--- title: Celebrate Disneyland With Photos From Its First Month description: When Disneyland first opened its doors in 1955, thousands flocked to Anaheim to visit "the most lavish theme park on earth." canonical: https://time.com/3943789/disneyland-1955/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-17T12:00:33.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T05:30:14.000Z og:title: See Photos of Disneyland When It Opened in 1955 og:description: When Disneyland first opened its doors in 1955, thousands flocked to Anaheim to visit "the most lavish theme park on earth." og:url: https://time.com/3943789/disneyland-1955/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfc49e9e7d46b6602/6988595dcd1bba5a7f6fc19e/150701-disneyland-03.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Disneyland 1955 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: See Photos of Disneyland When It Opened in 1955 twitter:description: When Disneyland first opened its doors in 1955, thousands flocked to Anaheim to visit "the most lavish theme park on earth." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfc49e9e7d46b6602/6988595dcd1bba5a7f6fc19e/150701-disneyland-03.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See Photos of Disneyland When It Opened in 1955  by [Eliza Berman](/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:30 AM CUTPublished: Jul 17, 2015 12:00 PM CUT  People riding the teacup ride at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. People riding the teacup ride at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955.Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  by [Eliza Berman](/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:30 AM CUTPublished: Jul 17, 2015 12:00 PM CUT If a dream is a wish your heart makes, then Disneyland was, as LIFE declared one month after it opened on July 17, 1955, “the stuff children’s dreams are made on.” The brand new park featured a Frontierland complete with Davy Crockett museum, an Adventureland with hydraulically operated jungle animals and, of course, Sleeping Beauty’s castle, which would soon include a model torture chamber. The $17 million park, built on a 160-acre site, was “the most lavish amusement park on earth,” but its opening day was a disaster. Traffic was backed up for hours, delaying celebrity guests. The temperature crept above 100 degrees, causing heels to sink into soft asphalt, while a plumbers’ strike decommissioned all water fountains. Oh, and there was a gas leak, too. Practically everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. Some parents also expressed dismay at the prices. “Disney had expected that $2 would see a child through enough of his $17 million wonderland, but mothers said twice that was needed to keep any enterprising small boy pacified,” LIFE wrote. Today, admission for a child under 10 is $93—not including the Mickey ears, _Frozen_ wand or [Goofyroni & Cheese](https://disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/disneyland-hotel/goofys-kitchen/menus/dinner/ "undefined"). But, said those mothers back in 1955, “as they emerged spent and spinning… it was probably well worth it.”  Walt Disney standing in front of Fantasyland Castle at Disneyland. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk "undefined")_._ **Correction, Aug. 10, 2018:** _A caption in the original version of this gallery misstated the name of a train ridden by Mickey Mouse. The photo shows the Disneyland Railroad, not the_ Dumbo_\-inspired Casey Jr. Circus Train._  Caption from LIFE. Sleeping Beauty's castle in Fantasyland is overrun by children crossing drawbridge over moat. Inside, Disney plans a model torture chamber. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  One of Disneyland's boat rides, Anaheim, California, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Rides at Disneyland in 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  People riding the teacup ride at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  People riding a riverboat at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Disneyland Parade done as a preview for national television, 1955. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Planted flowers forming design of Mickey Mouse's face, with Disneyland train in background, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Mickey Mouse riding the Disneyland Railroad, 1955. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Disneyland rides in 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Children scared during Snow White ride at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Cups and saucers filled with squealing children as paying guests whirl through park's Fantasyland at Disney's "Mad Hatter's Tea Party." Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Showgirl performers taking a break and having a drink at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  People resting by TWA rocket at Disneyland Amusement Park, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Disneyland rides, 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A family at Disneyland in 1955. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Disneyland rides in 1955. 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