Imagineer Influence: Ruth Shellhorn

Sometimes the most important details in Disneyland are the ones you never think twice about. Easy example: landscape architecture. Do you notice the subtle changes in trees from land to land? Probably not. But these kinds of design elements shape the storytelling and help distinguish each land.

Today, let’s talk about the woman behind this kind of design (among many other Disneyland contributions): Ruth Shellhorn.

 Source: Wikipedia

Shellhorn was a Southern California native, born in 1909 and raised in Pasadena. From a young age, she demonstrated talent both in mathematics and the arts, and her neighbor, landscape architect Florence Yoch, suggested the profession might be a perfect mix of the two.

Shellhorn took her advice, attending Oregon Agricultural State College and winning an award in a national Beaux-Arts design competition. She furthered her education with a transfer to Cornell University, where she was the only woman in her class of six within the Department of Landscape Architecture. When she returned to California in 1933, she had a leg up on her male counterparts as one of the few designers to have professional training. She worked as a landscape architect in the Los Angeles area throughout the 30s and 40s, before crossing paths with a Mr. Disney in 1955.

 Source: Atomic Ranch

Despite Disneyland’s opening rapidly approaching, Walt Disney still had a lot to sort out in early 1955. He was finalizing attraction and restaurant sponsors, trying to manage crowd flow throughout the park, and above all else, trying to bring order to the chaos of multiple design teams. Architect Welton Becket recommended colleague Ruth Shellhorn to help get the project organized, but her role quickly expanded to align with her professional experience.

 Source: Walt’s Folly

Shellhorn’s projects throughout Disneyland included:

• Supervising the moat dig around Sleeping Beauty Castle
• Finishing the design of the pedestrian circulation system (the hub and spoke model)
• Assisting the design of Main Street‘s central hub
• Advising on road grading throughout the park
• Matching trees and plants to land themes and color schemes

 Source: Walt’s Folly

While Shellhorn may not have had a long career with Imagineering, her influence helped shape the park into what it is today. Walt himself gave her credit for much of Main Street’s personality:

In giving credit for the landscaping at the Park, it is impossible to mention all who have contributed. Special plaudits are due to Ruth Patricia Shellhorn for her design of the formal Victorian plan for Main Street, the Town Square and the Plaza. The trees and shrubs she selected in the spring of 1955 are still used.

Sadly, Shellhorn is one of the influential Imagineers with no window on Main Street. Honestly, she doesn’t get much recognition at all, and seems to have been largely “forgotten” by Disney history. The best way you can honor her contributions to the park is to take a moment and stand somewhere on Main Street’s central hub. Look around – take in the layout, the plants, the colors, and the view. Everything you see was thoughtfully placed, and in many cases, directly influenced by Ruth Shellhorn.