President’s Day Facts from The Hall of Presidents
On Monday, February 18, the nation will be celebrating President’s Day, a national holiday which started way back in 1885 in recognition of the country’s founding president George Washington.
Today, we use the holiday to celebrate the contributions of all of our presidents.
There are a few ways to get your history lesson on even if you’re traveling to Disney World or Disneyland this President’s Day. First, if you want to do your part to honor our great leaders, make sure you visit The Hall of Presidents in Magic Kingdom’s Liberty Square.
Here are some interesting tidbits about The Hall of Presidents:
- The Hall of Presidents own history began on October 1, 1971. It opened on the same day that Orlando’s Magic Kingdom opened its doors to the world.
- Abraham Lincoln was the first president made into an animatronic figure.
- The Hall of Presidents was not changed from 1971 to 1993 when animatronics of Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton were added.
- Poet Maya Angelou and actors J.D. Hall and Morgan Freeman performed voice overs for the Hall of Presidents.
- Once again the Hall was closed from January 17, 2017 to December 19, 2017. At that time the animatronic of the 45th president of the United States was added.
- Speaking of the 45th president, start counting and you’ll only find 44 animatronic presidential figures. Why aren’t there 45? Grover Cleveland actually served two non-consecutive terms as the 22nd and the 24th presidents, making it only 44 people who have served as president.
- The show is about 25 minutes long.
- The Presidential Seal that you see displayed is actually the seal, which needed Congress’s approval to have replicated at The Hall of Presidents
- Look up! As you enter the hall, you can see the date 1787 which is the year the Constitution was signed.
- Speaking of 1787, the film that you see at the beginning of the Hall of President’s exhibit begins with the Constitutional Abraham Lincoln as he appeared at the end of the Hall of Presidents (prior to 1993) The Hall of President’s film began with the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
- On the other hand, check out the lobby because the mementos display are not Instead, they are actual souvenirs from various presidents and first ladies.
- Take a wild guess as to who Walt Disney’s favorite president was. If you said Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, you win the lotto – well, not really, but you did guess it right and you should feel smart!
- Liberty Square, the home of The Hall of Presidents, is also home to a replica Liberty Bell and the buildings are reminiscent of those you will find in Colonial Williamsburg Virginia.
Now, If you’re out west, head to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, where you can enjoy Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, an attraction that actually debuted at the 1964 World’s Fair.
At this attraction, you have a chance to listen to the oratory of one of our history’s greatest speakers and leaders, Abraham Lincoln. No wonder why Walt Disney liked him so much!
