This Week in Disney History: September 2-8, 2019

There’s always a great, big, beautiful tomorrow at The Walt Disney Company, because every day is tied to a milestone in the heritage and rich history of a company that has been entertaining millions of people every year. Published every week, this interesting series features highlights from all the divisions of The Walt Disney Company. Let's see what happened this week:

This week: On Sept. 2, 1979, the Frontierland attraction Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened at Disneyland Park. Guests embark on a harrowing journey through dark caverns and deep sandstone gorges, encountering swarming bats, crashing landslides, and rumbling earthquakes along the way. Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter was intrigued by the scenery at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, so he designed Big Thunder Mountain Rail road to resemble it. The mountain itself is completely manufactured, with Disney Imagineers becoming expert on using cement and paint to create realistic-looking rocks.

To add atmosphere of the gold rush era of the Old West, the designers scoured the ghost towns of the western states and came up with ore carts, cogwheels, buckets, and other authentic mining equipment.

Sept. 2

1979 – Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opens at Disneyland Park 

Sept. 3

2001 – The animated television series Disney’s The Legend of Tarzan debuts

Sept. 4

2006 – Tower of Terror opens at Tokyo DisneySea

Sept. 5

1974 – The “Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue” dinner show opened in Pioneer Hall at Fort Wilderness at Walt Disney World Resort

Sept. 6

1993 – The television series Disney’s Adventures in Wonderland debuts on Disney Channel

Sept. 7

1984 – Morocco opens in World Showcase at Epcot, the first country to be added since the theme park opened in 1982

Sept. 8

2012 -The first Disney Baby Store, offering an array of products for babies, opens in Glendale, California

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