DISNEY’S AMERICA: THE PARK THAT ALMOST WAS

 

From inception Disneyland was a shifting entity. Conceived in the early planning stages as an abutter to the second incarnation of Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, the Happiest Place on Earth began its story as a blueprint for a modest infusion of Griffith Park and icons of Walt’s childhood (a Main Street that could find a home in any American small town, a railroad which would take guests around and other emblems of America at an industrial and agricultural cross-road which had always been the soul of Walt’s vision), christened Mickey Mouse Park.

However, as concepts were added and ideas grew it became clear that the space adjacent to Walt Disney Studios could not house the dream and so, over the next few years, as this Mickey Mouse park grew into Disneyland, Anaheim was chosen as its new home where it opened in July of 1955 with most of the original plans intact.

Since then Disneyland has been in a constant state of transformation, culminating in the opening of a new park in the East Coast which afforded more room than the limited space Disney was able to acquire in California. Walt would not get to see the completion of the Florida project (he died in 1966, five years before Walt Disney World would open) but secured its future avoiding many of the zoning mistakes that cost him room for growth in California.

Because of its scope and ambition, Disney World has undergone changes faster and bigger than its predecessor, expanding over the decades into four different parks. At the speed and scale that Disney has expanded its parks it was inevitable that not all ideas would make the cut and, on the other hand, the addition of new attractions occasionally meant the demise of others. This happened as early as 1977 when Disneyland’s docile Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland closed to make way for the thrilling Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. However, Disney has always been fond of leaving little tokens of recognition to its past attractions and spotting them has become a sport for Disney buffs.

To many spotting these hidden tributes (the mounted heads from Country Bear Jamboree in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, the dark ride that now sits at its former spot in Disneyland, for instance) is evocative not only of nostalgia but a starting point for research into the companies past.

There are, in addition, two other varieties of “alternate Disney experiences” that have fascinated fans and hidden history aficionados alike. There are the Disney attractions that never were. Among the most famous scrapped projects are WestCOT (an attempt to replicate EPCOT in the West Coast), Port Disney and Walt Disney’s Riverfront Square. EPCOT too was once intended to be much larger, featuring resorts inspired by an array of international destinations (Persian, Venetian, etc.). Then there are the former attractions that once had a life but have remained abandoned since their closure, like the notorious Discovery Island bird sanctuary in Florida which was once a local paradise for visitors to observe the areas wildlife and the care offered it, but since its closure in 1999 has become the stuff of legends, with its ghostly empty cages and structures attracting much the same crowd as the decaying Six Flags New Orleans. Next to Discovery Island sit the ruins of Disney World’s first water park, River Country, of which closure in November of 2001 has fueled rumors and speculations.

Of the latter, Disney has taken a hard “do not got there” stance both literally (the company prosecutes urban explorers who wander into these areas) and figuratively. Of the former type, however, the history of many scrapped projects is readily available online. Few of these, however, have attracted as much attention as the third Disney park planned in America that was scrapped after a long and heated battle.

While WestCot and the others were additions to existing parks, Disney’s America was to be a whole new park with a concept all its own. Its location was a surprising one given the company’s affinity for hot weather: Haymarket, Virginia. The chosen site would play a large part in the project’s demise, but the choice was deliberate. This would be the first project dedicated to education first and a town just five miles from Manassas National Battlefield Park and thirty-five miles away from the nation’s capital was the prime location for a park that through various means would recount American history.

Disney’s America was born as the passion project of then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner who expressed dismay at how little American kids knew of their own history. Much like Griffith Park inspired Walt’s dream for Disneyland, Colonial Williamsburg inspired Eisner’s vision for Disney’s America. After deciding on Haymarket as the location, Eisner secured 3,000 acres of the land needed for the park. When Disney announced the project in November of 1993, they were shy on details, stating, for instance, only that the park would cost “hundreds of millions” of dollars to build. Disney was a lot more vocal about the layout and concept for the park which featured Civil War reenactments and did not shy away from darker aspects of American history including slavery and the treatment of Indigenous cultures.

“This is not a Pollyanna view of America. We want to make you a Civil War soldier. We want to make you feel what it was like to be a slave or what it was like to escape through the underground railroad,” said Disney Senior Vice President Bob Weis.

At the time of the announcement the reception seemed to be what Disney wanted. “I know I speak for the people of Virginia when I say that I am pleased that you have come to us,” said Governor Douglas Wilder, but the honeymoon would not last long.

Once word of Disney’s proposed park spread, alarm bells were rung for both historians and locals alike. The gist of the complaint from historians was, not unreasonably, that something marketed as a “Disney park” no matter how genuine its aim was not the way to teach history to the next generation while locals were rightfully concerned (despite the park creating an estimated 2,000 jobs and about $50 million in tax revenue) about the traffic, noise and crowds a theme park in the area would bring, especially so near a hallowed Civil War battlefield.

“I just think it's tremendously important to protect American history from developers,” said historian Arthur Schlesinger. “Developers have destroyed too much American history as it is.”

Of particular concern was the way slavery was to be presented at the park.

“How can you do a park on America and not talk about slavery? This park will deal with the highs and lows,” Weis stated. “We want to make you feel what it was like to be a slave, and what it was like to escape through the Underground Railroad.”

This triggered a myriad of negative responses. Courtney Gallop-Johnson, a transportation planner from Washington, responded that her organization, Black History Action Coalition, would boycott the park, stating clearly, “We don’t think that it is a historically dignified or accurate portrayal, or suitable fare for an amusement park.”

By the summer of 1994 Disney announced that the slavery aspect was scrapped and the park would refocus its mission. To further appease critics who objected to the sacrilege of a Disney Park opening so near a Civil War battlefield Disney pledged to donate to various preservation societies and assured critics that its proximity would only attract more visitors to Manasses.

“Disney's America not only will not replace historic sites but rather will add to their luster by enthusing our guests about events that occurred there and the people who took part in them. We are confident our project will actually encourage more people to visit historic areas. And we believe our presentation of the American heritage can make a significant national contribution to the important cause of historic preservation,” Eisner said. “We plan to use all of the tools available to us -- filmmaking, animation, environments, music, interactive media, live interpretation -- to bring the American experience to life. We are working with historians and other experts to make Disney's America an engaging and genuine encounter with America's past. Together, we have identified some common themes that run through the American experience -- our persistent resistance to injustice, our quest for tolerance and inclusion, our history of rising to challenges, our faith in the promise of the future and our belief that ordinary people can accomplish extraordinary things.

We believe that every person, particularly the children, who can touch history and sense the emotions of a time or event, will be impelled to learn more. This is the vision and purpose of Disney's America.”

Disney’s new vision for the park (illustrated through concept art and brochures) involved dividing the park in nine sections, each offering a brief lesson of various times in American history. The sections mapped out included Crossroads USA would focus on the half-century leading up to the Civil War, Native America would have featured recreations of native villages of tribes from the area, President’s Square would have housed replicas of the Hall of Presidents, Civil War Fort, Enterprise (focusing on the industrial growth and urbanization), We the People told of the early immigrant experiences, Family Farm, State Fair and Victory Field (centering on the entry into WWII).

Despite this opposition to the site continued from the locals. In September of 1994 Disney announced it would be seeking a new location for the park.

Peter S. Rummell, President of Disney Design and Development Co., said, “We remain convinced that a park that celebrates America and an exploration of our heritage is a great idea, and we will continue to work to make it a reality. However, we recognize that there are those who have been concerned about the possible impact of our park on historic sites in this unique area, and we have always tried to be sensitive to the issue. While we do not agree with all their concerns, we are seeking a new location so that we can move the process forward.

Despite our confidence that we would eventually win the necessary approvals, it has become clear that we could not say when the park would be able to open -- or even when we could break ground.

The controversy over building in Prince William County has diverted attention and resources from the creative development of the park. Implicit in our vision for the park is the hope that it will be a source of pride and unity for all Americans. We certainly cannot let a particular site undermine that goal by becoming a source of divisiveness.”

Somewhat hidden in Rummell’s words is the truth of the matter. Ultimately, it was not public opposition that was the death knell for Disney’s America but the simple logistics. By the mid-1990s, Disney was preoccupied with the expansion of Disneyland which would become Disney California Adventure and proper attention to could not be allotted to a park that was already a public relations headache. Further, Euro Disney had returned less than half the projected profits and perhaps Disney saw a warning in this. The announcement of that park had sparked outcries from French cultural critics strikingly similar to those surrounding Disney’s America and now Disney was seeing the financial consequences. Could a similar fate await Disney’s America when opened at the projected date of 1998? It should be added that Euro Disney (now renamed Disneyland Paris) has undergone a significant face-lift, better attuned itself to French customs and, while not Disney’s most profitable park venture, has salvaged itself quite well. But Disney could not have foreseen this in the fall of 1994. The location once gain delivered the final blow but in a way Disney did not foresee. A park this far north in the unpredictable climate of Virginia would not be able to operate year-round as it could in Florida or southern California. Simply put, even without the controversy surrounding it the park would not be profitable.

 By the spring of 1995 was selling off the land it had acquired for the park. Disney’s America was officially dead. However, rumors of a revival came about within the following year when Knott’s Berry Farm (Disney’s original neighbor back home in California) went up for sale. Disney jumped at the chance and made an offer, seeing it as a great location to give Disney’s America a second chance. Here weather was not a concern and the area was already built up so opposition from locals was unlikely. In addition the area was not home to any hallowed ground sites that would spark accusations of insensitivity. Disney planned to use the park’s replica of Independence Hall as the center point of the park. Once again, however, Disney’s plans were dashed. The Knotts family chose to sell it instead to the Ohio based Cedar Fair in 1997. Their fear was that Disney would alter the farm their parents built beyond recognition.

That really was the end of Michael Eisner’s dream project. If it has been kept alive at all it was not by Knott’s Berry Farm but by its competitor for attention, Disney California Adventure where some of the ride concepts live on in new forms. Family Farm became Bountiful Valley Farm, the Lewis and Clark Expedition Raft Ride is now Grizzly River Run and California Screamin’ is the reincarnation of the State Fair Roller-coaster.

Meanwhile, Prince William County, the original site proposed for Disney’s America, saw a population boom in the thirty years since its battle with the Mouse resulting in multiple housing developments and increased traffic. As for Knott’s Berry Farm, the new owners actually changed more of the park than Disney had proposed to had their bid been accepted but at least the old park (America’s first theme park, as it proudly toots) retained its original name. In a sense, the story of Disney’s America is the classical story of American enthusiasm, vision, go-getterism and triumph balanced with loss. Fights for heritage and family legacy are two of the very few forces that can successfully fight off corporations. But in this land even crushed dreams live on in their fragments.