Featured Attractions

Thursday, November 5, 2015

Theme Park Thursdays: Edison Square


Guests at DISNEYLAND in the late 1950's would encounter an interesting sight at the end of Main Street. An intriguing display showed what the future held in store for the theme park, an exciting new land called Edison Square.



Wait, Edison Square? Was that supposed to open at DISNEYLAND in Anaheim? Indeed it was. Souvenir maps depicted the new land as "Coming Soon".


There was a ton of conceptual art included in the park's souvenir guide as well.



So what happened? Why did the park quietly remove any mention of the new land from the park? It seems that Mr. Disney just got too busy with other things and in the end, felt that Edison Square would not be interesting enough. The plans wouldn't go completely unused, however. Years later, when Imagineers were looking for a replacement for New Orleans Square for Florida's Magic Kingdom, some of Edison Square's elements were incorporated into that park's Liberty Square.



Disney was still using ideas recycled from Edison Square in 1982 for the United States pavilion at Epcot Center's World Showcase.



The company may have completely scrapped Walt Disney's original plans for Walt Disney World in Florida, but his influence can still be seen in these attractions.