Children’s Fairyland

Five years before the birth of Disneyland, Children’s Fairyland opened on the shores of Lake Merritt in Oakland, a 10-acre storybook theme park designed to immerse young children in the world of stories and imagination. Over the years, Fairyland has amused and engaged generations of children and inspired similar storybook parks (including Walt Disney’s) around the country. This is the story of Oakland’s Fairyland, the little park with an enduring impact. It is a place where books, theater, animals, gentle rides, and creative play offer an alternative to highly commercial and technological entertainments. Through archival photographs, keepsakes, and remembrances, Children’s Fairyland offers a behind-the-scenes tour of this remarkable and enchanting place.