Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Frontierland & Construction, April 1962

April 1962 would have been a good time to visit Frontierland with a camera... there was a whole lotta construction going on in those days, with the earliest New Orleans Square additions, not to mention a certain mansion.

This photo looks like many others showing the Mill at the end of Tom Sawyer Island; but what's that mess over to the right?


Well, I admit that it doesn't look like much. Some construction walls, a bit of excavations, and some lumber. Still, it is cool to know what the eventual results would be!


In this related shot, you can see some of the same construction area to the right. There is a sign, we can only see the back of it... I sure wish I knew what it looked like from the front! Meanwhile, check out the line waiting to get into the Golden Horseshoe.

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9 comments:

  1. Chiana_Chat3:19 AM

    Lovely pics taken on a lovely day. :)

    I'd wait in line for the original Golden Horseshoe Review too!

    Why the crane on the right of the GH building? Looks like they're adding some rock work to the riverside. Neat to see these rare shots.

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  2. CoxPilot4:49 AM

    That's not a crane, but a rope for the action packed western stunt man.

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  3. Katella Gate9:41 AM

    Golden Horseshoe: My crowning Disneyland regret, I never saw the show. Even once.

    Re the construction walls: Any chance this is for the petrified tree and the installation of the new Rivers handrails?

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  4. Jim1:24 PM

    Hmmm..1962 seems a bit early for the NOS construction since that new "land" didn't actually premiere until early '67. Although, my parents have pictures somewhere of the NOS/POC barriers from a 1965 visit taken from a Swiss Family Tree climb that look about the same as those depicted.

    Mrs. Disney donated the tree in September of 1957 so it might be the installation of handrails as Katella speculated.

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  5. Nancy2:01 PM

    nice pics, loving the sunshine!!

    an especially pretty look at the Golden Horseshoe :)

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  6. Major Pepperidge3:22 PM

    Jim, it might not have officially been NOS construction... however, the Haunted Mansion's exterior was certainly being built at the time. The construction in this photo might have something to do with those hand rails, as well as the removal of the Chicken Plantation.

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  7. Major Pepperidge3:23 PM

    Oh yeah, and I wonder if the bandstand that stuck out into the river was removed at this point? Seems pretty likely...

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  8. Chiana_Chat5:13 PM

    Thanks Cox Pilot. Must've been fun, stunts from a rope and everything. :)

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  9. outsidetheberm10:22 PM

    Remember, too, that this was about the time Frontierland began removing the reeds and river grass from that side of the Rivers of America. Replaced by cement wall fronting the river's edge - similar to how it looks today.

    Nice rare shots, Major.

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