Disney Historian Jim Korkis goes up into his imaginary attic to rummage around his archives and often stumbles across an unusual story about Walt Disney World. Those who have met me know that I take real joy in talking about Walt Disney.
By Jim Korkis
It continues to amaze me that there are so many hidden treasures at Walt Disney World waiting to be discovered and enjoyed and how often they are bypassed because they are not in the theme parks.
For the 1955 Mickey Mouse Club Circus parade at Disneyland, Walt Disney purchased some authentic turn-of-the-century circus wagons and very carefully restored them. In fact, anything removed from a wagon during the restoration, Walt had preserved.
Walt purchased nine authentic circus wagons from Bradley & Kaye who were using them as decorations outside the entrance to their small amusement park at the corner of Beverly and La Cienga in Los Angeles where Walt would take his young daughters on Sunday outings.
In this purchase was a 1907 twenty whistle steam calliope that was in disrepair.
Its first appearance was in the Mugivan and Bowers shows in England, circa 1907, after which it was sold to Ken Maynard’s Diamond K Circus in 1936. At a cost of $50,000, Disney redesigned the calliope to resemble the others in the collection, and adorned its wagon with decorative pieces from some of Disney’s other circus wagons transforming it into the Dragon Calliope.
Take a close look at the car behind the engine of Disneyland’s Casey Jr. train. The dragon is an exact re-creation of the one on the calliope since it is a circus train.
Many of the circus wagons, as well as the calliope, appear in the Disney live-action film, “Toby Tyler or Ten Weeks With a Circus” (1960).
Starring young Kevin Corcoran and based on the well known novel of the same name by James Otis Kaler, the film recounts a young boy running away to work in a circus and becoming a circus star after befriending a mischievous chimp.
The film’s world premiere was held January 21, 1960, at the Florida Theater in Sarasota, Florida, the winter home of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus (now owned and operated by Feld Entertainment, who produce the Disney on Ice shows).
Just as the parade and the credits are ending the movie, the Dragon Calliope comes in to view, followed by the eager Toby Tyler, as music and steam billow from the colorful wagon.
In 1962, Walt would donate the wagons (including the pieces that had been removed) to the Circus World Museum in Baraboo, Wisconsin, where they are taken care of and displayed to this day. However, he kept the Dragon Calliope.
Besides being part of the short-lived Mickey Mouse Club Circus parade, the calliope went on to appear at Disneyland parades until the park’s 25th anniversary.
It was repainted silver and blue and pulled by six black Percheron horses when it was relocated to Florida for the Walt Disney World Tencennial celebration in 1981. Since then, it was seen in numerous parades at Walt Disney World, including several Christmas broadcasts until it was retired from parade duty.
To the best of my memory and research, the last time the Dragon Calliope was used was January 2, 2007 in Tallahassee, Florida where Mickey and Minnie Mouse were participants in the inaugural parade for newly-sworn in governor, Charlie Crist. Mickey and Minnie in the calliope were pulled by a team of eight black Percheron horses.
The Tri-Circle-D Ranch at the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World is now the home for the famous Dragon Calliope.
It is located near another free hidden treasure, a small exhibit, named Walt Disney Horses dedicated to Walt’s love of horses and to the different roles horses do at Walt Disney World.
I hope some of you will now go track down these wonderful hidden treasures, take pictures, and share their location with your friends and family.
Special thanks to TCD for the photographs.
RELATED LINKS
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Check out Jim’s other “From the Attic” Blogs
Full features from the Walt Disney World Chronicles series by Jim Korkis can be found in the AllEars® Archives: /ae/archives.htm
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jim Korkis is an internationally respected Disney Historian who has written hundreds of articles about all things Disney for more than three decades. As a former Walt Disney World cast member, his skills and historical knowledge were utilized by Disney Entertainment, Imagineering, Disney Design Group, Yellow Shoes Marketing, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Feature Animation Florida, Disney Institute, WDW Travel Company, Disney Vacation Club and many other departments.
He is the author of three new books, available in both paperback and Kindle versions on Amazon.com:
The Book of Mouse: A Celebration of Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse
Who’s Afraid of the Song of the South
"The REVISED Vault of Walt":
Does anyone know how much this calliope weighs? I worked at TriCircle D at Disneyland in 1981 when it and the team of Black Percherons went on the state fair tour on its way to Florida.
I hope someday that I can come see this instrument, I have been a calliope historian for the last fifteen years and I have been involved with steam calliopes my whole life. I also have been around many of the Nichol steam calliopes still in existence while traveling with my father David Morecraft, I’ve done research on about 5 instruments in that time period.
My father was a builder of steam calliopes for over 30 years, he started building them in 1985 and doing repair work to some of the Nichol instruments that survived, but he never did get a chance to see this one. I am currently continuing his business, doing repair work to instruments, helping to preserve ones still in existence, and building new ones. I would love to do some research on this instrument someday if it would be possible.
Also, do you know if this wagon and instrument were used in a movie called The Big Circus from 1959? The wagon in that movie looks identical to this dragon calliope wagon. It is seen at the very beginning of the film during the spec around the big top’s three rings and it is later seen being pulled by horses down a city street.
I hope you get to see it as well, Zachary. We do not know if this one was used in The Big Circus, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it wasn’t one and the same. If you ever find out, you’ll have to let us know!
The Caliope is back on display at the New Tri Circle D Ranch building!!
I worked on this parade unit in 1980 at the Disney Parade Building in Burbank, Ca. The whole unit had a 40′ semi-trailer that carried the calliope and other items. The project cost much more than $50,000 but the Calliope was probably that much by itself. It was computer controlled and did not need a pianist to play it.
The steam system was converted to a compressed air system using a Hanson air cylinder that would maintain the pressure. The whole rig weighed more than 7,000lbs and there was some concern that the wheels would not support the weight. The wheels were rebuilt and seemed to work fine. It took months to finish and it hit the road on a 10th Anniversary WDW tour and competed against the Budweiser beer wagon and won a number of awards. It is one of the best parade units the company has ever had.
Tom…the other items in the semitrailer were the Percheron horses that pulled the calliope! I worked at TriCircle D until 1981 in California and readied the team for the tour!
Actually, I need to make a correction to my earlier post. The steam parts of the calliope were removed when it was converted from natural gas to compressed air and was then sent to Florida.
FYI – I am an ex-Disneyland castmember and purchased the steam parts for the calliope from the Disneyland bone yard. It was in storage at the Studio and was moved to Disneyland in the late 1980s or early 1990s. The steam parts were removed when it was converted to natural gas. I bought the boiler, water tank, steam pump, 19 whistles (one was missing) and 19 key keyboard (one key was missing) and the manifold. I have been told that the manifold and whistles were manufactured by Thomas J. Nichol. The parts are for sale. The boiler and steam pump have already been sold, but the whistles, manifold and keyboard are still available.
Hi Jim. My dad Oscar M. Cortes made a Calliope model with horses for Disneyland around 1981 or so, I remember that Disney didn’t like the base he put on it so they changed it. I was about 7 or 8 years old when this happened and I remember going to Disneyland for the unveiling, my dad got a Calliope poster thing and they took a bunch of pics with him and so on. I remember they took the Calliope to Disney world and I never heard of it again. Do they still have it?
ALLEARS: As of June 2014 the Calliiope is housed at the Tri-Circle D barn at Ft. Wilderness – the original and the model.
I can confirm that the calliope was on display as late as the last week in March; we saw it on the Segway tour.
Great story Jim!
I last saw the Calliope during the 4th of July parade at the Magic Kingdom. Word is that it has been moved back to California for renovation of the organ.
Thanks,
Mark Hickson
Hi Jim, great blog!
Just thought I’d mention that as part of the “Independence Week Limited Time Magic July 1-7, 2013” Disney’s great old calliope appeared in the Magic Kingdom parade each day that week.
I’ve also heard, but haven’t confirmed, that it was in the last Citrus Bowl Parade in Orlando.
I sure hope we see it in many more parades!