Editing Walt Disney World (section)

=== Planning and construction ===
==== Conception ====
[[File:Walt Disney with Company at Press Conference.jpg|thumb|Walt Disney (left) with his brother [[Roy O. Disney]] (right) and then Governor of Florida [[W. Haydon Burns]] (center) on November 15, 1965, publicly announcing the creation of Disney World]]
[[File:Epcot-map-1966-modern.svg|thumb|Overlay of Walt Disney's original 1966 plans for Disney World and the proposed EPCOT city (orange) and contemporary situation (blue)]]

In 1959, [[Walt Disney Productions]] began looking for land to house a second resort to supplement [[Disneyland]] in Anaheim, California, which had opened in 1955. Market surveys at the time revealed that only 5% of Disneyland's visitors came from east of the [[Mississippi River]], where 75% of the population of the United States lived. Additionally, Walt Disney disliked the businesses that had sprung up around Disneyland and wanted more control over a larger area of land in the next project.<ref name="married">{{Cite book |last=Fogleson |first=Richard E. |author-link=Richard Foglesong |title=Married to the Mouse |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-300-09828-0 |location=New Haven, CT |page=274}}</ref>

Walt Disney took a flight over a potential site in [[Orlando, Florida]]—one of many—in November 1963. After witnessing the well-developed network of roads and taking the planned construction of both [[Interstate 4]] and [[Florida's Turnpike]] into account, with [[McCoy Air Force Base]] (later [[Orlando International Airport]]) to the east, Disney selected a centrally located site near [[Bay Lake (Florida)|Bay Lake]].<ref name="Quest">{{Cite book |last=Mannheim |first=Steve |url=https://archive.org/details/waltdisneyquestf00mann |title=Walt Disney and the Quest for Community |publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing]] Limited |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7546-1974-1 |location=Aldershot, Hampshire, England |pages=6, 68{{hyphen}}70 |ref=Mann02 |url-access=limited}}</ref> The development was referred to in-house as "The Florida Project".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Patches |first=Matt |date=May 20, 2015 |title=Inside Walt Disney's Ambitious, Failed Plan to Build the City of Tomorrow |url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/news/a35104/walt-disney-epcot-history-city-of-tomorrow/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200305233026/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/news/a35104/walt-disney-epcot-history-city-of-tomorrow/ |archive-date=March 5, 2020 |access-date=October 20, 2020 |work=Esquire}}</ref> To avoid a burst of land speculation, Walt Disney Productions used various [[dummy corporation]]s to acquire {{convert|27443|acre|sqmi km2|0}} of land.<ref name="Quest" /> In May 1965, some of these major land transactions were recorded a few miles southwest of Orlando in [[Osceola County, Florida|Osceola County]]. In addition, two large tracts totaling $1.5 million were sold, and smaller tracts of flatlands and cattle pastures were purchased by exotically named companies, such as the "Ayefour Corporation", "Latin-American Development and Management Corporation", and the "Reedy Creek Ranch Corporation". Some are now memorialized on a window above [[Main Street, U.S.A.]] in the Magic Kingdom. The smaller parcels of land acquired were called "outs". They were {{convert|5|acre|4=0|adj=on|spell=in}} lots [[plat]]ted in 1912 by the Munger Land Company and sold to investors. Most of the owners in the 1960s were happy to get rid of the land, which was mostly [[swamp]] at the time. Another issue was the [[mineral rights]] to the land, which were owned by [[Tufts University]]. Without the transfer of these rights, Tufts could come in at any time and demand the removal of buildings to obtain minerals. Eventually, Disney's team negotiated a deal with Tufts to buy the mineral rights for $15,000.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Koenig |first=David |url=https://archive.org/details/realityland00/page/25 |title=Realityland: True-Life Adventures at Walt Disney World |publisher=Bonaventure Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-9640605-2-4 |location=Irvine, CA |pages=25–26 |ref=Koenig07}}</ref>

Working strictly in secrecy, real estate agents unaware of their client's identity began making offers to landowners in April 1964, in parts of southwest [[Orange County, Florida|Orange]] and northwest Osceola counties. The agents were careful not to reveal the extent of their intentions. They were able to negotiate numerous land contracts with some landowners, including large tracts of land for as little as $100 an acre.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mark Andrews |date=May 30, 1993 |title=Disney Assembled Cast Of Buyers To Amass Land Stage For Kingdom |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1993/05/30/disney-assembled-cast-of-buyers-to-amass-land-stage-for-kingdom/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903204555/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1993-05-30/news/9305280833_1_walt-disney-osceola-land-transactions |archive-date=September 3, 2014 |website=Orlando Sentinel}}</ref> With the understanding that the recording of the first deeds would trigger intense public scrutiny, Disney delayed the filing of paperwork until a large portion of the land was under contract.<ref name="WDW-Secret">{{Cite web |last=Mark Andrews |date=August 6, 2000 |title=Disney Pulled Strings So Mouse Moved In With Barely A Squeak |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2000/08/06/disney-pulled-strings-so-mouse-moved-in-with-barely-a-squeak/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910033232/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2000-08-06/news/0008050172_1_walt-disney-andersen-central-florida/2 |archive-date=September 10, 2015 |access-date=September 10, 2015 |website=Orlando Sentinel}}</ref>

Early rumors and speculation about the land purchases assumed possible development by [[NASA]] in support of the nearby [[Kennedy Space Center]], as well as references to other famous investors, such as [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]], the [[Rockefeller family|Rockefellers]], and [[Howard Hughes]].<ref name="WDW-Secret" /> An ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'' news article published weeks later, on May 20, 1965, acknowledged a popular rumor that Disney was building an "East Coast" version of Disneyland. However, the publication denied its accuracy based on an earlier interview with Disney at Kennedy Space Center. In that interview, he claimed a $50 million investment was in the works for Disneyland, and that he had no interest in building a new park.<ref name="WDW-Secret" /> In October 1965, editor [[Emily Bavar]] from the ''Sentinel'' visited Disneyland during the park's 10th-anniversary celebration. In an interview with Disney, she asked him if he was behind recent land purchases in Central Florida. Bavar later described that Disney "looked like I had thrown a bucket of water in his face", before denying the story.<ref name="WDW-Secret" /> His reaction, combined with other research obtained during her Anaheim visit, led Bavar to author a story on October 21, 1965, where she predicted that Disney was building a second theme park in Florida.<ref name="WDW-Secret" /><ref>Bavar, Emily. [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/142030221/ "Is Our 'Mystery' Industry Disneyland?"], ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'', October 21, 1965, front page and [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24333949/ page 20-A].</ref> Three days later, after gathering more information from various sources, the ''Sentinel'' published another article headlined, "We Say: 'Mystery' Industry Is Disney".<ref name="WDW-Secret" /><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/31995299/ "We Say: 'Mystery' Industry Is Disney"], ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'', October 24, 1965, front page and [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/109296708/ page 20-A].</ref>

Walt Disney had originally planned to publicly reveal Disney World on November 15, 1965, but in light of the ''Sentinel'' story, Disney asked Florida Governor [[Haydon Burns]] to confirm the story on October 25. His announcement called the new theme park "the greatest attraction in the history of Florida".<ref name="WDW-Secret" /> The official reveal was kept on the previously planned November 15 date, and Disney joined Burns in Orlando for the event.<ref name="WDW-Secret" />

==== Roy Disney's oversight of construction ====
[[File:Roy Disney inspecting property in Florida.jpg|thumb|Roy O. Disney inspecting design plans on-site in Florida]]
Walt Disney died from circulatory collapse caused by smoking-related [[lung cancer]] on December 15, 1966, before his vision was realized.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Santora |first=Phil |date=December 14, 2014 |title=The day Walt Disney, an American icon who gave us Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, died |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/archives-walt-disney-died-lung-cancer-article-1.2042273 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913051051/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/archives-walt-disney-died-lung-cancer-article-1.2042273 |archive-date=September 13, 2017 |access-date=June 22, 2020 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref> According to the [[Walt Disney Archives]], during Walt's lifetime, he personally visited and toured the site only twice: on November 16, 1965, the day after the press conference, and again for a second time, on May 26, 1966.<ref name="AskWDA">{{cite journal |title=Ask the Walt Disney Archives |journal=Disney Twenty-three |date=Spring 2025 |volume=17 |issue=1 |page=60 |issn=2162-5492 |oclc=698366817}}</ref>  His brother and business partner, [[Roy O. Disney]], postponed his retirement to oversee construction of the resort's first phase.

On February 2, 1967, Roy O. Disney held a press conference at the Park Theatres in Winter Park, Florida. The role of EPCOT was emphasized in the film that was played. After the film, it was explained that for Disney World, including EPCOT, to succeed, a special district would have to be formed: the [[Reedy Creek Improvement District]] with two cities inside it, [[Bay Lake, Florida|Bay Lake]] and Reedy Creek, now [[Lake Buena Vista, Florida|Lake Buena Vista]]. In addition to the standard powers of an incorporated city, which include issuance of tax-free bonds, the district would have immunity from any current or future county or state land-use laws. The only areas where the district had to submit to the county and state would be [[property tax]]es and [[elevator]] inspections.<ref name="married" /> The legislation forming the district and the two cities, one of which was the [[Reedy Creek Improvement Act]], was signed into law by Florida Governor [[Claude R. Kirk, Jr.]] on May 12, 1967.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Thomas |first=Bob |url=http://kpolsson.com/wdworld/ |title=Walt Disney – An American Original |date=1994 |page=357 |access-date=September 21, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151024034807/http://kpolsson.com/wdworld/ |archive-date=October 24, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Supreme Court of Florida]] then ruled in 1968 that the district was allowed to issue tax-exempt bonds for public projects within the district, despite the sole beneficiary being Walt Disney Productions.

[[File:Walt Disney World 1971.svg|thumb|The original logo of Walt Disney World from 1971 to the mid-1990s. This logo is still used on retro merchandise.]]
The district soon began construction of drainage canals, and Disney built the first roads and the Magic Kingdom. The [[Disney's Contemporary Resort|Contemporary Resort Hotel]] was completed in time for the park's opening on October 1, 1971, and the [[Disney's Polynesian Village Resort|Polynesian Village Resort]] opened shortly after.<ref name="dwfonfr">{{Cite news |date=September 27, 1971 |title=Disney World Florida opens next Friday |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0-4eAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wCQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6996%2C2342976 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220508180805/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0-4eAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wCQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6996%2C2342976 |archive-date=May 8, 2022 |access-date=June 12, 2016 |work=Times-News |location=Hendersonville, North Carolina |page=11 |agency=UPI}}</ref><ref name="opfgteslns">{{Cite news |date=October 2, 1971 |title=Walt Disney World opens Florida gates |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SsEzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=izIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=7198%2C139625 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211015014530/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SsEzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=izIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=7198%2C139625 |archive-date=October 15, 2021 |access-date=June 12, 2016 |work=Lodi News-Sentinel |location=California |page=10 |agency=UPI}}</ref> The Palm and Magnolia golf courses near the Magic Kingdom had opened a few weeks before, while [[Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground|Fort Wilderness]] opened one month later. Twenty-four days after the park opened, Roy O. Disney dedicated the property and declared that it would be known as "Walt Disney World", in his brother's honor. In his own words: "Everyone has heard of [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]] cars. But have they all heard of [[Henry Ford]], who started it all? Walt Disney World is in memory of the man who started it all, so people will know his name as long as Walt Disney World is here." After the dedication, Roy Disney asked Walt's widow, [[Lillian Disney|Lillian]], what she thought of Walt Disney World. According to biographer Bob Thomas, she responded, "I think Walt would have approved." Roy Disney died at age 78 on December 20, 1971, less than three months after the property opened.<ref name="bbroydsn">{{Cite news |date=December 21, 1971 |title=Backstage brain Roy Disney dies |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IkVQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yFcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5417%2C1489507 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211015014528/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IkVQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yFcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5417%2C1489507 |archive-date=October 15, 2021 |access-date=June 12, 2016 |work=St. Petersburg Independent |location=Florida |page=10–A |agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

Admission prices in 1971 were $3.50 for adults, $2.50 for juniors under age 18, and $1 for children under twelve.<ref name="dwfonfr" />