Walt Disney’s Childhood Hometown
Marceline, MO
Throughout the midwest, there are plenty of opportunities to connect with Walt Disney. From Chicago to Marceline to Kansas City, Walt spent the first part of his life here and having opportunities to see these connections has been awesome.
The City of Marceline
Marceline, Missouri is a lot like other small-town USA type towns. What used to be a prosperous town is now a struggling community doing their best to hang on. The biggest part of this town is its connection to Walt Disney. From the elementary school, to the downtown, and of course the museum, there are touches of Walt all over! The downtown area served as an inspiration to Walt as he designed Main Street USA in his them parks, so there is a nice homage to him in the form of a street sign on Main St.
The Walt Disney Hometown Museum
While visiting the museum, you get a real sense for the passion and commitment that this museum makes in preserving the legacy of Walt Disney. With many artifacts from his past, and amazing collections of memorabilia, this museum allows guests to get a glimpse into what life was like in Marceline when Walt lived here in the early 1900’s and also when he returned a few times throughout his life.
There are many displays that are 100% unique to this museum making a trip to the middle of Missouri a must do!
The museum also featured an original Midget Autopia car, that had been at Disneyland. Walt’s plan was to move this attraction to Marceline in order to bring people to his hometown. This has yet to come to fruition, but who knows what might come in the future!
The unique exhibits and videos playing throughout the museum could lead someone to spending hours wandering the old train station that makes up the museum!
To learn more about the museum, check out their website!
Walt's Barn and Dreaming Tree
Another area of Marceline that is worth a stop is to see the Barn that Walt spent time at. There is also his “Dreaming Tree” and the “Son of the Dreaming Tree” here that lets you walk in some of the same places that Walt did as a child, and again as an adult. Inside, there isn’t a whole lot, but many people (including some celebrities if you look closely) have signed the inside of the barn in tribute to Walt! Click here to learn more about the barn and dreaming tree.
Overall, the quaint town of Marceline and the people who make up this place are a great look into the history of Walt Disney. Any fan driving through Missouri should make this a priority, and get to experience the place that meant so much to Walt!
