Late 60's montage of the Disneyland Hotel

Dancing Waters, Crown and Pillow Pub, Monorail Bar, overhead from the Sierra Tower, glass elevator...from 1969 convention brochure

Late 60's Coffee House

This was taken inside the Coffe House which in 1986 became the Monorail Cafe

Late 60's California Dining Room

This is from a 1969 convention brochure showing the different restaurants at the Disneyland Hotel

Late 60's Patio Dining

I'm not sure if this was poolside or next to the Coffee House (which later became the Monorail Cafe)

The End of an Era

These 1999 photographs document the last days of the original Disneyland Hotel dating back to October 5th, 1955 when the Hotel first opened for business. I would like to credit Intercot West for these amazing shots that detail certainly a sad time for purists and history buffs of the original Disneyland Hotel. I'll say it again, I think it would have been no trouble at all for Disney to have left one original building standing as an historical site in remembrance of the beginnings of this wonderful facility. Especially considering there is only a grass field where these structures once stood. They could have decorated using 50's furniture and motif. They could have placed pictures on the walls depicting milestones from the Hotel's history. They could have used scale models showing the growth of the Disneyland Hotel. I know of many folks who would have loved to have seen this. I did hear that the original structures were in pretty bad shape though. Some retrofitting and they would have been fine. Now I hear they are talking about bringing down the Towers and building a brand-new Disneyland Hotel. The oldest building on the grounds now dates back to 1962 and what was the Sierra Tower.

4-19-1999 - THE LAST DAY OF ACTIVITY IN THE ORIGINAL FIVE STRUCTURES OF THE DISNEYLAND HOTEL. THE BUILDINGS CLOSED THE NEXT DAY AND DEMOLITION PLANS WERE TAKING SHAPE. SOON THESE BUILDINGS WOULD BE FENCED OFF FROM THE PUBLIC AND NEARLY 44 YEARS OF HAPPY MEMORIES OF WONDERFUL STAYS AT THE ORIGINAL DISNEYLAND HOTEL WOULD BE JUST THAT.....MEMORIES.

5-9-1999 - THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURES ARE STILL IN PLACE BUT THE END IS VERY NEAR. NO ACTIVITY IN ANY OF THE BUILDINGS ALTHOUGH THEIR LIGHTS STILL WORK.

6-13-1999 - The original structures are now fenced off and are awaiting destruction. They have but two short weeks of life left.

6-13-1999 - THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURES ARE NOW FENCED OFF WITH THEIR LUSH LANDSCAPING REMOVED.....AWAITING DEMOLITION. SOON, A MILLION MEMORIES WILL DISAPPEAR AND A VITAL PIECE OF ANAHEIM HISTORY WILL BE GONE. COULDN'T THEY HAVE LEFT ONE BUILDING UP FOR HISTORICAL SAKE?

6-30-1999 - Close-up showing the demolition in progress.

6-30-1999 - The demolition machines doing their duty.

6-30-1999 - The buildings have just been demolished with one last piece standing.

7-14-1999 - The buildings have been demolished and only one small piece remains. Wonder why they left this piece up?

8-19-1999 - The last remaining piece has been removed.

9-8-1999 - Now paved over and made into a parking lot. A little under 44 years later and no more original structures remaining from the Original Disneyland Hotel.

1967 Overhead Shot

A 1967 aerial shot with the disneyland Hotel in the foreground. The new Tower annex had just been opened for about a year when this picture was taken. The Hotel at this time had just over 600 rooms.

Groundbreaking 1955

Newly discovered groundbreaking shot showing Jack and Bonita Wrather along with Anaheim Mayor, Charles Pearson

Official Grand Opening, Disneyland Hotel August 25th, 1956

Although the Disneyland Hotel opened for business on October 5th, 1955, the "official" grand opening took place in late August of 1956. This was after the Hotel's shops and restaurants were opened and three additional graden structures were added to the grounds. The Hotel now had over 200 rooms, a full slate of shops and restaurants, an Olympic-Size swimming pool and tram service to and from Disneyland Park. The Hotel was near or at capacity nearly every night and was regularly turning away guests due to lack of rooms. This grand opening was a star studded affair and featured some of Hollywood's biggest stars. Walt Disney also attended the festivities himself. Pictures of Helen Alvarez on the grounds are extremely hard to find. She did not regularly show up at the Hotel and in fact, began to feud with the Wrather's almost from the day the Disneyland Hotel opened for business. The partnership (after many litigations) dissolved in early 1958. Souvenirs that have Wrather-Alvarez Hotels stamped on them are certainly the rarest and most valuable of collectible items from the Hotel's past.

Alan Ladd, Helen Alvarez, Jack Wrather, Bonita Granville-Wrather and a sideways Mazie Wrather cut the ribbon at the Disneyland Hotel's official grand opening ceremony in August of 1956

The two principal and majority owners of the original Disneyland Hotel, Mr. Jack Wrather and Miss Helen Alvarez in this newly found gala opening day event photo for the Disneyland Hotel

The Disneyland Hotel's official grand opening. From left to right, Bonita Granville-Wrather, Helen Alvarez, Jack Wrather, Mazie Wrather (Jack's mother), Yvonne DeCarlo and William Bendix in this newly found photo.

Hotel Restaurant Ads

50's Ads

1957 Disneyland Guidebook

1964 Overhead

The Disneyland area in 1964

Hotel Postcard

1950's postcard

Enhanced Disneyland Hotel Slides

I listed some scans of slides in which I have in my Hotel collection and asked if anyone out there was interested in enhancing them to get them back to what they may have looked like when first purchased. The slides have turned to a reddish hue with age. Blog and website reader Dan Cunningham responded by sharpening up the pictures (see below). First let me state, the pictures I posted were scanned in very low resolution so Dan had very little to work with to begin with. He actually stated he only spent a few minutes with the low res images. I think they clearly show how the slide looked when new. You can contact Dan Cunningham at dcunn74@gmail.com Illustration & Design 516.817.2970. Thanks Dan for taking the time to do this and send them out to me. I may try and scan these at really high resolution to see what can be done.

Enhanced version of early 60's Disneyland hotel slide

Scans

Today I am including some slides which were sold at the Hotel and Disneyland and are from the early 60's. You can see what time does to these slides as they all have a red tone to them. I have many more and some in better condition than these. What would help to restore these to normal colors? Photoshop? Any takers to do this out there?

60's slide scan of the lush, tropical grounds at the Disneyland Hotel

60's slide of the Disneyland Hotel

60's slide scan Tower Building

Mixed Bag

Today, I present a mixed-bag of Disneyland Hotel related photos. These range from the beginning of the original Disneyland Hotel in the 50's to the demolition in 1999. I had many people ask if the Monorail Station at the Hotel was just revamped and painted for its present location in Downtown Disney. These shots prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the original station was completely demolished and removed. It is in its exact location but was completely rebuilt in 1999/2000. As soon as I can remember who provided me with these pictures (of the demolition), I will credit them. Right now, I just don't remember. Hope you enjoy this assortment of items.

Demolition - 1999 Demolition of the original Disneyland Hotel

Sad Shots - No doubt whatsoever. The Disneyland Hotel Monorail station was completely torn down and rebuilt. It is in the exact location however, it is not the original structure/platform

Invitation

August 1956 invitation to the Grand Opening of the brand new Disneyland Hotel

Hotel rates

1969 Disneyland Hotel rates

Back of the 1969 Hotel rates Sheet

Miscellaneous Paper Items

Parking Pass 1971

Voucher - 70's voucher for Disneyland Hotel freebies

Film Envelope - The Disneyland Hotel Camera Shop

Plaza Ad - 1966 Plaza Ad from Check-In Magazine

The Addition of the Fourth North Garden Structure 1959

1959 saw the addition of the fourth North Garden Structure on the grounds of the Disneyland Hotel. There were now 234 rooms and suites available at the Disneyland Hotel. As Disneyland grew (Monorail, Matterhorn, Submarines in 1959) so too did the Disneyland Hotel. Although I do not have the exact date of this addition, I do know the structure was built some time between November 1958 and June of 1959. I have a dated photograph showing the building open for business on July 4th, 1959. My guess would be construction started near the first couple of months of the year and was completed by June.

June 1958 Overhead - Disneyland, the Disneyland Hotel (3 North Garden Structures) and the surrounding area in Anaheim

1958 Overhead Close-Up picture - This June 1958 photo shows 3 North Garden Structures.

1959 Overhead - From 1959, showing four North Garden Structures. The below brochure is now listing 234 rooms at the Disneyland Hotel.

1959 Southern California Travel Guide

This guide listed 234 rooms at the Disneyland Hotel.

From 1959 Travel Brochure

This is the only reference I have ever found mentioning 234 rooms. All other guidebooks and brochures always list "over 200 rooms" in them with no exact number. This was the short-lived 1959 layout of the Disneyland Hotel. In 1960, two new Garden Structures were added pushing the total to over 300 rooms. I have yet to see a reference to the exact number in 1960 but I have hope that I will find this information. Previously, I never had a printed source for the 234 rooms either.

1955 Gray Line Brochure

This brochure must date from July to September of 1955 due to the mention inside of the Hotel being scheduled to open in October of 1955.

This document mentions that the Disneyland Hotel will open early October 1955 and is the first printed brochure I have seen that references October. Every other brochure I have states the Hotel would open in August of 1955. Due to several construction, electricians and plumbers strikes, construction on the Hotel was delayed by about two months.

Overhead Shots

I absolutely love overhead shots of the Disneyland and Disneyland Hotel. These photos have dates on them but sometimes, it's fun figuring out what the year of the photograph is based on the details in the shot. These two overhead shots show just how much the town of Anaheim changed in just around 18 short years. The first picture shows late 1952 and is just about the time Walt Disney began scouting for locations for his most ambitious endeavor, Disneyland. What I wouldn't give to be along for the ride when Walt was searching.

Thanks to Ebay, I was able to get some really neat information on the Hotel's history which I will be posting very shortly.

Overhead from late July, 1970 - This photograph had to have been taken early in the day. The parking lot for Disneyland is still not even close to being full. In just 18 short years, the entire lanscape of the Disneyland area had changed.

Hotel Area 1970 - Close-up of the Disneyland Hotel area from the 1970 overhead shot above. The Marina Tower and Marina had opened just six-months earlier.

Overhead shot from 1952 - Just around the time in which Walt Disney was beginning to look for property to build his magical park. The Santa Ana Freeway (Highway 5) runs vertically in the top right corner of this picture.