Bobsled at the Matterhorn with the Skyway Buckets in the background from 1959

Bobsled at the Matterhorn with the Skyway Buckets in the background from 1959

Chicken of the Sea Pirate ship in Fantasyland from 1959

Chicken of the Sea Pirate ship in Fantasyland from 1959

The Matterhorn under construction in 1958

The Matterhorn under construction in 1958

The Skyway Buckets going through the Matterhorn

The Skyway Buckets going through the Matterhorn

Disneyland from 1968 with the Peoplemover, Skyway & the Submarine Lagoon

Disneyland from 1968 with the Peoplemover, Skyway and the Submarine Lagoon.

The Matterhorn, Skyway and the Monorail from 1968

The Matterhorn, Skyway and the Monorail from 1968

Chicken of the Sea Pirate ship in Fantasyland with the Skyway buckets overhead

Chicken of the Sea Pirate ship in Fantasyland with the Skyway buckets overhead.

The Skyway from 1961 approaching the Matterhorn on it's way to Fantasyland

The Skyway from 1961 with a view through the Matterhorn, the Monorail rail and just a little bit of the water from the Submarine lagoon.

Fantasyland from the Skyway around 1969

There is a lot to see in the picture, which was taken around 1969. The Chicken of the Sea Pirate ships (for tuna sandwiches) Casey Jr., Storybook Land, Alice and the Skyway.  Another interesting feature is the change in the paint color of the ground at the lower right hand corner of the picture.  Notice that it goes from green to magenta (?) it indicates the change in the "Land" that you are in.  The Green was for Fantasyland and the Magenta was for Tomorrowland.

The Skyway Tomorrowland station and Autopia's two tracks

The Skyway Tomorrowland station and this picture from 1959 shows that there were two different tracks for the Autopia.

Disneyland's first Monorail in 1959 with the Skyway Buckets

This is a picture of the first Monorail back in 1959.  You can also see the early Skyway buckets.

Monorail, Skyway and the Matterhorn 1964

Monorail, Skyway and the Matterhorn 1964

This is a picture from 1964 showing the Monorail, the Skyway Buckets and the Matterhorn.

Blue Mark I Monorail & Skyway 1959

This is a picture of the Blue Mark I Monorail with the Skyway in the background from 1959

Bobsleds & Skyway 1959

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This is from 1959 showing the Matterhorn Bobsleds and the Skyway.

The Phantom Boats and the Autopia from the Skyway

Phantom Boats & Autopia from the Skyway

This is a picture showing the Phantom Boats and the Autopia from the Skyway.  Taking pictures from the Skyway was a great way to get a birds eye view of the whole park.

Skyway Aerial Tramway ride into the Matterhorn with a view of the Yacht Bar 1959

Skyway Aerial Tramway ride into the Matterhorn 

Skyway Aerial Tramway ride into the Matterhorn with a view of the Yacht Bar 1959.
What a beautiful day!

Skyway Fantasyland Station 1959

Skyway Fantasyland station

This is a picture of the Skyway Fantasyland station in 1959.

Skyway in Tomorrowland in the 60's, not much there!

Just hanging around

So 1) where are all the people?, 2) where are all the trees and bushes, 3) where are all the rides?  Well, in the early years of Disneyland there was not a lot of any of those things.  But as they years went on more people came, the trees and bushes all grew out and more rides were added.  And yes, we are very thankful for all of that (well, except for all the people)

Fantasyland in the early 60's with the Dumbo ride and the Skyway

The Dumbo ride and Fantasyland Skyway

This is from the early 60's and it shows an early version of the Dumbo ride along with a clear view of the Fantasyland Skyway.  Of course, the Skyway was closed and the Dumbo ride was moved and enlarged.
It really is amazing looking at these old pictures of the Park how much things have changed and how little we take those changes for granted.

Fantasyland in the 60's with the Chicken of the Sea Pirate ship, Skyway and the Tea Cups

Captain Hook's Pirate Ship from the 60's

This is a picture of Captain Hook's Pirate ship from the 60's.  Actually it was the Chicken of the Sea ship where you could purchase tuna fish sandwiches.  You can also see the Skyway and the tea cups.  Of course with the new Fantasyland that was add many years later all of this was gone.  The Skyway stayed for a few more years but due to earthquake issues it was finally removed as well.

This picture is from the Bill Cotter collection and to purchase any of his Disneyland sets go to http://www.worldsfairphotos.com/themeparks/disney.htm