6. Western River Expedition
Proposed for: Magic Kingdom
When it would’ve opened: 1970s
When Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, its lineup was in many ways of “best of” Disneyland-at-the-time… with one exception. Magic Kingdom opened without Pirates of the Caribbean. In fact, designers had intentionally left it out, believing that pirates were a historical reality for the Southeastern United States, not a fantasy sing-along topic.
Prominent Disney Imagineer Marc Davis – responsible in part for many classics from Pirates to Haunted Mansion – had designed a replacement of equal scale. Space in the park’s Frontierland was set aside for an entire mini-land called Thunder Mesa, which would’ve contained a single massive showbuilding (disguised as a desert mountain range) containing a log flume past wildlife, a coaster through the mountains, and – inside – the Possibilityland: Western River Expedition, a dark ride equal to Pirates in scale and execution.
What happened: When Magic Kingdom opened, guests weren’t too happy to find Walt Disney’s famous “pirate ride” missing, and eagerly filed their requests to have Pirates come to Florida. Marc Davis was charged with overseeing a quick turnaround on a Pirates of the Caribbean for Disney World. Though that alone didn’t mean Thunder Mesa was doomed, the ’70s became Disney’s era of lower-cost thrill rides. The expense of the self-contained mini-land was too great, and only its coaster element survived as Big Thunder Mountain.
7. Liberty Street and Edison Square
Proposed for: Disneyland
When it would’ve opened: 1960s
Main Street USA famously recalls an idealized, nostalgic version of Midwestern “everytowns” at the turn of the century, just as Walt was growing up. Official plans for the park showed the addition of many other accessory streets branching off from Main Street, including Chinatown, International Street, and – most famously – Liberty Street.
A departure from Main Street’s 1900s setting, Liberty Street would’ve been set in the late 1700s just as America declared its independence from Great Britain. Liberty Street would’ve included an ambitious Hall of Presidents displaying all of America’s leaders.
Meanwhile, another branch from Main Street would lead to Edison Square. A perfect transition between Main Street and Tomorrowland, Edison Square would’ve showcased a town powered by Edison’s inventions and the ingenuity of the American spirit.
It would even include a walk-through show where guests would explore the changing American home through the decades, watching the American family as it evolved through progress alongside our electronic host, Wilbur K. Watt.
What Happened: Unfortunately, neither expansion of Main Street ever happened. Liberty Street served as inspiration for Magic Kingdom’s Liberty Square land, and plans for a Hall of Presidents came to fruition there (while Disneyland still has Mr. Lincoln, all alone in the Main Street Opera House). Edison Square was cancelled, but we stepped along its streets in our exploration of the attraction it inspired – the Modern Marvel: Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress. Today, Space Mountain partially occupies the land once imagined as these Main Street extensions.
In some ways, the two concepts live on in spirit at Disneyland Paris, where covered “arcades” run parallel to Main Street – the historic Liberty Arcade on Frontierland’s side, and the retro-futuristic Discovery Arcade on Discoveryland’s side.
8. Lost Expedition
Proposed for: Disneyland
When it would’ve opened: Mid-1990s
The late ’80s and ’90s were a truly epic time at Disney Imagineering. Bolstered by Michael Eisner’s “Ride the Movies” era, projects of unprecedented scope and scale were designed and concepted in Glendale. One of the most elaborate, though, must have been Indiana Jones and the Lost Expedition; a plan for the famous Raiders of the Lost Ark hero to gain his own mini-land within Disneyland’s Adventureland.
Not unlike plans for Thunder Mesa, the massive, disguised Lost Expedition pavilion would’ve contained not only the EMV dark ride through a lost temple, but a mine-cart based roller coaster through lava-filled caverns straight from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. But the most interesting aspect of this never-built land is how it would’ve absorbed its Adventureland neighbors, with a ro-routed Jungle Cruise passing through the complex as well as the Disneyland Railroad.
What happened: Likely due to its massive cost and (you guessed it) the financial strain of Disneyland Paris, Indiana Jones and the Lost Expedition was downsized. Incredibly, the “remnant” is the Modern Marvel: Indiana Jones Adventure – Temple of the Forbidden Eye, easily one of the most ambitious and spectacularly-scaled dark rides on Earth… so to imagine that the plans were once grander is pretty amazing to consider.
The mine cart coaster concept was finally realized by way of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril at Disneyland Paris, but it’s outdoors and lacks the EMV dark ride (though it was proposed as its neighbor). Ironically, Tokyo DisneySea built both (a copy of California’s dark ride and a copy of Paris’ coaster) right next to each other, though the coaster there isn’t explicitly tied to Indy.
Though the Lost Expedition wasn’t built at Disneyland, some of its land-unification did happen. Just before the opening of Indiana Jones Adventure, the land’s bazaar and the Jungle Cruise were aged and rusted to place them in a new, 1930s setting and timeline. Phonograph standards now echo through the land, and the 2018 opening othe Tropical Hideaway cleverly tied the stories of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye to the S.E.A. mythology.
What It All Means
Many of these projects are impressive and elaborate, and would certainly incite a lot of disappointment in fans that they never came to fruition. But remember, they say that good ideas never die at Disney, and we can already see how that’s true in a few of these examples, which have come to life in new ways and different places. Still, which of these proposed lands would you most like to see brought to life at your home park?
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