Message Box on Main Street

Updated August 31, 2022

Now seems like a good time to think back to all the little things we love about Disney Parks.

When I first started blogging 80+ years ago, I ran across the message box on Main Street and fell further in love with the Disney community.

Are you familiar with it?

It’s long gone now, but when it was here, it was magic.

Pure Disney magic.

How it Worked

I don’t know exactly how or when it started, but I knew about it in 2015.

A small wooden box (photo below), about 12″x6″x4″, sat in the ‘library room’ adjacent to Market House on Main Street, which is the Starbucks in Disneyland Park.

The box was glued to the shelf like all of the other pieces of decor, but the lid opened and closed.

Guests started to leave messages for each other. 

And the rest is history.

The end!

Just kidding. Let’s continue.

Messages

The messages left in the box were a mixture of so many things.

Like……

• A guest saw another guest and left a message hoping it would reach the other.
• Some people shared memories from previous visits.
• Some made magic and included a small gift like a trading pin. Attached to the pin would be a note that read, “Your collection starts now! Go trade and have fun.”

When I first learned about the message box, I would typically see about 20 messages in it. Cast members went through them occasionally to ensure everyone was behaving. As its popularity grew, I noticed the box contained many more than 20, often filling the box until it couldn’t be closed.

How it Ended

As with many good things in life, the message box’s time had to end.

Word got around…..more people found out about it…..and the box eventually broke and had to be thrown away.

But, its memories live on! 

Photos

Here are some pretty terrible photos of the box.

It can be seen here, behind this gentleman’s head:

(I might not win any awards for photography.)

Molly With Her Message

I found out about the messages one day while having coffee in the library. It was a pretty routine visit for me. I noticed some guests scurrying around the box and paid attention.

Once I figured it out, I shared it with my readers. (There were about 100 at the time.)

Before you start fussing at me for leading to the message box’s demise, keep in mind that sharing little bits of information like this is literally my job title. It’s complicated. I know.

Anywho, one of my readers named Jenn asked if I would leave a message for her daughter, Molly. I asked for a date and what she wanted the message to read, and voila! It was done.

I rarely saw the fruits of my labor, but Jenn took a photo of Molly with her message. I’ve shared it, below. It reads: “Molly, Happy Birthday to our beanie! Remember to always believe in the magic.”

When their trip arrived, Jenn casually walked Molly into the library to show her the box. Molly found a message just for her!

Jenn stood there, glowing with pride, knowing she just made a core memory for her child. And husband! Dennis stood there speechless, too. How did it happen?!

Here’s Molly with her message:

And, a few years later, I saw Molly. She came in town for a Pearls in the Park party.

Here we are together:

Happy to say that I’ll know Molly for the rest of my life.

Maybe Jenn and Dennis, too. 😉

Jack & Lily With Their Message

Jack and Lily came all the way from Australia and couldn’t believe Mickey wrote a note just for them:

I love those little faces!

Here’s what it said:

They wrote some messages of their own before departing:

Paying It Forward

Here’s a peek at one of the messages that left a trading pin for a guest to find:

Notes

• This was an unofficial little gem at the Disneyland Resort. You couldn’t find anything about it online. 
• Did you leave or receive a message? Please let us know in the comments!

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