Walt Disney Hometown Museum

Walt Disney Hometown Museum
Location within Missouri
Established 2001 (2001)
Location 120 E. Santa Fe Avenue, Marceline, Missouri
Coordinates 39°42′N 92°58′W / 39.70°N 92.96°W / 39.70; -92.96
Type Hall of Memory
Key holdings Walt Disney family memorabilia
Website waltdisneymuseum.org

The Walt Disney Hometown Museum is located in the restored Santa Fe Railroad Depot in Marceline, Missouri. Opened in 2001, the museum houses a collection of memorabilia from the Disney family's farm where they lived from 1905 to 1909 along with Walt Disney's return to the town in 1946.[1]

Many of the items were donated by the family of Ruth Flora Disney Beecher, Walt's sister. Artifacts include personal family letters and photos, Disney's wooden school desk and a recording of him asking his parents about their life.[2] The museum houses the only remaining components of a Disneyland ride to be operated outside of Disneyland, the Autopia.[3] The museum also houses artifacts from the town's railroad history.[4]

In 2015, the museum launched a project to recreate the Autopia attraction that had operated in the Walt Disney Municipal Park south of town. The miniature car ride was donated by Disney when the attraction was dismantled at Disneyland. The town operated the ride from 1966 until rising insurance costs and a lack of replacement parts forced its closure in 1977. A single restored car is on display at the museum and was the centerpiece of a Kickstarter project to finance a $500,000 reconstruction of the ride was launched in July 2015.[5][6][7]

See also

References

  1. Jim Winnerman (July 22, 2012). "Marceline, Mo.: The original 'Main Street' USA". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  2. Werner Weiss (March 28, 2014). "Walt Disney Hometown Museum". Yesterland. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  3. "Five places to see in nearby Linn County". Chillicothe News.
  4. "Railroad Collection". Walt Disney Hometown Museum.
  5. "Bring Back Autopia".
  6. Reynolds, Christopher (July 31, 2015). "Disneyland's long-lost Midget Autopia may roll again--in Missouri". Los Angeles Times.
  7. "Autopia". Yesterland.
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