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| My Grandmother and I, mid-90's at the front entrance to Never Never Land Photo by my mother |
Once upon a time, in a far-off land, there was a place called Never Never Land. It was a walk-through storybook attraction at Point Defiance Park in Tacoma, Washington. In the midst of the woods, you followed a trail past vignettes recreating scenes from various fairy tales.
This charming attraction opened in 1964 and closed in 2001. Many of the figures were put into storage around that time. In 2010, the last of the structures were demolished after years of vandalism and weather damage. A year later, the building the figures were stored in was set on fire. 34 figures survived, while the rest melted. In 2021, the surviving figures were auctioned off.
Today, we are going back in time to the mid-1990's, when I visited the park a couple times. Here, I have pictures taken by myself and my mom. Enjoy my early photography!
(Photos that are listed as "Photographer unknown" were pictures in my photo album, but I am unsure if I took them or my mom. The pictures I can verify as mine are ones where the composition is, what I would now describe as... nontraditional. The "Photographer unknown" photos look to have a better-developed compositional skill level, but who knows? Maybe I did take them.)
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| A friend and I with Humpty Dumpty (center) Photo taken by my mother |
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| Never Never Land puppet show Photographer unknown |
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| Little Dutch Boy Photo by me |
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| My Grandmother on the trail by the Gingerbread House Photo by me |
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| Old Mother Hubbard's house Photo by me |
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| Me at Old Mother Hubbard's house Photo by my mom |
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| Three Little Kittens Photo by me |
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| Simple Simon Met a Pieman Photo by me |
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| Ding Dong Bell Photo by me |
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| Little Bo Peep Photo by me |
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| 3 Billy Goats Gruff Photo by me |
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| Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Baby Bear is blocked from view by Goldilocks) Photographer unknown |
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| Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf Photo by my mom |
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| Close-up on the balloon from the previous photo It has the Never Never Land logo on it Photo by my mom |
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| Some friends and I at the home of Jack Sprat Photo by my mom |
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| My friends and I viewing Peter Rabbit in Mr. McGregor's garden Photo by my mom |
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| Mr. McGregor and Peter Rabbit Photo by me |
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| Jack and Jill Photographer unknown |
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| Little Miss Muffet Photo by me |
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| Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son and I Photo by my mother |
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| A random squirrel in a picnic area Photo by me |
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| Never Never Land brochure my mom saved in her photo album |
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| Never Never Land brochure my mom saved in her photo album |
Today, you can still walk through the woods that once was Never Never Land. While most landmarks are gone, a couple remain in place: the wells from Ding Dong Bell and Jack and Jill, the painted trees by the 3 Bill Goats Gruff, the stage in the back of the park, and the stone wall and pond from the Little Dutch Boy.
This park is still fondly remembered. There is a small community push to bring back some version of Never Never Land to the Pacific Northwest. Here's hoping! Check out the Never Never Land Tacoma Facebook Page.
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