THEN AND NOW: Liberty Square [Part 1]

Liberty Square, Magic Kingdom

(Click on photos to enlarge) This part of the series was a delight to photograph! Liberty Square has changed so little over the years and most of the changes are nice additions. A few changes are not so great-- The maroon canopy in front of the Haunted Mansion is a drag, blocking the view of the Mansion as you wait in line. The removal of the old antique shop is super sad, though Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe certainly has it's charm. The addition of the Liberty Bell replica (photo set 3) is fancy, even though "Pennsylvania" is spelled wrong-- or just different than it's spelled today-- as it is in the original bell. The Mike Fink Keel Boats we once loved to ride no longer dock at Liberty Square (photo set 2) or anywhere else. But at least we can still see the dock house. (Thank you, Haunted Mansion FastPass for no longer filling this great space). At last the "wedding ring" in Haunted Mansion pavement is gone. Oh wait, it never was meant to be a ring!!! It was part of the gate sawed off that loosely resembled a small ring... but this is a discussion for another day.

Liberty Square may just be the most underrated land at Walt Disney World but golly, it's the most beautiful, relaxing, patriotic, nostalgic place to sit on a rocking chair, listen to animatronic presidents, or reenact colonial public punishment by voluntarily inserting yourself into wooden stocks.

Related posts:

Then and Now: MK Tomorrowland [Part 1]
Then and Now: Epcot Future World [Part 1] 
Abandoned Disney: River Country Then and Now [Part 1]
I Miss Paul Frees

Comments

[JumperJH]

FAR less depressing than the Tomorrowland ones. I hoped they keep ignoring LS. It doesn't need change.

[Jeff Heimbuch]

I absolutely loved this set of now and then photos. Don't get me wrong, the Tomorrowland ones were cool, but these ones seemed to have the most changes, for the better. I love it. Thanks for posting!

[JMGIII]

I agree with the hideousness of the canopy. That said, on a sunny August day in Orlando, I'm sure the impaired view is a secondary consideration of the average guest.

[WDWFanBoyBrett]

Love this series. The outstanding match up in pictures is...well...outstanding. Have always been a huge fan of Liberty Square and all it has to offer. If I ever get to WDW alone, I plan on spending more than a few minutes relaxing in the rocking chairs near Hall of Presidents.

[Scott]

For the most part, the changes here are positive! A couple of pictures had a bit more "clutter" in them (I liked the cleaner look to the last "then" picture as compared to the "now" picture) but generally it looks even better than it did. Great series, looking forward to more of them!

[Donnie]

Liberty Square: Now with trees!

Another great post!!!!

[philphoggs]

Agreed, much more pleasant here. Guessing that all the very large trees in both series are missing due to storms? Nitpicking, wonder what happened to the rock work in the last set of photos near the bridge? I guess it's depends on what they are aiming for, but I got to say the old layout looks a little nicer. And the mansion more surprising. And the river busier. Stopping myself now before the leather boot arrives. Yes Disney I am thankful for this steadfast treasure!

[philphoggs]

Oh crap I noticed the large trees in the background of ROA are actually in the now side of the equation. Me bad. I mainly wonder about the tall palms back in the previous series.

[RandySavage]

Awesome series (then & now). Awesome blog.

[zf]

"The maroon canopy in front of the Haunted Mansion is a drag, blocking the view of the Mansion as you wait in line."

Maybe so, but being out in the open under the roasting sun is a much worse drag!

[Emily Oriotis]

I like the new color scheme on the Haunted Mansion!

[dichuy]

The banjo players are Pat Terry Sr. and Jr. My dad befriended them not long after the MK opened. We used to go over to Pat Terry Jr's house and go swimming when we were down at Disney! Gosh these photos bring back so many memories. I started going to the MK a week after it opened and have seen all the changes. I better stop before my eyes tear up. Thanks so much for posting all of these!

[Joe]

I think they sometimes let the trees get way, way too over grown. It's good that they look a bit wild in front of the Haunted Mansion, but it's getting to the point where they obscure the mansion. Also, the Crape Myrtles in front of the LS boat house are so large that you can no longer see most of the boat house. If I want to see trees I can just go to the city park. I don't have to travel thousand of miles and spend thousands of dollars to go to Orlando. I think Disney needs to do a little better job cleaning up the landscaping.

[leah]

i cant imagine disney would let a spelling error like that go by, they must have looked into the original spelling of Penn

also i think the trees add to the "hauntedness" of the mansion

[Mark]

I notice the bridge is now flat instead of bowed. This is probably to better accommodate guests in wheelchairs.

[Stewart Lyons]

I wish they would leave the grass alone, it looked so much better in the old pics!

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[Sheya]

I agree with the hideousness of the canopy. Xiaomi mi6