We were recently able to get a special glimpse inside Walt Disney’s very own office!

Even though Walt Disney passed away back in December of 1966, his private office has been lovingly restored and maintained by the dutiful staff of the Walt DisneyArchives. Each detail has been meticulously maintained to achieve historical accuracy, ands give a glimpse into how Walt and his original Imagineers worked during the early golden age of Disney park development.

Walt’s Secretary’s Office

Despite what the name implies, Walt Disney’s office isn’t just a single room, but rather a group of three large spaces making up an office suite.

The first is Walt’s secretary’s office, which served both as a buffer room for anyone trying to reach Walt’s inner sanctum, as well as a display of many of the trophies and awards Walt and his studio earned through the years.

Some of these specific awards include:

An amusement park industry award…

…the famous honor Oscar statuette set Walt received for Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs…

…a 10 Years of Service to Disneyland award presented to Walt…

…a cast of Abraham Lincoln (Walt’s boyhood hero)’s hand…

…an Olympic Torch from the 1960 Winter Games, which Walt helped plan…

…and even Walt Disney’s Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Walt’s Actual Office

Walt’s office itself features a layout of furniture one would expect from a high powered 1960s executive, as well as a bevy of books, personal trinkets, and family mementos.

Walt’s desk was surrounded by seemingly hundreds of items and hangings that had personal meaning to him. These include:

Photos of the Disney children…

…and countless treasures accumulated throughout his career.

The most prominent item in the room besides Walt’s desk is a massive piano. According to Disney lore, Walt would have the legendary Sherman Brothers serenade him using the instrument with songs including “Feed the Birds” from Mary Poppins.

Flanking the piano is a massive bookshelf featuring boos that inspired Walt and his Imagineers, as well as more collectible pieces from Walt’s career.

Brainstorming Room

The office suite also featured an amenity-stocked brainstorming room where Walt and his Imagineers would gather to plan and sketch out future plans.

The Disney archives team has littered the space with numerous artifacts that will be instantly recognizable to Disney aficionados, and set the scene for how Walt and the imagineers developed their ideas. These include:

A planning manual for the “Florida Project”, which would eventually become Walt Disney World…

…and the the original site plan for the “Florida Project.”

The room also features this massive overhead photo of Disneyland, circa Walt’s lifetime, along with affixed planning notes.

This “brainstorming room” also came complete with a kitchen, which the archives team keeps stacks with the types of foods Walt and his team would have enjoyed during long planning sessions.

Finally, there are other small personal reminders of Walt scattered through the room. These include:

A pamphlet celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of Marceline, Missouri, a town Walt lived in during his boyhood which is widely credited with inspiring elements of Disneyland…

…and even a personalized notepad.

Keeping Walt Disney’s office preserved is an important part of  the Disney Archives overall mission to preserve the company’s past for future generations.

What elements of Walt’s office stuck out to you the most? Let us know in the comments below.

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. We were invited by The Walt Disney Company to attend their Walt Disney Imagineering Media Event. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ