Preserving the Legacy: The Walt Disney Archives

Preserving our legacy is something we take very seriously at The Walt Disney Company. In fact, for more than four decades, the Walt Disney Archives has carefully safeguarded the most treasured items from Disney’s fabled history.

The Walt Disney Archives had its beginning in 1970 while Disney was still reeling over the passing of its founder, Walt Disney. At the time, Walt’s brother and the Chairman of Board Roy O. Disney, wanted to ensure that as key imagineers and animators began to retire, their vast knowledge of Disney history was not forgotten.
As fate would have it, Dave Smith who at the time was researching at the UCLA library overheard Disney executives discussing the establishment of a company archive. Dave decided to take a leap and pitch them a plan to set one in motion and on June 22, 1970, he was officially hired as Disney’s first archivist. Talk about being at the right place at the right time!

Since then, the Walt Disney Archives has curated millions of items and produced numerous exhibits for the public. For the last 11 months, D23 Presents Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives at the Reagan Library, showcased some of the crown jewels of the Walt Disney Archives’ collection. And just announced last week, the Walt Disney Archives will be unveiling another impressive “”Treasures of the Archives”” branded exhibit at the bi-annual D23 Expo.

The new exhibit will showcase rare pieces from the beloved classic Mary Poppins, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary next year, as well as assets from ABC’s hit series, Once Upon a Time and a treasure trove of items highlighting Disney’s long connection to all things Oz. You definitely won’t want to miss it this August 9-11 at the Anaheim Convention Center!