Photo by Ron Garrison, 1962

Crystal Arcade and Upjohn Pharmacy

There’s a modest sign hanging off the right side of the Crystal Arcade’s main entrance, adjacent to the brick facade of the Upjohn Pharmacy. The sign reads “Book and Candle Shop.”

Enter the Crystal Arcade. Walk to the Western Printing Book Shop in the back. Then look for the candles. Although the space is small, it’s jam-packed with candles.

Photo by Dennis Caswell, 1977

“All the colors of the rainbow”

What kind of candle are you looking for? Check the selection!

• Scented candles (coconut, gardenia, grape, lemon, jasmine, and many other fragrances)
• Candles that look like food (banana splits, ice cream sundaes, cupcakes—even cheeseburgers with lettuce and tomato)
• Seasonal candles (Easter bunnies, turkeys, Christmas trees, and Halloween pumpkins, depending upon the time of year)
• Decorative candles of every shape and size
• Traditional, elegant taper candles

And if you’ve always wanted tiki candles, this is where you’ll find them.

Unlike the plastic flowers at the Main Street Flower Mart next door, these candles are real. They’re made of wax, so they’re fully functional.

The Candle Shop is one of the many specialty stores on Main Street, U.S.A. They capture the flavor of a Midwestern downtown street at the beginning of the twentieth century by selling far more than just toys and character clothing.

The Candle Shop at Disneyland occupied a space behind the Upjohn Pharmacy (now the Fortuosity Shop), off West Center Street.

Excerpt from 1968 Disneyland Souvenir Map © Disney

Map excerpt showing the location of the Candle Shop

Normally, a Yesterland article would now tell you the dates when something was operational—but the Candle Shop is one of the most poorly documented parts of Disneyland.

“Candle Shop” and “Book & Candle Shop” are both missing from Disney A to Z by Dave Smith—and seemingly every other book about Disneyland history. Quite a few online sites claim the Candle Shop operated from 1958 to 1977, but that seems to be a case of copying and pasting from each other.

The Candle Shop was already listed in the 1955 guide book, The Story of Disneyland. The Candle Shop was still in the 1986 Disneyland Souvenir Guide, but was gone in the 1989 Disneyland Souvenir Guide. Based on these guide books, the Candle Shop opened in 1955 and closed during the second half of the 1980s.

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2017

Crystal Arcade, no longer with the Candle Shop inside

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2017

Former Upjohn Pharmacy

The Crystal Arcade is now essentially a large toy store.

The Upjohn Pharmacy (1955-1970) became New Century Clock Shop (1972-1986), which became New Century Timepieces (1986-2008), which became the Fortuosity Shop (2008-present).

There was another candle shop at the Disneyland Resort more recently.

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007

Illuminations store at Downtown Disney, Disneyland Resort

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007

Inside the Illuminations store

Illuminations was an opening day retailer at the Disneyland Resort’s Downtown Disney, which opened January 12, 2001. Like the old Candle Shop in the park it had a colorful array of candles. Otherwise, the stores were completely different.

Yankee Holding Corp., another candle retailer, acquired the Illuminations chain in 2006. It didn’t work out well. In early 2009, Yankee announced it would shutter the entire Illuminations chain, which consisted of 28 stores at the time. Illuminations at Downtown Disney closed April 30, 2009.

Will there ever be a third candle store at the Disneyland Resort?

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Updated April 3, 2020.