Theme | 19th Century American Frontier, American History, North America and Latin America |
---|---|
Disneyland | |
Status | Operating |
Opened | July 17, 1955 |
Magic Kingdom | |
Status | Operating |
Opened | October 1, 1971 |
Tokyo Disneyland (As Westernland) | |
Status | Operating |
Opened | April 15, 1983 |
Disneyland Paris | |
Status | Operating |
Opened | April 12, 1992 |
Hong Kong Disneyland (As Grizzly Gulch) | |
Status | Operating |
Opened | July 14, 2012 |
Frontierland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Disneyland-style parks run by Disney around the world. Themed to the American frontier of the 19th century, Frontierlands are home to cowboys and pioneers, saloons, red rock buttes and gold rushes along with some influence from American history, North America in general and Latin America. It is named Westernland at Tokyo Disneyland and Grizzly Gulch at Hong Kong Disneyland.
To build an accurate depiction of an old-West town, Walt Disney sent a camera crew to Frontier Town, in North Hudson, New York, to film a movie that was used as the inspiration for Frontierland, as revealed in the book, "Frontier Town Then And Now."
Frontierland. It is here that we experience the story of our country's past. The color, romance and drama of frontier America as it developed from wilderness trails to roads, riverboats, railroads and civilization. A tribute to the faith, courage and ingenuity of our hearty pioneers who blaze the trails and made this progress possible.
Frontierland first appeared in Disneyland as one of five original themed lands. [1] Initiated by Walt Disney, in the beginning, the land contained few attractions, but centered on open expanses of wilderness which guests traveled through by stagecoach, pack mules, Conestoga wagon, and walking trails.[ citation needed ] The Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland opened in 1960, consisting of a sedate train ride around various western landscape dioramas. The Mine Train closed in 1977 to make way for a new attraction; the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, which opened in 1979.[ citation needed ]
Disneyland's Frontierland gateway is constructed of ponderosa pine logs. The land's long shoreline along the Rivers of America is considered a prime viewing location for the nighttime Fantasmic! show. The docks to both the Mark Twain Riverboat and the Sailing Ship Columbia, (a replica of American explorer Robert Gray's 18th century ship that circumnavigated the globe) are located here, and Tom Sawyer Island in the river's center is also considered a property of Frontierland
On the roof of the Westward Ho Trading Co., there are elk or deer antlers. Elk antlers were commonly placed on general stores in the old west so cowboys coming into town immediately knew where to get supplies. Also in Frontierland is a building that has a large sign that says "Laod Bhang Co. Fireworks Factory". Plus, at the storefront marked "Crockett and Russel Hat Co.", there is a window honoring Fess Parker, who played Davy Crockett in Walt Disney's Davy Crockett. Frontierland borders Fantasyland (via the Big Thunder Trail), New Orleans Square and Adventureland, and connects to the Central Plaza through an iconic set of fort-style gates.
Frontierland at Magic Kingdom debuted with three attractions: the Walt Disney World Railroad station, Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes (which operated until 1994) and the world debut of the Country Bear Jamboree (which was permanently closed in 2024 to make way for Country Bear Musical Jamboree). Tom Sawyer Island opened in 1973. The northwestern end of the park was supposed to receive a massive, pavilion-style "E ticket" attraction, which was never built. The area sat empty until Big Thunder Mountain Railroad premiered in 1980.
Few changes would be made until 1991, when Splash Mountain, based on the animated sequences from Disney's 1946 film Song of the South , was built on the vacant land between Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and the Walt Disney World Railroad station and parade access road, necessitating the relocation of the railroad's station. Splash Mountain and a new two-story railroad station opened on October 2, 1992. Frontierland borders Adventureland on the south, Liberty Square on the east, and the Rivers of America on the north.
In June 2020, Disney announced that they would be reworking Splash Mountain into a new ride, based on the 2009 animated film, The Princess and the Frog. Disney stated that the project had been in development since 2019 and was overseen by Walt Disney Imagineer Senior Creative Producer Charita Carter while Splash Mountain's original creator Tony Baxter returned as a creative adviser. [9] [10] Splash Mountain closed on January 23, 2023. [11] Tiana's Bayou Adventure officially opened on June 28, 2024. [12]
On June 13, 2024, Disney announced that Magic Kingdom version of Frontierland Shootin' Arcade would permanently close on June 23, 2024 to make way for a new Disney Vacation Club Member lounge, McKim's Mile House, which will be open in Summer 2025. [13] [14]
At D23 Expo 2024, plans were unveiled for a Cars sub-area focused around off-road adventures in a new portion of the Cars universe's American wilderness, which is set to replace Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America. [15] [16]
Tokyo Disneyland's area is known as Westernland, as "frontier" does not adequately translate into the Japanese language. The Mark Twain sails this park's Rivers of America. Other than differences in placement, and minor variations in color, theming and name, the land is very similar to the Frontierland and Liberty Square areas of the Magic Kingdom.
Located in the area that is traditionally occupied by Adventureland, Frontierland at Disneyland Park opened with Euro Disneyland in 1992. Unlike all of the other instances, this instance has an elaborate backstory concerning the town of Thunder Mesa, founded by Henry Ravenswood to support the mining of Big Thunder Mountain. This backstory also serves as the foundation for several of the attractions, such as Phantom Manor, a version of the popular Haunted Mansion attraction that can be found at some of the other parks featuring a Western theme and a darker tone to fit in with the rest of Frontierland. The land is the largest of all of the Frontierlands thus far, containing the entire Rivers of the Far West within its borders.
Two riverboats circle the river here, the Molly Brown and the Mark Twain and can be boarded at the Thunder Mesa Riverboat Landing. Critter Corral was an old area of the land converted into Woody Roundup, a meet and greet area with Woody from Toy Story along with Jessie and Bullseye from Toy Story 2 . On the shores of the Rivers of the Far West is Frontierland Playground (formerly named Pocahontas Indian Village), a children’s playground themed to resemble a traditional Native American village. [23] The land is converted into 'Halloweenland' in October, with many pumpkins and other scary characters lurking around every corner. Frontierland borders Adventureland and the Central Plaza of Main Street, U.S.A. via Fort Comstock.
In October 2008, for the first time in Disney history Jack Skellington and Sally from Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas made appearances as meet and greet characters in Halloween and Christmas overlay. They are situated outside Phantom Manor.
In 2012, Grizzly Gulch (Cantonese: 灰熊山谷) opened as the park's equivalent to Frontierland. Grizzly Gulch is much smaller compared to the "Frontierlands" of other Disney Parks, featuring only one ride, Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars. This roller coaster attraction provides a cross between the Big Thunder Mountain Railroads of the classic Frontierlands with elements from Expedition Everest, featuring special ride elements unique to this attraction, including backwards portions, and a high speed launch section.
Grizzly Gulch is themed as a Northern California mining town established on August 8, 1888, a founding date chosen as "the luckiest day of the luckiest month of the luckiest year". Though geyser fields disrupted the initial settlements, the town eventually found success when a family of bears lead one of the prospectors to a bountiful gold find, resulting in the establishment of the Big Grizzly Mountain Mining Company. The bears were declared as being a lucky charm for the town and were given protected status, despite their activity occasionally disrupting work in the mines.
Magic Kingdom Park is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, it opened on October 1, 1971, and is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Experiences division, the official park name has changed slightly over the years, from Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017), the park was initialized by Walt Disney and designed by WED Enterprises. The park layout and attractions were based on Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and are dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.
Disneyland Park, originally Euro Disneyland Park, is a theme park found at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. The park opened on 12 April 1992 as the first of the two parks built at the resort. Designed and built by Walt Disney Imagineering, its layout is similar to Disneyland Park in California and Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World in Florida. Spanning 56.656 ha —the second largest Disney park based on the original, after Shanghai Disneyland Park—it is dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a mine train roller coaster located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park (Paris). In Tokyo and Paris, the attraction is named Big Thunder Mountain. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is also the name of the fictional rail line the roller coaster depicts.
Bayou Country is one of the lands at Disneyland Park. There is a similar land at Tokyo Disneyland called Critter Country. At Disneyland Park it opened in 1972 as Bear Country, with the Country Bear Jamboree (1972–2001) as its centerpiece. In 1988 it was renamed Critter Country, and in 2024 it was renamed Bayou Country to coincide with the opening of Tiana's Bayou Adventure.
The Rivers of America is the artificial river found in the Frontierland areas of Disneyland-style Disney theme parks around the world. The first river was built in Disneyland when the park opened in 1955. It surrounds Tom Sawyer Island, which guests reach by raft from Frontierland. Additionally, there are other water-based vehicles on the river. The various sights along the Rivers include a Native American tribe, a burning cabin, and audio-animatronic wildlife.
Liberty Square is one of six "themed lands" and is exclusive to the Magic Kingdom, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Themed after colonial America, Liberty Square contains replicas of both the Liberty Bell and Liberty Tree. One of the most popular attractions in the Magic Kingdom, the Haunted Mansion, is located in this land. Presiding over the square is the Hall of Presidents, an American history show featuring an audio-animatronic figure of every President of the United States. Liberty Square has a long waterfront on the Rivers of America and the Liberty Belle steam paddleboat departs from a landing here.
The Western River Expedition (WRE) was a Disney theme park attraction that was designed but never built. It was to be a western themed boat ride, slated to appear in the northwestern section of Frontierland at the Magic Kingdom, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States.
Mike Fink Keel Boats were small boats that navigated the Rivers of America at Disneyland, the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris.
Frontierland Shootin' Arcade was an attraction in Walt Disney World which simulates a shootout in Tombstone, Arizona, over Boot Hill in 1850. The gallery included a jail, hotel, bank, and cemetery with a total of 97 targets which are animated when shot. After over 50 years of operation, it was closed in 2024.
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Bayou Country section, up to twenty visitors paddle a canoe around the Rivers of America, accompanied by two guides. This is the only Disneyland attraction that is powered by park visitors.
The Disney riverboats are paddle steamer watercraft attraction ride vehicles operating on a track on a series of attractions located at Disney theme parks around the world.
Tom Sawyer Island is an artificial island surrounded by the Rivers of America at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland. It contains structures and caves with references to Mark Twain characters from the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and provides interactive, climbing, and scenic opportunities. At Disneyland in 2007, the attraction was rethemed and expanded as Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer Island, adding references to Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean film series.
Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars is a steel roller coaster in the Grizzly Gulch section of Hong Kong Disneyland. The attraction features Audio-Animatronic bears as well as a backwards section. Big Grizzly Mountain is the second mountain and third roller coaster attraction at Hong Kong Disneyland.