McD's Farm

Hi family, friends, neighbor's and theme park buddies! Today's vignette is about "Old McDonald's Farm" a petting zoo concession that operated in Knott's Berry Farm for 15 years beginning in 1955, the same year that Disneyland opened just a few miles down the road.  Bill

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MUSINGS OF A THEME PARK FAN

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THE SEAL POOL AND OLD MCDONNALD’S FARM
Knott’s Berry Farm, Ghost Town, California

The antics of the seals amuses the visitors, while in the background is old MacDonald’s farm yard where trained barnyard animals amaze their audiences.

Animals have been used as roadside attractions and in amusement parks luring visitors since the late 1800’s. Southern California has been particularly active where visitor’s have been able to find Ostrich and Alligator farms, petting zoo’s, safari, and marine parks, and even a Japanese Deer Park next to busy Interstate 5. In order keep up with the competition from nearby animal parks Walter Knott enlisted the services of Fulton Shaw to build and operate an old fashion farm concession adjacent to popular seal pool at his increasingly popular Knott’s Berry Farm. In 1955 while Disneyland was attracting it’s first million guests, visitor’s to Old MacDonald’s Farm were encouraged to pay a modest entrance fee and purchase a packet of pellet’s to feed the farm animals. The sound of automatic feeders triggered a performing chicken to ring a dinner bell, a rabbit to hop aboard a cable car to collect his treat at the end of the line, a pig to slide down a ramp and a goat to butt. The ravenous animals were fed constantly and needed to be rotated every 45 minutes! As well as the performing animals, Old MacDonald’s Farm featured a petting zoo, a mule powered merry-go-round and a collection of historic farm implements. The Buena Park enterprise lasted until 1969 when a disagreement with the Knott’s resulted in Shaw reestablishing Old Mac Donald’s Farm down the Interstate for a 4 year stint in the future city of Mission Viejo.

Circa 1960’s Postcard from the collection of Bill Ralph