July 2, 1967: Both the PeopleMover and Carousel of Progress open as part of Tomorrowland’s 1967 remodel. The PeopleMover will run through August 21, 1995, the faster-moving Rocket Rods taking its place on May 22, 1998. After significant technical difficulties in a little more than two years of operation, the Rocket Rods close to make way for Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. Carousel of Progress, an import from the Progressland pavilion at the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair will operate for the next six years, closing on September 9, 1973.
Attraction poster signed by Richard M. Sherman, co-writer of the Carousel of Progress’ theme song, “It’s a Great, Big, Beautiful Tomorrow,” along with a signed copy of the Sherman Brothers’ autobiography
August 5, 1967: Adventure Thru Inner Space is added to the list of new Tomorrowland attractions. It debuts the Omnimover ride-vehicle system and continues operation until September 2, 1985, in anticipation of the arrival of Star Tours.
Souvenir postcard booklet chronicling guests’ journey through “inner space”
August 9, 1969: The Haunted Mansion finally debuts in New Orleans Square, after the attraction’s vacant exterior has sat tantalizingly behind locked gates for the past six years.
D23 issue celebrating one of the park’s most popular attractions
March 24, 1972: Bear Country opens as the park’s seventh land. The addition contains a single major attraction in Country Bear Jamboree, the first to be borrowed from the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. The show runs until September 9, 2001, before being replaced by another East-Coast attraction in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (April 11, 2003).
The first guidebook to feature the park’s newest land
Print and concept artwork signed by attraction voice actor Peter Renaday
June 17, 1972: The Main Street Electrical Parade debuts, running for nearly two full decades. It returns for a brief encore from January – June 2017.
Flyer highlighting the Summer 1972 opening of Disneyland’s iconic Main Street Electrical Parade
June 29, 1974: America Sings arrives in Tomorrowland in time for the park’s bicentennial festivities. The tribute to the nation’s musical heritage, performed by over one hundred Audio-Animatronic figures, remains in operation until April 10, 1988.
May 4, 1977: The most expensive Disneyland attraction to date opens in Tomorrowland’s thrilling E-ticket roller coaster, Space Mountain. The attraction remains a favorite to this day.
Space Mountain 40th anniversary collector’s card
September 2, 1979: The Disneyland Mountain Range expands to include Frontierland’s Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (joining the Matterhorn and Space Mountain).
The park gets another E-ticket attraction in Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
May 25, 1983: Pinocchio’s Daring Journey opens as part of the extensive remodel of Fantasyland. The first iteration of the attraction, which remains a beloved addition to this day, opened a month prior in Tokyo Disneyland.
Flyer and newspaper supplement prefacing the arrival of New Fantasyland
May 2, 1986: The Magic Eye Theater opens in Tomorrowland, showing the 3-D film Magic Journeys, which had previously run at the Space Stage. In September of that same year, however, Captain EO arrives, with pop superstar Michael Jackson entertaining audiences for the next decade. Honey I Shrunk the Audience takes up residence until 2010 when Captain EO returns for a four-year encore in tribute of the late Jackson. Thereafter, the theater is used primarily to preview upcoming Disney film releases.
January 9, 1987: Star Tours debuts as one of the most popular attractions in the park’s history. Closing in July 2010 for a year-long refurbishment, it returns in updated form as Star Tours: The Adventures Continue.
Advertisement in the New Year’s Eve 1986 edition of the Disneyland Line (cast member publication)
July 17, 1989: Splash Mountain opens in the newly-renamed Critter Country (formerly Bear Country). The attraction becomes one of the most beloved and iconic in modern-day Disneyland.
First guidebook to feature the newly-dubbed Critter Country
May 13, 1992: The popular nighttime spectacular Fantasmic! opens on the Rivers of America.
Brochure advertising the park’s newest nighttime entertainment offering
January 24, 1993: Mickey’s Toontown debuts as the park’s eighth land. Highlighting the various themed stores and kids play areas is the attraction Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin, based on the popular film from 1988, as well as the kid-friendly Gadget’s Go Coaster, based on a character from the 90s TV series Chip ‘n’ Dale Rescue Rangers.
The ’93 souvenir guidebook announces the arrival of the park’s newest land
March 3, 1995: Adventureland receives its first major attraction addition in over three decades in the form of Indiana Jones Adventure. At an estimated price tag of over $100 million, it is the first attraction to employ the Disney-created Enhanced Motion Vehicle in its ride system.
Souvenir boarding pass and temple decoder from the attraction’s opening
Walt Disney Imagineering construction documents used in the 1996-97 renovation of Main Street
July 3, 1998: The interactive exposition Innoventions opens in Tomorrowland. Its doors remain open until March 31, 2015.
June 23, 1999: Swiss Family Treehouse is re-imagined as Tarzan’s Treehouse in conjunction with the release of Disney’s latest animated feature.
Cast member bulletin outlining emergency procedures in the event of a Y2K apocalypse
April 11, 2003: The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh arrives in Critter Country.
May 5, 2005: Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters debut in Tomorrowland. The interactive attraction based on the ultra-popular Toy Story franchise continues to delight guests today.
May 25, 2007: Tom Sawyer Island is transformed into Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island in conjunction with the release of Disney’s latest Pirates of the Caribbean film, At World’s End.
June 11, 2007: Submarine Voyage reopens after a nine-year hiatus as the re-imagined Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.
Guidemap debuting the return of one of Walt’s classic attractions in updated form
October 5, 2008: The park shuts down for Disney-Channel-star Miley Cyrus’s Sweet 16 birthday party. Admittance is limited to 5,000 guests at $250/ticket.
Special-issue park guide map for guests of Miley’s Sweet 16
September 10-13, 2009: The first-ever D23 Expo is held a mile-and-a-half down the street from Disneyland at the Anaheim Convention Center.
Souvenir program from the inaugural D23 fan convention
June 8, 2018: The famous “We-Wants-the-Redhead” auction sequence in Pirates of the Caribbean is replaced with a more politically correct version, featuring Redd the Pirate.
Collector’s card marking the controversial Pirates refurbishment
May 31, 2019: Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge debuts as the ninth land in the park. The groundbreaking attraction Millenium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run anchors the expansion, with the second E-ticket experience, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, bowing on January 17, 2020.
First issue of the theme-park-inspired comic book series, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge (Variant Attraction Cover)
Opening day commemorative map and main-gate map celebrating the park’s newest land
Anniversary guide map/book collection (from left-to-right): July 17, 1955; July 17, 1960; July 17, 1965; July 17, 1970; July 17, 1975; July 17, 1980; July 17, 1985; July 17, 1990; July 17, 1995; July 17, 2000; July 17, 2005; July 17, 2010; July 17, 2015
DISNEY COLLECTOR ARCHIVES 