EPCOT 30TH: A Photo Tour of the Past [Part 2]

Let's explore Future World. There's so much to do. The following are never-before-posted vintage photos sent to us by our readers. Thanks readers! Enjoy Part 1 here.

Super stylish G.E. Horizons cast member costumes.

A nice view of both Horizons and Universe of Energy. 

Step back in time a bit to see Horizons being built. Construction walls are definitely not a new thing.

Let's go back to the future, post 1983, and behold the beauty of the very grand Horizons entrance.

The old strollers.

Is that guy watering the plants? Is that his horticulture cart? Or was someone else selling something from that cart?

World of Motion. We've received countless World of Motion photos. People must have liked the place. Hmm.

A thing of beauty. Is that person standing while the vehicle was in motion??

A great view that has definitely changed over the years.

A classic zany show scene inside the ride.

World of Motion post show. A great fit for Future World. With displays that actually drew crowds.

Prototype models and renderings of futuristic ride systems.

On over to the west side. Imagination!

Over at the land we get a look at Kitchen Kabaret.

And its Kraft curtain!

Next door we see the future site of The Living Seas. Notice the rendering on the construction wall 

And some fun-loving EPCOT Center cast members. 

It's weird to think of the 80s as "vintage" but when looking at these photos, we see that the 80s happened quite some time ago. Enjoy.

Related posts:

EPCOT 30TH: A Photo Tour of the Past [Part 1]
EPCOT Center Graphics
Daredevil Circus Spectacular at EPCOT Center
EPCOT Construction from the Air
THEN AND NOW: Epcot Future World [Part 1]

Walt Disney World in 1971 [Part 1]

October 1 marks not only the anniversary of the opening of EPCOT Center (1982) but the openings of Magic Kingdom and Walt Disney World (1971) as well. We present some wonderful color photos of Magic Kingdom taken by a construction worker in 1971. These photos come courtesy of Nomeus of www.flurbex.com who is the grandson of man behind the camera. These photos are exclusive to ImagineeringDisney.com.

North end of Main Street.

An almost dry moat. Look at the freshly-installed sea serpent topiary.

Tomorrowland spires with a man on top! That's Nomeus' grandfather.

Tomorrowland opened in 1971 without the PeopleMover, Rockettower Plaza, Space Mountain, or Carousel of Progress which would all be visible from this angle today.

Grandfather walking on an unfinished Tomorrowland roof.

A view of the parking lot east of Main Street. Town Square and main entrance on the far right.

Backside of Main Street East.

Grand Prix Raceway. Anyone know what that is on the overpass?

The caves of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. You'll notice the Skyway line and pillar. The grass hill on the left wasn't there for long. It became the second home to the Fantasyland Art Festival in 1973. Later it became the Enchanted Grove stand. Today it's called Cheshire Café.

More 20K! No water yet.

More colorful 20K. In the background you can see the top of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

Can you imagine walking around every morning watching the place come to life?? 

 Everyone who wasn’t on the construction crew was invited to visit the Walt Disney World Preview Center. Today you can still drive by the building which is currently home to the Amateur Athletic Union. It’s located at 1910 Hotel Plaza Boulevard near Downtown Disney.

A big thanks to Nomeus and his family for the photos. Stay tuned for Part 2 where we share more of these gorgeous photos.

Related posts:

WDW Before Opening Day 1971
WDW Construction: Magic Kingdom
THEN AND NOW: MK Tomorrowland [Part 1]
Bin Laden Mansion Minutes From Walt Disney World
20K- 1979
20K Lagoon- 1982

WDW Construction: Polynesian Village Resort

Join us as we take a step-by-step look at the unusual construction of the Polynesian Village Resort at Walt Disney World.

The Polynesian was originally named the Polynesian Village Resort Hotel but was renamed Disney's Polynesian Resort sometime in 1985. Here we start with the foundations of the resort as well as the lake dock and some Monorail beams.

From further north we see the progress. At this point we are already in the year 1971. Let's hope we are ready for October. What's that rectangle of land in the foreground?? That's the site of the never-built Asian Resort!! This is a rare look at the land that eventually housed Disney's Grand Floridian.

The Great Ceremonial House begins to take shape.

Meanwhile at a facility on the east end of Walt Disney World property, U.S. Steel workers assembled hundreds of rooms.

Today the building still stands at 1500 Live Oak Lane, Orlando, FL 32830. If you've ever driven "the back way" to Magic Kingdom via Highway 535, you've seen the softball field.  The facility was just south of that.

Location provided by Twitter follower @SimonTravels

That's right, these modular guest rooms were assembled, finished, and furnished on an assembly line of sorts before being trucked over to the Poly construction site. A very similar process took place with the Contemporary Resort rooms.

A scale model shared by a couple of US Steel executives.

The rooms then get stacked into place. This was slightly different than the modular Contemporary Resort Hotel rooms which were "slid" into the various slots of the large a-frame structure.

Roof framing begins to take place.

The Monorail station also comes about.

The roofs are completed along with the rest of the guest buildings. Landscaping comes next.

Related posts:

WDW Before Opening Day 1971
Polynesian Village Resort- 1985
Polynesian "Nanea Volcano Pool"- 1985
WDW Construction: Magic Kingdom
EPCOT Construction from the Air
EPCOT Center Construction Photos: Future World