The Rivers of America and its various watercraft in Disneyland, 2007.
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.[1] It surrounds Tom Sawyer Island, which can be reached by rafts traveling from the Frontierland mainland. Additionally, there are other water-based vehicles which are found on the river. The sights along the Rivers include a Native American tribe, a burning cabin (though the cabin at Disneyland has been removed), and various audio-animatronic wildlife.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, there is no Frontierland, so the Imagineers merged the Rivers of America with the classic Adventureland Jungle Cruise attraction. Jungle river rafts now travel around the Rivers of Adventure, encountering similar situations as in the Jungle Cruise attraction, but on a much more open river and exposed to the elements of Adventureland. In the middle of the Rivers sits Tarzan's Treehouse, which can be reached by River Rafts.
Several steamboat and ship replicas sail the many Rivers.
Disneyland Paris - the Molly Brown Riverboat (sidewheeler) and the Mark Twain Riverboat (sternwheeler)
Disneyland
At Disneyland Park in Anaheim, the river passes through Frontierland, New Orleans Square and Critter Country.
History
Disneyland guests take a raft to Tom Sawyer Island, about 1960
The Rivers of America existed since Disneyland opened on July 17, 1955, opening with the Mark Twain Riverboat. However, the island that the river surrounds was left almost completely bare. The Mike Fink Keel Boats opened in December of that year.
In 1956, the river saw the opening of the Indian War Canoes (now Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes), as well as the Tom Sawyer Island area on the center island, newly accessible by raft.
The Sailing Ship Columbia was introduced in 1958.
The nighttime show Fantasmic! began showing on the river May 13, 1992.
The Mike Fink Keel Boats closed in 1997.
In September 2015, Disneyland Resort announced that the Rivers of America and its attractions would temporarily close starting January 11, 2016, to prepare for Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge.[2] An official Disneyland Twitter account confirmed that the Rivers of America would have a new route when it reopened from construction.[3] The Rivers of America and its attractions reopened in July 2017.[4]
Ecology
The Rivers of America is home to many natural wildlife not intentionally put by Disney. Ducks flying in from local parks, nature reserves and wetlands have brought many freshwater living creatures via their eggs getting stuck on the bottom of their feet and dislodging during landing in the river. Currently the river has many aquatic inhabitants some of them being freshwater carp, Koi fish, occasionally freshwater salmon, catfish, and Red-Eared Slider turtles. Since the Rivers of America is not filtered or chlorinated in any way, Disney has placed mosquitofish in the waterways -which also connect to the Jungle Cruise, the Adventurland-Frontierland-Castle moat, Big Thunder Pond, Storybookland Canal, and the Fantasyland pond which formerly hosted the Fantasyland motorboat cruise- all to battle mosquito larvae from growing. A wildlife food chain had set itself up in the rivers, the mosquito fish eat algae and insect larvae, they are then preyed upon by other river fish and turtles, deceased fish are eaten by catfish, and the food chain continues.
Upkeep
All the waterways in Disneyland are interconnected so that they may go through a natural process of filtration and de-stagnation much like a lake or pond can do. By connecting the waterways, the rivers and moats could act as a single body of water and prevent fouling like an abandoned swimming pool. To this day all the dark green waters of Disneyland are connected via underground connecting tubes, also allowing for aquatic life to pass through. Upon opening of the Rivers of America, the water was a brown color due to the soil and mostly natural clay that kept the water from sinking (the first fill-the-river day failed as the water was absorbed by the sandy Anaheim substrate). When the rivers and moats were eventually embanked by concrete, they didn't want the water to be clear or it would reveal pipes, guidance tracks, and other hidden functions, so today the rivers are dyed green with chalk, since the chalk doesn't settle and it doesn't bother the wildlife. Also included since opening day is a dry dock area for refurbishments.
The Rivers of America and the waterways of Disneyland remain at level even during the hot summer when the water evaporates, because most remaining original park gutters drain into the waterways. On rainy days, the gutters of the parks that are still connected to the Rivers of America allow for the river to rise to its normal level. Over-topping of concrete embankments happens frequently but has never posed a major issue.
Originally, the Rivers of America required draining every 5 years in order to clean up sunken debris, scrub algae forests away, and maintain upkeep of the Mark Twain and Columbia Sailing ship guidance track. In January 2010 when the river was drained after 7 years of continual operation, items found in the river were numbered in hundreds of cellphones, pagers, walkie talkies, a computer tower, a prosthetic leg, a bowling ball, and an Electric Convenience Vehicle (ECV). To prevent the Jungle Cruise and other waters from draining as well, the underground tubes were plugged with air bladders. Any fish and wildlife found in the river were placed (alive) back into the remaining waters of the park. Any Koi fish found, were donated along with the Koi once kept at the Disneyland Hotel, to the Huntington Library. When the Rivers of America were refilled, the wildlife migrated back into the river. With its most recent refurbishment and the addition of a specialized pumping and cleaning system that would not disrupt the aquatic life, the Rivers of America would not need to be drained for another 20 years.
In 2003, the motion picture Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl had its world premiere on the Rivers at Disneyland, with hundreds of celebrities and movie stars viewing the film on a purpose-built 90-foot-tall (27m) projection screen.
The world premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was on May 7, 2011, at a premium ticket screening at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, home of the original Pirates of the Caribbean ride that inspired the film series. Many of the film's stars were in attendance. The screening took place on the river with a temporary outdoor theater constructed along with a massive movie screen and sound system installed on the stage on Tom Sawyer's Island. The Sailing Ship Columbia was decorated like 'The Black Pearl' from the movie franchise and moved forward at a close proximity to the theater seating.
Since the opening of the Davy Crockett Explorer canoes, Disneyland Cast Members have hosted an annual event called "The Canoe Races" which takes place before park opening. Cast Members enter the race with a team they form and race in a canoe. The race is watched from the Frontierland/New Orleans Square area by many Cast Members who cheer on their friends and teammates. (Contrary to popular belief, the canoes are free floating and have no form of propulsion other than the man-power of paddling oars. Cast Members often joke about the difficulties of operating a canoe full of lazy guests who think the boat is motorized).
Over time instances have happened where on two separate occasions, people have drowned while trying to swim to shore.
On June 20, 1973, an 18-year-old man drowned while attempting to swim across the "Rivers of America". He and his 10-year-old brother stayed on Tom Sawyer's Island past closing time by hiding in an area that is off-limits to guests. When they wanted to leave the island, they decided to swim across the river even though the younger brother did not know how to swim. The victim attempted to carry his younger brother on his back but drowned halfway across. The teenager's body was found the next morning. The younger brother was able to stay afloat by "dog paddling" until a ride operator rescued him.
On June 4, 1983, another 18-year-old man drowned in the Rivers of America while trying to pilot a rubber emergency boat from Tom Sawyer's Island that he and a friend had stolen from a "cast members only" area of the island.
Magic Kingdom
At Magic Kingdom Park in Walt Disney World, Orlando, the river passes through Frontierland and Liberty Square. The Magic Kingdom river also hosts a cast member canoe race, similar to Disneyland's, called Canoe Races of the World (C.R.O.W.).[5]
At Disneyland Paris the river is known as the Rivers of the Far West, and it exists in Frontierland.[6] Uniquely at this park, Big Thunder Mountain takes the place of Tom Sawyer Island.
Mike Fink, called "king of the keelboaters", was a semi-legendary brawler and river boatman who exemplified the tough and hard-drinking men who ran keelboats up and down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
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 Park in Anaheim, California, and are dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.
The "E" Ticket was a fanzine devoted to the history of Disneyland and its attractions, especially the park as it existed during the lifetime of Walt Disney, publishing forty six issues between 1986 and 2009. It was edited and published by Disneyland fans Leon Janzen and Jack Janzen until Leon's sudden death on September 9, 2003. The last issue published by the brothers was the Fall 2003 Issue, #40, on Adventure Thru Inner Space. Jack continued the magazine without his brother, beginning with #41 in October 2004. In the final issue, #46, Jack noted that making the magazine "Hasn't been much fun without Leon", and he decided to end the magazine's run.
Fantasmic! is a nighttime show at Disneyland and Disney's Hollywood Studios. The show formerly operated at Tokyo DisneySea. It features fireworks, characters, live actors, water effects, pyrotechnics, lasers, music, audio-animatronics, searchlights, decorated boat floats, and mist screen projections. The narrative of Fantasmic! is a voyage through Mickey Mouse's imagination that culminates in a battle against the Disney Villains.
Critter Country is one of the "themed lands" at Disneyland Park and Tokyo Disneyland run by The Walt Disney Company and The Oriental Land Company. It originally opened as Bear Country at Disneyland Park in 1972, with the Country Bear Jamboree (1972–2001) as its centerpiece. In 1988 it was renamed Critter Country to prepare for the park's opening of Splash Mountain (1989–2023).
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 and North America in general. It is named Westernland at Tokyo Disneyland and Grizzly Gulch at Hong Kong Disneyland.
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.
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 Critter 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.
The Sailing Ship Columbia, located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California, is a full-scale replica of Columbia Rediviva, the first American ship to circumnavigate the globe. The Columbia has operated in the park for more than fifty years. Passengers of the ship take a 12-minute trip around the Rivers of America. At night, the Columbia plays the role of a pirate ship in riverfront performances of the park's nighttime show, Fantasmic!
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.
Davy Crockett was a five-part serial which aired on ABC from 1954–55 in one-hour episodes, on the Disneyland series. The series starred Fess Parker as real-life frontiersman Davy Crockett and Buddy Ebsen as his friend, George Russell. The first three and last two episodes were respectively edited into the theatrical films Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier and Davy Crockett and the River Pirates (1956). This series and film are known for the catchy theme song, "The Ballad of Davy Crockett".
Walt Disney's Riverfront Square was a planned theme park in St. Louis, Missouri that would have been the second Disney park, after Disneyland. The park was in development between 1963 and 1965.
References
↑ Strodder, Chris (2017). The Disneyland Encyclopedia (3rded.). Santa Monica Press. pp.415–416. ISBN978-1595800909.
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