Disney World Castle!

[epcot_dreamer]

It isn't a lame secret, just not a secret to those of us with a unique obsession with WDW

Did you know that the castle is 189 feet tall because Walt didn't want to put a red light on the top to warn passing planes? By Florida law, if a structure is 190 feet tall or greater, they must have a blinking red light on the highest point. Walt didn't want to ruin the magic, so he made it 1 foot shorter.



Just a little tidbit

Walt was deceased before cinderella castle was designed and bult his brother and the rest of the Imagineers designed the Magic Kingdom

[BamaJenn]

Walt was deceased before cinderella castle was designed and bult his brother and the rest of the Imagineers designed the Magic Kingdom

Actually... Walt was very much a part of the design and planning for "The Florida Project" before his death in December '66. It wasn't but a few months later that construction began... something that can't happen until all planning and blueprints are drawn out and all government approvals are obtained (something that would've sparked the whole light discussion to begin with). So, I think it's probably correct to say he had some influence on the height of the castle for that reason.

[DopeyDancer87]

That's right! He bought up the majority of the land for WDW under surrnames in order to get the land for cheaper...had Disney gone into the area as "The Walt Disney Company", the land would have been triple the amount. In fact, once the public found out that it was Disney buying up all the land, the price per acre spiked to hundred of dollars per acre instead of about $20 an acre.

[Keasmom]

It's not lame, just not general knowledge. If everyone has noticed the Introduce yourself page, there are a lot more newbies coming on board and some may not know what the rest of us do, so any information is good information. This was one I knew, but had moved to the back of file storage in my brain housing, so good reminder.

[BamaJenn]

Exactly - that was why, although I knew it, I hated picking the "Lame" choice to say so.

[rocknrollercfan]

I have known this for quite a while, but then again I read so much on Disney World and I have seen a lot of specials on TV.

[ta2edgoofy]

That's right! He bought up the majority of the land for WDW under surrnames in order to get the land for cheaper...had Disney gone into the area as "The Walt Disney Company", the land would have been triple the amount. In fact, once the public found out that it was Disney buying up all the land, the price per acre spiked to hundred of dollars per acre instead of about $20 an acre.

it actually jumped to 1000 dollars and acre. and to address the castle height issue, it has always been 200 feet. and walt was only around for the buying of the property, they did not start construction on wdw till many years after, because at first they didnt think it would be appropriate to build it after he passed

[BamaJenn]

iand to address the castle height issue, it has always been 200 feet. and walt was only around for the buying of the property, they did not start construction on wdw till many years after, because at first they didnt think it would be appropriate to build it after he passed

Actually, Walt passed in December 1966 and construction began in April 1969. The reason for the roughly 2 year delay wasn't totally due to considering not building it. Everyone in WDI knew that they had to move forward with completing Walt's dream. Sure there was a little delay as everyone mourned and thought about it but the 2 years was really just a normal time frame for planning. Finishing the plans, getting the permits, lining up the contractors, getting materials, surveying the land etc.... all that takes a very long time for an endeavor as big as WDW's Magic Kingdom.

[PolynesianMedic]

although I knew this one as well, I still think that it is really cool that they were able to make the castle look like it was built with many bricks, when it really wasn't. Especially since they did it when they did.

[°O°Joe]

already knew it...

[Optimus Stitch]

That is a good secret.

[Mellisapi]

What a cool secret!!!!

[chipmunkgal]

Am I the only one who didn't know?

Good secret!

[DisneyGal04]

Am I the only one who didn't know?

Good secret!

nope! I didn't know about this also

it's a pretty cool secret!

[firemedic]

Did you guys know that the tallest turret on the castle can be "unscrewed" in case of a major hurricane? And also that the parades are controlled from one of the smaller turrets? A bit of info I read about years ago. Always thought it was pretty cool.