Rarely seen photos of Disneyland's construction released for 60th birthday

To celebrate 60 years of bringing the magic off the screen and into the lives of tourists from around the world, take a look at these remarkable, rarely seen photos of Disneyland's construction from 1954 to 1955.

In the photos, the rural landscape transforms into Sleeping Beauty's Castle and empty boneyards of dirt become the foundation of Main Street trolley tracks. In its first year, Disneyland hosted more than one million attendees, and quadrupled the following year. In 2013, the park's attendance climbed to an all-time high of more than 16 million guests.

Disney celebrates the 60th anniversary of the park's opening on July 18, 1955 throughout the summer with the Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration -- kicking off with a 24-hour event at Disneyland and California Adventure in Anaheim on Friday, May 22.

Watch ABC's special coverage on Disneyland the day before it opened

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The Walt Disney Company is the parent company of this station.