The DisneylandForward environmental impact report identifies the potential Disneyland Theme Park Historic District as eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places – which automatically places the district on the California Register of Historical Resources.
The DisneylandForward proposal seeks to update a 1990s Anaheim city plan to allow for a mix of theme park, hotel, retail, dining and entertainment on the eastern and western edges of the Disneyland resort.
A major impact of the DisneylandForward proposal would be to Disneyland itself – a historic landmark more than 50 years old that is considered a significant cultural resource. The study notes that change has been the most enduring constant of the 68-year-old theme park – meaning the DisneylandForward project would be historically appropriate.
“There have been continuous changes to the park that started upon its opening,” according to a report created by the Historic Resources Group for the DisneylandForward EIR. “Disney is the steward of its history, but also responsible for sustaining the viability of the theme park and ensuring that it is maintained and updated in order to reflect current needs and expectations.”
What does the historic designation mean for future Disneyland renovations, projects or expansions?
Disneyland is required to have any substantial changes to the park documented by a historian who would submit digital copies to the city of Anaheim and the Walt Disney Company archives.
There are plenty of rides and attractions at Disneyland that could be considered cultural landmarks, but only three places at the 68-year-old Anaheim theme park have been singled out as historic in the DisneylandForward EIR.
The Main Street Railroad Depot, Pirates of the Caribbean attraction and Hungry Bear restaurant have been listed on the California Register of Historic Places and are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, according to the DisneylandForward Environmental Impact Report.
“Over the years, many rides have come and gone in the park, but the overall design, concept, setting, feeling and historical associations have remained constant and unaltered,” according to the DisneylandForward EIR.
The DisneylandForward report singled out the three individual historic places as representative of the first three decades of the park – one each from the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s.
The 1955 Main Street Railroad Depot at the entrance of the park was identified in 2005 as eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places because of the Disneyland train station’s “association with significant events and persons as well as significance related to architecture and engineering within the amusement park property type,” according to the EIR.
The 1966 Pirates of the Caribbean ride in New Orleans Square was identified as eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places because it represented a good example of the first phase of renovation and expansion in the 1960s at Disneyland.
The 1972 Hungry Bear restaurant in Critter Country was also identified as a good example of 1970s renovations and expansions at Disneyland.
Why are these three Disneyland locations considered historic and not others?
The Main Street Railroad Depot, Pirates of the Caribbean attraction and Hungry Bear restaurant were designated historic as part of Federal Communications Commission approvals that were required during the installation of cell phone communication facilities in 2004.
A single-family home that was the first building at the Disneyland theme park is also included in the DisneylandForward EIR as a Historically Significant Structure. The Pope House, which was relocated to the theme park in 1955, served as the home of Owen and Dolly Pope.
The Popes managed the horses at the Circle D Corral and moved into the house next to the 10-acre pony farm three days before Disneyland opened to the public in 1955. The Popes moved out of the house in 1971 when they relocated to the Magic Kingdom in Florida to supervise the building of the Tri-Circle-D Ranch.
The Pope House was relocated to a backstage area of Disneyland next to Ball Road when the Circle D Corral was removed to make way for the construction of the Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge-themed land.
The California Register of Historic Places recognizes and protects landmarks of architectural, historical, archeological and cultural significance that are associated with important people, master craftsmanship or historical significance. Places can’t be listed as historic over an owner’s objections.