September 23, 1980 – The Frontierland Attraction Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Opens in Walt Disney World
“Streak through a haunted gold-mining town aboard a rollicking runaway mine train.”
On September 23, 1980, the Frontierland attraction Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom park. It was based on the original Disneyland attraction, which opened on September 2, 1979. Unlike the Disneyland version, the Walt Disney World attraction is based on the scenery found in Monument Valley, Utah. The attraction also adds a “haunted” element to the attraction, with a backstory claiming that a supernatural force was awakened when gold was discovered on the mountain in the 1850s.
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