Category Archive for ‘Buildings’ at 5 Kingdoms

They may not really secure any Kingdom they inhabit but each of them has a unique purpose and style, from the founder’s appartment Fire House, to the Firemen store… This article is about the 3 Fire Stations of the 5 Magic Kingdoms!

3 Fire Stations but only 2 design.

The first Fire Station ever build was of course in Disneyland.
Walt Disney had enclaved his privates appartements in there, just above the garage. They were to be used on the man’s ’saturday’s’ strolling and monitoring…
Then came along the second Kingdom to be build, and it naturaly came with a different Fire House to go along with that new kind of Main Street.
The 3rd Fire Station was built in 2005 when Hong Kong opened its Main Street as a faithful replicate of the Original.

firestation_anaheim_hongkong1

Both Fire Department share the red brick and pinnacle look as well as their disposition on Town Square, for those three are both attached to their respective City Hall.

firestation_orlandob

But none of the 3 Kingdoms equipped with a fire brigade use it the same way.

Magic Kingdom’s Engine Co. 71 shelters a store where young and adults can buy goods related to our beloved firefighters.

Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland’s share the same name and look but serve different purposes. The first Disneyland Fire Dept. 105 is a simple exhibition of a horse powered fire engine. Guest can pose for pictures and feel the different tools hung on the walls. The second Fire Dept. 105 is used as a stroller and wheelchair rental office idealy located right by the City Hall.

strollers

So 2 designs, 2 names, 3 functions but then again what about those 2 Kingdoms striving without fire protection ?

Tokyo Disneyland’s lacking doesn’t come as a surprise for its very own World Bazaar’s layout rules out any chance for stand alone structures.

The only mension of a Fire Dept. in Disnyeland Paris are painted on some Main Street windows. It may come as a shock to read in this article that the French Kingdom doesn’t have its own Fire Dept. Honestly most visitors could swear they’ve seen it ! What most Disney fans mistook for a Fire Dept. there is a piece of Imagineering dressed in red bricks, topped by a pinnacle, and proudly sitting right on Town Square.

It has everything of a Kingdom’s Fire House but the name. Main Street Transportation Co. serves as a counterpart for the other park’s Fire Houses but was themed differently. Obviously to better suit the automobile twist given to the European Main Street.

This is not a Fire House.

CREDITS & RESSOURCES

Magic Kingdom’s Engine Co. 71’s picture – unfairly cropped – is from Brian from www.bigbrian-nc.com, Flickr user bigbrian-nc.
Stroller & Wheelchair sign pictures is from Flickr user xWIZEx World Tour.
Thanks to Jorn for pointed out Paris’ window painting, check out his comment for more info !

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Intrigued or annoyed, cheerful or disapointed, worried or hungry those are the states of mind guests are in steping in the 4 City Halls of the 5 Magic Kingdoms.

In every Magic Kingdoms, you find them on your left entering the park. In the oldest and youngest Kingdoms the City Halls are quiet the same. As many already know Hong Kong Disneyland Main Street replicates the design of the Motherpark and only differs by the texture and color used to garnish the buildings. Buildings are therefor the very same shape. The city hall is not even different in color, only the roof tiles differ from the original.

Now as for Walt Disney World’s, it is like its Main Street, more New England inspired but poor in colors. Quiet richer and bigger than Disneyland’s as well.

In Paris, the look is more a more general approach of American architecture : red bricks and slate shingle rooves. The one simiral to the American Pavillon in Epcot. The golden elements add some kind of refinement unique to this park along with the 4 sided clock bell tower. Orlando is the only other City Hall to give time to guests.

In Tokyo they don’t really have a City Hall, they have an information point called Main Street House. It is not a singled out building but mainly a store on the front side of the World Bazaar structure. I didn’t think it was relevant to this article.

Disney’s City Hall always fascinated me because they include in the Kingdom theme the idea of an administration that supervise the magic. They stand out on your left like the information and help anchor of your Kingdom.

Only in Disneyland and Walt Disney World can you have your picture taken with the mayor though, I’ve never seen that big belly in Paris.

Credits : Magic Kingdom Park’s City Hall picture is from Flickr user Still Burning