A History of Magic: When Disneyland was Built
Find Out How the Fairytale Began
“When was Disneyland built?”
This question, asked by a five-year-old, apple-cheeked little boy caught me off guard. For decades, people have called Disneyland “the happiest place on earth”. Most of us remember spending summer days there, riding roller coasters with our friends and watching parades with our parents. But how many of us really know how it all began?
See How the Magic Began in Disneyworld
Opened to the public on July 18, 1955; the first Disneyland was built in Anaheim, California. It is interesting to note that it is the only Disney theme park that the great dreamer, Walt Disney himself, designed and built. The idea for the theme park sprung into Walt Disney’s mind one day while he was taking a walk in the Griffith Park with his two daughters. However, it wouldn’t be until a couple of years later when the idea would become a reality. Construction began or July 18, 1954 and – in classic, Walt Disney style of almost magical excellence – was finished exactly a year later.
Since then, more than five hundred people have visited Disneyland Park in Anaheim. In 2007, it became the world’s second most visited theme park in the whole world, second only to Disneyworld and Magic Kingdom.
The rest is history. We all have favorite stories to tell of our Disneyland experiences. More than half a century later, Disneyland Park in Anaheim, as well as Disney’s other parks and resorts, still has a way of making our childhood dreams come true.
Walking around Disneyland recently with my five-year-old charge, I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic as we glided in and out of castles, watched Princesses in their beautiful gowns dance about and rode humongous tea cups and pirate ships. Disneyland is a theme park built on dreams. Magic truly began when Disneyland was built.