Here’s The Oldest Thing in Disneyland – It’s Between 55-70 Million Years Old

While Disneyland Park itself opened in 1955 along with several attractions that have lasted throughout the years, you might be surprised to learn that the oldest thing that you'll find on its grounds is actually tens of millions of years old. You may have passed right by this artifact without even realizing what it was!

The oldest thing that you'll find in Disneyland was gifted to Disneyland by Lillian Disney, and it still remains today at Disneyland Park for guests to see. This artifact is a really incredible piece of history in the park and also has a rather amusing story attached to it as well!

If you missed the fun story of the Little Man of Disneyland who lives in a tree that we shared for St. Patrick's Day, be sure to read our article for more details on this cute secret detail of the park.

Oldest Thing at Disneyland

In 1956, Walt Disney bought the remains of a petrified tree stump from the Pike Forest Fossil Beds, which at the time was a privately owned petrified forest area in Colorado that is now part of Florrisant Fossil Beds National Monument.

After Walt arranged for the tree to be sent to California, it was gifted by Lillian Disney to Disneyland Park in 1957. The remains of this petrified tree are estimated to be around 55 million and 70 million years old, and the original tree was estimated to have been 200 feet tall. You can still find the petrified tree today along the Rivers of America near The Golden Horseshoe!

Disneyland Petrified Tree

According to the plaque inscription, a cataclysmic upheaval had taken place millions of years ago that caused silica-laden water to spread through the forest. Over the course of time, the wood cells changed into sandstone, creating a petrified state for the tree.

Petrified Tree Plaque Inscription

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See the petrified tree's plaque inscription above!

The amusing story behind the petrified tree was that Walt and Lillian Disney stopped at Pike's Petrified Forest in 1956 right around their 31st wedding anniversary, and Walt went on a tour while his wife decided to wait in the car. When Walt returned (after having perhaps taken too long on the tour) to Lillian, he proclaimed that the tree stump he had bought was a gift to her. Part of the anniversary gift gag is that Lillian tolerated the petrified tree at their home for a year before donating it to Disneyland, and according to The Walt Disney Family Museum, an early hand-written draft of the tree's plaque included the joke that it was “Too large for the mantle.”

Is the Anniversary Gift Story True?

See the picture of Walt and Lillian Disney when the tree was presented to Disneyland.

While the anniversary gift story behind the Disneyland petrified tree is quite funny, Disney historian Todd Pierce reached out to Walt's daughter Diane Disney Miller via email to see if it was true, and she replied that it was indeed a gag and had become a family joke: “Of course it was staged, and is very playful on both of their parts. The ‘gift to my wife’ was just a gag. He [Walt] was the consummate gag man, and proud of it. It’s difficult to believe that others didn’t see this episode that way.”

See this TikTok video by Disney Parks below providing a closer look at this artifact:

@disneyparks “Wood” you believe the history behind this petrified tree?! 🌳🪵 #Disney #DisneyParks #Disneyland #History #WaltDisney #Trees #Disney100 ♬ original sound – Disney Parks

The Disneyland petrified tree is not the only tree at Disneyland Park with a special story! The trees at the Jungle Cruise also have a unique story as well that we will share below.

Relocated Jungle Cruise Trees

During the construction of Disneyland, Imagineers and landscapers worked to introduce plant life that would fit with each themed land. A group of eucalyptus trees was located on the west side of the park that farmers had used as a windbreak for the orange groves, and Walt actually reshuffled his plans for where each land would be located based on these trees so that he could incorporate them as part of the Jungle Cruise. However, the attraction still needed more greenery. According to The Walt Disney Family Museum, Harper Goff and horticulturists Bill and Jack Evans started out by calling cities to see if they were tearing out trees and would go buy them, then looked to areas like Pasadena for more trees.

“We would call cities to see if they were tearing out trees for improvements and go buy them—we got many that way,” said Goff. “We drove all around in places like Pasadena, seeing great, big, nice trees. We’d go up to people and ask them: ‘Any chance you’re tired of that tree? We’ll give you $200 and carry it away.’”

There was one tree that was to be moved to Adventureland, however, that had a special status: the Dominguez Palm. This palm had grown on the farmland that Walt Disney purchased for Disneyland, and its owner requested it be kept on site when he sold his acreage to Disney. The tree was initially planted in 1896 as a wedding gift to Ron Dominguez's grandparents. You can still see it today in Adventureland between Jungle Cruise and Indiana Jones Adventure!

Ron Dominguez

Ron Dominguez's family owned 10 acres of orange grove property that was purchased to become part of Disneyland, and according to Ron, “Our house was located right about where the entrance to Pirates of the Caribbean and Cafe Orleans are today.” When Disneyland opened, Ron started a summer job as a ticket taker at the park, and his role grew dramatically from there. He served in multiple influential positions throughout his career, ultimately becoming executive vice president of Walt Disney Attractions in 1990. He retired after 39 years with the Walt Disney Company in 1994 and was named a Disney Legend in 2000.

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