Magic Kingdom history - construction photos

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

Excerpted from ImagineeringDisney. Follow the link for lots more photos...

WDW Construction: Magic Kingdom

Monday, June 18, 2012 at 4:09PM Posted by Admin

Yesterday my grandfather told me his good friend worked for Disney during the Florida construction. Of course I immediately asked if his friend took photos or filmed anything while there. No solid answer yet. We’ll see if we locate anything. For now, we'll enjoy these rare professional black and white construction photos.

Related posts:

WDW Before Opening Day 1971

EPCOT Construction from the Air

EPCOT Center Construction Photos: Future World

Magic Kingdom at Night

Magic Kingdom Map Found in a Main Street Wall

Walt Disney and the Santa Maria Railroad

http://www.imagineeringdisney.com/blog/2012/6/18/wdw-construction-magic-kingdom.html

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

I'm having trouble figuring out what the first one is

[CKCK 45]

Water bridge? Though I'm not sure exactly where. Isn't there a water bridge somewhere else at WDW other than by the Contemporary?

Or maybe that's wrong all together.

[Brent... Just Brent 83]

Same here.

[CKCK 45]

Btw, I may never leave that site with all the old pics. That's right in my wheelhouse.

[CKCK 45]

If you look on a satellite image of the MK and look just to the west of BTMR there is a large canal. It's the same canal where they store the EWP. It looks like that canal has some sort of a lock system on the north end of it. Could that picture be that?

The picture would have been taken from the north of the canal, looking kind of south/southwest. Of course, that would mean that they eventually took out the canal that forks to the west because there is no fork in that canal in the present.

That's my best guess.

[Lou... 3,118]

It doesn't quite fit, but could this be it?

It's actually at the Fort.

I believe it's a lock that dumps a canal into Bay Lake.

.

[CKCK 45]

It doesn't quite fit, but could this be it? It's actually at the Fort. I believe it's a lock that dumps a canal into Bay Lake. .

I thought that, but just to the north of the pic from the Fort is the lake. On that old pic there is no lake there. Plus the canal at the Fort doesn't fork just past the bridge like it does in the old pic, so I'm not convinced.

[Discamper 394]

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

I thought that, but just to the north of the pic from the Fort is the lake. On that old pic there is no lake there. Plus the canal at the Fort doesn't fork just past the bridge like it does in the old pic, so I'm not convinced.

Actually, it could be, cause didn't they drain and dredge the lake to find all this pretty white sand at the bottom to line all the beaches around. Then they dug seven seas lagoon. They may have forked it to direct the water out of Bay Lake elsewhere.

[Discamper 394]

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Wow!

I love all the photos, Monique. Thanks for posting the link.

If you stop and think about it, it is amazing what they accomplished in building WDW.

Lou, I think you are on to something with the dam behind the 300 loop. That does look similar, but I agree that this is not the right location. There are other water control devices in the other canals throughout WDW, and this is probably located somewhere else on the property. The whole WDW drainage system is an amazing bit of engineering.

TCD

[CKCK 45]

This looks more promising. I found this just east of Epcot where you cross the bridge from Bonnet Creek Pkwy to Epcot Center Dr. In the new pic it looks like there used to be a canal that forked off to the east but has since been filled in. There are also several similarities on the shore lines of the canal just north of the bridge before it forks.

In the old pic the clearing just beyond the fork would be what is now Bonnet Creek Pkwy and the area to the right of that is now Port Orleans.

In the new image you can see what's left of the old canal between the trees.

If you compare the drive over the locks you can see that it looks like it may have been widened since it was first built.

I would put money on this being the right one.

Can you tell that it's summer and I have nothing better to do than to search for canals on satellite images?

[MetalDad 33]

Ding! looks like the winner CKx2

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Can you tell that it's summer and I have nothing better to do than to search for canals on satellite images?

LOL!

I haven't had a chance to look for myself, but I think you may be right about this.

Nice canal searching skills!

TCD

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

That does look right!!

[Lou... 3,118]

I would put money on this being the right one.

I don't think anyone is going to bet you, because it looks like that is the correct one.

They've been doing a lot of construction work there for the last few months.

Not sure if they're increasing the pumping capabilities or what.

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

Great Pics and nice skills CK

[Lou... 3,118]

Not to put a damper on things, and before we anoint the WD Co. engineers, a number of big blunders were made back then that the company is forced to live with to this day.

BTW, the utilities, roads, and waterways were and are the responsibility of RCID, not Disney

Here are a few of the most obvious engineering blunders.

The famous utilidors/tunnels, which are not tunnels at all, the poor excuse for a real transportation system but really cool looking monorails, and the room slide-in concept used at the CR, were things that are good examples of bad engineering and will never be repeated at WDW.

Come on Lou, being a little tough on the Imagineerless aren't you? No, nothing annoys me more than poor engineering.

The Utilidors are actually a hindrance in day to day operations. They learned from their mistake so much so that every theme park built in central Florida since then used the perimeter access road concept which allows deliveries to be off loaded from standard trucks at all of the locations.

Only at MK does most everything have to be off loaded at the single Utilidor main entrance. Then because larger trucks don't fit in the Utilidors, all those supplies have to be delivered by smaller vehicles to the rest of MK locations via the tunnels. Time and extra equipment equals money. Not to mention that buses drop off and pick up at that same entrance.

Oh, and as you probably already know, they're not really tunnels. They're the first floor of a two story structure and for those that spend money to tour the tunnels, save your money. You can see the same thing at the bottom level of any large hotel. The only thing that makes it different is what's hanging on the walls.

The monorails, I don't think I have talk about all the flaws with the really cool looking monorails.

And if any of you are demented enough to think that it will be expanded, I've got a bridge in... yada, yada, yada,

The slide-in rooms at the CR, that was a joke. If it wasn't, why hasn't it been done anywhere else at WDW or anywhere else on land that I'm aware of. They do use the concept on cruise ships.

I'll tell you why, because it's a stupid and extremely expensive engineering concept.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I would have been very easy back in that day to look at this group and think "what a bunch of idiots, spending a fortune on a pipe dream. It'll never amount to anything."

[Lou... 3,118]

I would have been very easy back in that day to look at this group and think "what a bunch of idiots, spending a fortune on a pipe dream. It'll never amount to anything."

I don't think so. They did have a track record of success in California and it was one of those projects that was too big to fail.

The Disney Company had it's name, it's money, and lots of large companies ready to sponsor the attractions.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Not to put a damper on things, and before we anoint the WD Co. engineers, a number of big blunders were made back then that the company is forced to live with to this day.

BTW, the utilities, roads, and waterways were and are the responsibility of RCID, not Disney

But, RCID is Disney.

RCID is simply a brilliant contrivance which allowed Disney to literally write its building codes and subsequently enforce them. On paper, RCID is an independent organization controlled by the very few hand picked people who live on Disney property. But Disney picks the people who live on their property, and, therefore, controls RCID.

I have to agree with you, Lou, that there were many blunders along the way, but I am amazed at the bold things that they tried. Maybe in hindsight some of the things were not wise choices, but you have to appreciate the risks they were willing to take to create a place unlike anything the world had seen before (or since).

TCD

[Lou... 3,118]

But, RCID is Disney.

RCID is simply a brilliant contrivance which allowed Disney to literally write its building codes and subsequently enforce them. On paper, RCID is an independent organization controlled by the very few hand picked people who live on Disney property. But Disney picks the people who live on their property, and, therefore, controls RCID.

Yes and no.