powerful appetite for some chicken! How nice that the raft is going to drop me off right in front of a restaurant. Coincidence?? One of the old yellow passenger cars from the Disneyland Railroad can just be seen through the trees.

6 comments:

Vintage Disneyland Tickets said...

I'm hungry for chicken! I know a few people who have sailed the Cry- me-a River and actually lived to tell the tale.

Anonymous said...

The name 'Rivers of America' MIGHT have been coined before Walt decided to create Tom Sawyer's Island. For a brief time the banks of the river were to have been dotted with miniatures of historic American landmarks, principally to give voyagers on the Mark Twain something to look at.

I seem to remember seeing an early photo of small white mock-ups of the buildings dotting the eastern side of the island.

Anonymous said...

It's called Swift, cause it was the In-N-Out of its time. Yes a cheekin dinner in only an hour, hour and a half tops!

I like the "imperfections/age" of the image in the second pic, lends it such a feel. Boy what neat time and place to hang around.

Interestin' point, Dreemfinder thanks :)

Anonymous said...

Would you happen to have any images of the Silver Banjo Barbeque?

Nancy said...

a nice time it must have been, when just walking around the island made the kids and adults alike happy. now everyone just wants to go fast and then hurry on to the next thing. as i get older (i turned 52 yesterday) i find myself enjoying just being in the park more than how many rides i can take in a day...

and i agree that some chicken sounds tasty right about now. that was a pretty big place : )

Major Pepperidge said...

Cyberdillo, I don't have any images of the Silver Banjo Bargeque, unfortunately (not counting long shots of the Frontierland shore).