Disney has always taken the time to document their projects, whether it’s animation, film or theme parks. I recently ran across a treasure trove of photos from the development and construction of the Walt Disney World Resort. I have compiled them together to make a video showing a behind-the-scenes look at how the Vacation Kingdom came to be. Let’s take a look at a few of the photos and their backstories!
Disney World Construction Photos
The groundbreaking for the world’s largest private construction site (at the time) was on May 30, 1967. Disney spent over $5.5 million dollars to acquire the 28,000 acres. With so much land, what do you do first? Well, you create master plans while you spend the first few years of construction on infrastructure and the 45 miles of water-control channels.
The Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC) is starting to take shape with the Contemporary Resort in the background. The image is probably from late 1970 and you can see the monorail beams in place and ready to go. The TTC, designed to be the transportation hub for the entire property, never went any further after EPCOT Center.
In this image, you can see Raz Island (which would be renamed Blackbeard’s Island, Treasure Island and, eventually, Discovery Island), which was one of the spots that caught Walt’s eye as he flew over Central Florida looking for land. The Contemporary Resort, with her two wings, is still being built; the Magic Kingdom, to the right of the resort, is slowly taking shape, with the spires of Cinderella Castle reaching the sky.
The total construction took 1,585 days, which is roughly four years and three months. Give or take a few days. Just press play to see even more construction goodness:
It’s Disney Vacation Time!
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- Layaway Plans must be booked by December 25, 2019 to get the $99 reduced deposit.
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Just imagine giving the gift of a Disneyland vacation to someone special in your life:
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Let’s Hear From You
The Disney World from these photos sure does look different compared to what’s there today. What was your favorite photo? Are there any photos you can help me identify? Let me know in the comments below!
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