Retro Photos of Theme Park Construction

[RickR]

I'm fascinated by pictures of the construction of classic theme-park rides, and I hope others are too.  A lot of these rides have been around for decades, so it's interesting to see how they made them so resilient. 

I'm going to start with this one of the Maelstrom ride at the Norway pavilion at Epcot in Florida (opened in 1988).  It's since been updated to "Frozen", but the ride layout is the same.  You can kind of see the three levels that the boats take here.

 

[TrekMD]

This is cool!  I'm subscribed to a channel on YouTube that explains how the attractions work.  I find that fascinating!

[RickR]

Here's a couple from Space Mountain at Disneyland, which opened in 1977.  Who knew the roof was made of wood?
 

[RickR]

The Disney World Contemporary Hotel under construction.  You can see the monorail track being built out too.

 

[sramirez2008]

On 8/23/2024 at 2:12 PM, RickR said:

Here's a couple from Space Mountain at Disneyland, which opened in 1977.  Who knew the roof was made of wood?
 

My favorite Disney World ride, since 1980.

[RickR]

6 minutes ago, sramirez2008 said:

My favorite Disney World ride, since 1980.

Here are some great pictures and info about the DisneyWorld version: http://www.imagineeringdisney.com/blog/2013/6/17/magic-kingdoms-space-mountain-construction.html

I love that ride too.  Much bigger than the DL version.  But when they rebuilt the track on the DL version several years ago, that one became really special because it is so smooth.

[Justin]

I have a whole collection of WDW stuff I will have to upload and share. I have some original stuff from the visitors center from before it opened, and some items from my great uncle who oversaw construction of some electrical systems in the Magic Kingdom.

I always thought the modular construction at Tempo Bay where the hotel rooms were pre-fab and slid right into the structure of the resort was amazing. 50 years of hurricanes and it’s just fine.

[Justin]

Walt Disney World in 1973 — what you see doesn’t really show construction but the first of the parks was brand new:

 

 

[RickR]

Lots to see and study here...

[TrekMD]

On 9/6/2024 at 5:06 AM, Justin said:

Walt Disney World in 1973 — what you see doesn’t really show construction but the first of the parks was brand new:

 

 

I've seen this before!  It is a cool video.

[RickR]

And here's one from DW as it was being built.  Pretty spectacular view.

[RickR]

Here's one of "Star Tours" going in at Disney Studios Florida in 1989.  The Florida version of the ride has such an awesome queue.

[TrekMD]

8 hours ago, RickR said:

Here's one of "Star Tours" going in at Disney Studios Florida in 1989.  The Florida version of the ride has such an awesome queue.

This may be getting demolished to make room for some new projects at Hollywood Studios!

[RickR]

1 hour ago, TrekMD said:

This may be getting demolished to make room for some new projects at Hollywood Studios!

They wouldn't! 

Dang. 

[TrekMD]

Seems like a possibility, though it seems the DeSantis tourist board is putting a stop to some of the stuff Disney had planned.

[RickR]

Space Ship Earth during construction.

 

[RickR]

Imagine all the construction sounds from this moment in time...

 

[RickR]

[TrekMD]

These are so cool!

[RickR]

Building the WDW Swiss Family Treehouse

[TrekMD]

That looks like some alien structure!

[Justin]

Photos of Horizons at EPCOT Center, from concept through completion and destruction. Mission Space stands there today.

 

 

 

 

 

[TrekMD]

Such a cool pavilion.  I was sad to see it go, though I do like Mission Space! 

[RickR]

Horizons being built:

[RickR]

Here's one of another attraction that is closed (but the building is still there):  Universe of Energy