Is There Still Evidence of a Railroad in Fort Wilderness?

S

Scott M

New Member
Original Poster
As a child in the 70s, I recall seeing my cousins' home movies of their camping trips to Walt Disney World. In some of these movies there appeared a train that traveled throughout Fort Wilderness as part of Disney's transportation system.

My family could never afford a Disney World trip ourselves, so it was not until 1986 when I finally made the trek for the first time at the age of 23. I made it a point to see if that Fort Wilderness train was still running but alas, it was not. It had been replaced by a tram and bus system.

Even though the train itself was no longer operational, there was evidence all throughout the campground of it's existence. There was still trackage here and there, spots where it was obvious that tracks once were, and there was even a wooden trestle still standing.

Now this was over 20 years ago and although I've been to Disney World a few times since that time, I've never been back to Fort Wilderness itself. I'm just wondering if any of that evidence of that old railroad still exists, especially the trestle.

Thank you for any and all input.

Scott
 
lilmizpixie3

lilmizpixie3

New Member
There is a trace of a railroad at disney! They have some spots where there is a bridge over the creek where the train probably went. I wouldnt doubt it.
 
unkadug

unkadug

Follower of "Saget"The Cult
DisneyPhD said:
Try this website.
http://www.fortwildernessrr.com/

Browse through the history section, I think it tells of any remains.
Click to expand...
Cool, I never knew that site existed....thanks.:wave:
nemobruce said:
Yes there is, if you know where the old rail road went you can still see some of the wood ties.
Click to expand...
What do wooden ties have to do with a train? :lol:
wood-tie-fishtail_oak-cherry-inlay.jpg
 
Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
Strangely enough some of the biggest remaining pieces of evidence are at PI. Some of the old cars were converted into ticket booths.
 
NOLADisneyFan

NOLADisneyFan

Member
Ok, that website is awesome and thumbs up to the OP who got everyone to talk about this little known part of Disney history.

But the funniest is the wood ties...i almost fell out of my chair.
 
Rob562

Rob562

Well-Known Member
Master Yoda said:
Strangely enough some of the biggest remaining pieces of evidence are at PI. Some of the old cars were converted into ticket booths.
Click to expand...

While a couple of the original cars *were* turned into the first ticket booths at PI, they were replaced at some point. The booths that operate now were custom built to be ticket booths, but the traincar theme was carried over. I don't know what became of the old cars. (Scrapped, I would assume)

EDIT:
From StartedByAMouse.com:
"A few of the passenger cars have turned up over the years around Walt Disney World. Some were used as the original ticket booths at Pleasure Island, before new, larger booths were built to resemble passenger cars. Another can be seen in the Typhoon Lagoon parking lot strapped to pontoons, supposedly used by the inhabitants of the area when the typhoon struck, creating the lagoon."
http://www.startedbyamouse.com/features/FWRR.shtml

-Rob
 
S

Scott M

New Member
Original Poster
cnfdrate1 said:
Ok, that website is awesome and thumbs up to the OP who got everyone to talk about this little known part of Disney history.

But the funniest is the wood ties...i almost fell out of my chair.
Click to expand...

I could not agree more about that website. Thank you DisneyPhD for the link!

And thank you, cnfdrate1, for the thumbs up on starting this thread, but what exactly is an OP?

Scott
 
Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
Rob562 said:
While a couple of the original cars *were* turned into the first ticket booths at PI, they were replaced at some point. The booths that operate now were custom built to be ticket booths, but the traincar theme was carried over. I don't know what became of the old cars. (Scrapped, I would assume)

EDIT:
From StartedByAMouse.com:
"A few of the passenger cars have turned up over the years around Walt Disney World. Some were used as the original ticket booths at Pleasure Island, before new, larger booths were built to resemble passenger cars. Another can be seen in the Typhoon Lagoon parking lot strapped to pontoons, supposedly used by the inhabitants of the area when the typhoon struck, creating the lagoon."
http://www.startedbyamouse.com/features/FWRR.shtml

-Rob
Click to expand...
Cool. I thought the current ticket booths looked a little off from real cars. I had no idea that they had been replaced.
 
S

Scott M

New Member
Original Poster
That's a great overhead shot of the remanence of the Fort Wilderness Railroad, WDW Monorail. Thank you.
Nansafan said:
OP = Original Poster
Click to expand...
Thank you, Nansafan for the meaning of OP. Being 44 years old, I was hoping that it didn't mean Old Person. :animwink:

Scott
 
steve2wdw

steve2wdw

WDW Fan Since 1973
Down near the bus drop (on the Pioneer Hall end), there is a wide open spot across the street where the station used to be. You can see where the railroad grade looking to the right. Although its overgrown, you can clearly see the route that the arriving trains would have traveled. On the other end of Fort Wilderness, I believe the trail horse ride starts out on the rail bed route.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom