Welcome To WDW 1970's/ 80's and 90's

[DaveInTN 3,247]

 I bet Disney dug them as fill for the runway

 

That sounds reasonable. 

[Discamper 394]

[Starbuc71 162]

My how times have changed :)

[ftwildernessguy 778]

Hard to believe the Fort was an actual campground once. With prices on par with real campground prices. Now it appeals to the camping elite, the Prevost owners who can actually pull into the site, set up and stay for a week without actually leaving their million dollar motor homes.

[Discamper 394]

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Speaking of how times have changed, I saw something cool on TV last week that I want to share.

 

So we are all on the same page, let me give some background before I post the photos.

 

First, I have always wondered what the Fort was like when it first opened.  Do you know that it didn't open until Mid-November, 1971?  The rest of Walt Disney World opened on October 1, but the Fort wasn't ready.

 

You would think a campground would be easier to build than the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts, but the fact is it wasn't ready.

 

I recently came across a map from 1971.  I don't recall every seeing one this old before:

 

 

Note that there are only 5 loops.  One trading post.  No Pioneer Hall or Trail's End.  The campfire area is down by the marina.  No petting zoo.  No pools.  No Bike Barn.  Just 5 loops, a trading post, and the Reception Outpost.  Oh, and an Archery Range.  Didn't know about that.  Discovery Island was called Blackbeard's Island, and the Sweet Bay Swamp Nature Walk was a big attraction.  Big enough to get mentioned on the map.

 

Look at where the Reception Outpost is on the map.  it's right near what we know today as the four way stop.  Only at the time, it wasn't a four way stop, because the Big Pine did not continue to the west.

 

What we know today as the Reception Outpost didn't exist in 1971.

 

So, what did this Reception Outpost look like?

 

I have never known.

 

While I'm asking questions, this photo has always stumped me:

 

 

 

Where was that big log slice?

 

It's not the same one that once was in front of the current check in lanes.

 

It's bigger.

 

I see what looks like a stockade fence there at the upper right corner of the photo.

 

Since it mentions Tri-Circle-D ranch, I've always figured that it was located somewhere near the ranch.

 

Well, apparently, I figured wrong.

 

The other night, I was looking for a show on my DVR, and I noticed that it had recorded some episodes of the show from HGTV called My Yard Goes Disney.

 

Apparently, there was one where they build a Fort Wilderness themed area in the back of someone's home.

 

I never knew about this episode.

 

Maybe you did, but I didn't.

 

So I watched it.

 

About ten minutes into the show, they showed what was obviously an old Fort Wilderness photo to make the point that the Fort is a WDW original.

 

I couldn't believe what I saw when they showed the photo.

 

In fact, I was so amazed that I paused the show and took some photos.

 

I wish these weren't so blurry, because the photo was quite clear on the screen.

 

They kind of zoomed in the on the scene.

 

They started back a bit:

 

 

And then zoomed in:

 

 

Does this log slice look familiar to anyone else?:

 

 

Over to the right, you can see a CM chatting with the guests in that station wagon:

 

 

 

 

You can see that stockade fence behind the log slice.  It looks like the Reception Outpost was just some kind of pre-fab metal building, and they spruced it up with those posts.

 

So, now I think I know what the original reception outpost looked like.

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

That's very cool, Andrew. 

 

One thing that struck me from the old map you posted...showing the campfire down where Pioneer Hall currently sits.  Wasn't there an old photo posted here at one point showing the campfire in that location, or showing a directional sign to it that, considering the location of the campfire we know, made no sense?  Maybe I'm thinking of something else, but I swear there was an old pic of a sign that confused us.  Does anyone know when the campfire moved to the Meadow area?  Was it when Pioneer Hall was built, or did it remain down there for a while? 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

That's very cool, Andrew. 

 

One thing that struck me from the old map you posted...showing the campfire down where Pioneer Hall currently sits.  Wasn't there an old photo posted here at one point showing the campfire in that location, or showing a directional sign to it that, considering the location of the campfire we know, made no sense?  Maybe I'm thinking of something else, but I swear there was an old pic of a sign that confused us.  Does anyone know when the campfire moved to the Meadow area?  Was it when Pioneer Hall was built, or did it remain down there for a while? 

 

I remember a photo Todd posted where there was a sign pointing to the Campfire Snack Bar near Pioneer Hall or Trail's End.  I was confused by that sign, but apparently there was a snack bar in that buidling called the Campfire Snack Bar.  That would seem to suggest that the campfire was still being held in that area, but I don't know.

 

I will have to dig through the TCD archives to see if I can find a map where the campfire area first appears in the Meadow area.

 

TCD

[alexwyattmommy 181]

I didn't see the beginning of that HGTV episode but I did see the ending.  I thought they captured the nostalgic feeling of old time camping very well. 

[disneylitch......Debbie 61]

When the Fort first opened you could rent a camper.  That's what my family did.  This was before the cabins were built.

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

 

Love this shot.  Oh the clothes, and the hair... and the skyway.  :)

[BayLake Campers 83]

WDW 1969.

 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

WDW 1969.

 

 

 

That is a cool photo!  You can see that a lot of clearing has taken place, but the Seven Seas Lagoon isn't done, and Bay Lake looks much smaller than it is today.  Discovery Island almost looks like it's a peninsula.

 

I would love to see an arial shot of the same area before any clearing was done.

 

TCD

[BayLake Campers 83]

1963

 

[stacktester 78]

Ask and you shall receive. Nice photo Warren. 

[DaveInTN 3,247]

WDW 1969.

 

 

It is fascinating the details you can make out, even though they are somewhat early in the construction phase.  For instance, you can see the square parcel etched out where the Asian Resort was to be built.  Pretty cool. 

[DaveInTN 3,247]

1963

 

 

Great photo! 

 

Bay Lake looks to be about the same size as today...indicating the low water levels seen in Todd's photo were as a result of the work they were doing.  They must have lowered the lake level to allow work on Seven Seas Lagoon and the surrounding areas without it flooding prematurely.  Plus I imagine they must have dredged Bay lake, and used sand to build up the beaches of Discovery Island, the CR and the Fort. 

 

One thing that is really cool....I zoomed in as far as I could on the area where the Fort Settlement stand today, and I could see a lawnmower leaning against a tree, and a guy walking away from it who resembles a younger Lou.  Mystery solved! 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Ask and you shall receive. Nice photo Warren. 

 

Yes, thanks, Warren.

 

That 1963 photo is amazing.  I just spent a good 5 minutes staring at it and zooming in and out.  Bay Lake was a lot smaller.  It looks like there is some development in the area we now know as the Settlement at Fort Wilderness.  Supposedly there were hunting/fishing camps there.  I wonder what the previous owners of this land thought after they sold it to Disney and found out what happened to it?

 

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Picking up on Dave's suggestion, I took another look at the 1969 photo, it is amazing what you can see the outline of in that photo.

I pulled up a current Google image, and looked at all three photos side by side, to save you the trouble, here you go.

1963:

1969:

2013:

 

 

So I was clearly wrong when I said Bay Lake is bigger now.  It is amazing to compare the size and shape of Bay Lake in the 1963 and 2013 photos- it really hasn't changed at all.

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I had always wondered why it appeared that a road used to cross the south end of the STOLport runway.  Before the construction of World Drive, what is now Vista Blvd did continue straight across where the runway was built and up the east side of the MK parking area (what is now World Drive).  These old images are very cool. 

[Discamper 394]

Thank You everyone for following and adding to this Thread

[YENSIDCAMPER 66]

Speaking of how times have changed, I saw something cool on TV last week that I want to share.

 

So we are all on the same page, let me give some background before I post the photos.

 

First, I have always wondered what the Fort was like when it first opened.  Do you know that it didn't open until Mid-November, 1971?  The rest of Walt Disney World opened on October 1, but the Fort wasn't ready.

 

You would think a campground would be easier to build than the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts, but the fact is it wasn't ready.

 

I recently came across a map from 1971.  I don't recall every seeing one this old before:

 

 

Note that there are only 5 loops.  One trading post.  No Pioneer Hall or Trail's End.  The campfire area is down by the marina.  No petting zoo.  No pools.  No Bike Barn.  Just 5 loops, a trading post, and the Reception Outpost.  Oh, and an Archery Range.  Didn't know about that.  Discovery Island was called Blackbeard's Island, and the Sweet Bay Swamp Nature Walk was a big attraction.  Big enough to get mentioned on the map.

 

Look at where the Reception Outpost is on the map.  it's right near what we know today as the four way stop.  Only at the time, it wasn't a four way stop, because the Big Pine did not continue to the west.

 

What we know today as the Reception Outpost didn't exist in 1971.

 

So, what did this Reception Outpost look like?

 

I have never known.

 

While I'm asking questions, this photo has always stumped me:

 

 

 

Where was that big log slice?

 

It's not the same one that once was in front of the current check in lanes.

 

It's bigger.

 

I see what looks like a stockade fence there at the upper right corner of the photo.

 

Since it mentions Tri-Circle-D ranch, I've always figured that it was located somewhere near the ranch.

 

Well, apparently, I figured wrong.

 

The other night, I was looking for a show on my DVR, and I noticed that it had recorded some episodes of the show from HGTV called My Yard Goes Disney.

 

Apparently, there was one where they build a Fort Wilderness themed area in the back of someone's home.

 

I never knew about this episode.

 

Maybe you did, but I didn't.

 

So I watched it.

 

About ten minutes into the show, they showed what was obviously an old Fort Wilderness photo to make the point that the Fort is a WDW original.

 

I couldn't believe what I saw when they showed the photo.

 

In fact, I was so amazed that I paused the show and took some photos.

 

I wish these weren't so blurry, because the photo was quite clear on the screen.

 

They kind of zoomed in the on the scene.

 

They started back a bit:

 

 

And then zoomed in:

 

 

Does this log slice look familiar to anyone else?:

 

 

Over to the right, you can see a CM chatting with the guests in that station wagon:

 

 

 

 

You can see that stockade fence behind the log slice.  It looks like the Reception Outpost was just some kind of pre-fab metal building, and they spruced it up with those posts.

 

So, now I think I know what the original reception outpost looked like.

 

TCD

 

Great Sleuthing as usual TCD!

[YENSIDCAMPER 66]

Picking up on Dave's suggestion, I took another look at the 1969 photo, it is amazing what you can see the outline of in that photo.

I pulled up a current Google image, and looked at all three photos side by side, to save you the trouble, here you go.

1963:

1969:

2013:

 

 

So I was clearly wrong when I said Bay Lake is bigger now.  It is amazing to compare the size and shape of Bay Lake in the 1963 and 2013 photos- it really hasn't changed at all.

 

TCD

 

What stands out to me between the 63 and 69 photo is the canal out of Bay Lake.  They had to drain it somehow and I guess this is how they did it.  They obviously control the water levels there with the dam and that remote box TCD has pointed out before.  Where does it drain to, I wonder?  I will have to look at Google Earth soon to see where that canal ends.

 

EDIT: Okay I looked and it goes all the way past Celebration and appears to dwindle into Swamp land.  I am assuming Disney owns that Swamp land behind Celebration or it must be set aside as utility area of some sort by the county.  Anyone know?

[Discamper 394]

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Not to get too philosophical, but looking at these pictures from the development phase of WDW makes me think how incredible it is that this project was successfully completed and is the phenominal success it is.  How many pie-in-the-sky projects do we read about every year that never get off the drawing boards, never obtain financing, fail during construction, or open but collapse in bankruptcy within a year?  And most of those are not nearly of the scope and scale as WDW.  It is truly amazing what they accomplished.  I know it is easy to say that Walt was a visionary and master planner, but he also must have been an incredible team builder and leader to have put together the team he did, including his brother, who carried the project through to completion after Walt's death and ensured its success.  It could so easily have fallen apart after he died.