Changes

| caption='''The exterior of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.|alt= Big Thunder Mountain'''| land=Frontierland

| site_area=2.5 acres108,900| park= Magic Kingdom

| fastpassopened=YesNovember 15, 1980 (some sources state November 8)

== Attraction History ==The history of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad actually begins with the story of the Western River Expedition. In the late 1960s Imagineer Marc Davis was tasked with creating a Frontierland alternative to Disneyland's [[Pirates of the Caribbean]] attraction <ref name="hill1">http://jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_chief1/b/jim_hill/archive/2000/12/31/why-quot-western-river-quot-went-south-part-3.aspx </ref>. Although the ride had proved to be extremely popular, Disney felt that guests in Florida would not be interested in the attraction due to the preponderance of pirates in Florida's cultural lore <ref name="dated"> http://www.omniluxe.net/wyw/wre.htm </ref>. Instead of pirates, Davis and his team pitched the Western River Expedition. This massive Frontierland expansion would have featured a boat ride similar to Pirates of the Caribbean, which would have taken guests through various scenes in the American Old West. Also included in the expansion would be hiking trails, a mule ride, and finally an attraction aboard a runaway train which was pitched to give the project a thrill component<ref> http://passport2dreams.blogspot.com/2015/01/all-about-western-river-expedition-part.html </ref>. When pitching his project Davis suggested:

The concept {{Quotation| "What if we were to incorporate a thrill ride into the 'Western River' project? Maybe have a runaway mine train that rolled across the top of the mesa as well as down along the sides of the show building?" <ref name= "hill1"/>}}[[Image:Mickeythunder2.jpg|thumb|400px|Mickey and Goofy outside of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad goes back to the in 1980.|alt= Mickey and Goofy Thunder Mesa expansion that Mountain]]Although the Western River Expedition was going to be added announced as "coming soon" in 1973 <ref name= "dated"/>, Marc Davis' masterpiece would never come to Fronteirlandfruition. When Walt Contrary to Disney World opened's beliefs, it did not include a [[Pirates one of the Caribbean]] attraction. Disney thought most common questions that Florida would not be interested in visitors to the Magic Kingdom had was "where are the pirates?" <ref> http://jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_chief1/b/jim_hill/archive/2001/01/01/274.aspx </ref>After seeing the attraction showcased on Walt Disney's Disneyland TV show, because there was already much pirate lore guests in the Florida culturehad expected to be able to ride the famed attraction. InsteadDue to the amount of guest demand, it was assumed Disney decided that the American West would be a more intersting subjectit needed to built Pirates, and plans for the concept of the Thunder Mesa expansion was bornWestern River Expedition were put on hold.

Imganeer Although Marc Davistried to keep his project alive, designed it was clear that the expansion which project would have been built in the form of a mountain in Fronteirland called Thunder Mesa Mountainbe too expensive. Davis had been working on the idea for years. The Western River Expansion would have included a dark boat ride (like Pirates) called the Western River Expedition. The new attraction would have taken guests through various Old West scenes, and featured an astonishing 150 Audio Anamatronic. Also included in the expansion, were plans for hiking trails, a mule ride, and a runaway train attraction. Due to high demand however, Disney decided it needed was already using its funds to build a Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in Disney World in 1973. With [[Space Mountain]], the addition [[Carousel of PiratesProgress]], it was decided that the Western River Expedition [[WEDway People Mover]] and the [[Star Jets]] in [[Tomorrowland]] and there was no longer needednot enough money to construct another large expansion <ref name= "dated"/>.

Even as Marc Davis tried to keep his project alive, it was clear that the project would be too expensive. Disney was already using it's funds to build Space Mountain, the [[Carousel of Progress]], the [[WEDway People Mover]] and the [[Star Jets]]. The final strike against the construction of Thunder Mesa the Western River Expedition came in 1973 when Imganineer Imagineer Tony Baxter (who had been tasked with fleshing out the Western River Expedition) showed his plans for a standalone mine train , thrill ride , called Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The new attraction taking took some the best elements of the Thunder Mesa mine train ride, but without the expensive show building<ref> https://www.mouseplanet.com/guide/251/Walt-Disney-World/Magic-Kingdom/Frontierland/Big-Thunder-Mountain-Railroad </ref>. Although Baxter suggested that the ride could be built next to the Western River Expansion building, only Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ever saw the light of day. After seeing the proposal, Disney green lit Big Thunder Mountain for both Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

Although the plan was put on hold until the completion of [[Tomorrowland]]. Construction began on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad began in January 1979 and it opened September 23, 1980<ref> http://www.wdwmagic.com/walt-disney-world-history.htm </ref>. The mountain that housed the attraction was modeled after Monument Valley in Arizona. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster was the first attraction in Disney World to be designed by a computer. Having a computer design the attraction , which allowed for Imagineers to create a much smoother ride. Imganineers however had a problem, although they new how to make When talking about the attraction look appealinguse of computers when creating Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the computer did not. It took Imganineers nine different designs before the computer accepted one without making changes. Imagineer Tony Baxter noted:

== Back story {{Quotation|So 9 times I did a new design that I thought would solve the problem and Queue==the computer would say no. So we built 9 tiny models to check the look until the computer said, "OK, I will accept this. This one is OK." That was the one we ended up building. But it took 9 designs before the computer approved!<ref> http://www.onlywdworld.com/2010/03/big-thunder-mountain-railroad-beyond.html </ref>}}

The back story for Big Thunder Mountain takes place in eventually opened to the small mining town of Tumbleweed. In the late 1800spublic on September 23, 1980, gold although its Grand Opening was discovered officially on Big Thunder Mountain and Tumbleweed soon boomedNovember 8 <ref> https://d23. Thunder Mountain however, was home to an ancient Indian burial ground, an Indian legend warned that disaster would strike if anyone tried to remove the gold from the com/this-day/big-thunder-mountain. Ignoring the warning, minors build a railway into the mountain and mined the gold. While deep -railroad-officially-opens-in -the mines, Indian spirits took control of -magic-kingdom-at-walt-disney-world/ </ref> (some sources list the mine cars. The miners were never heard from again, and the boomtown was quickly abandoned. Sometime later, the cars were found running without a conductor or crew, and a tourist attraction Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was built to allow guest to ride the possessed trains.date as November 15)

In the queueOn January 9, guest climb up the hill before reaching that station building. As they climb2012, guests will notice old mining equipment all around them, this is because the station building Big Thunder Mountain was at one time the offices of closed for a mining companymajor refurbishment <ref> http://www. After winding through the station building guests will finally reach the loading areawdwmagic. After getting into com/attractions/big-thunder-mountain-railroad/news/06oct2011-big-thunder-mountain-railroad-set-for-lengthy-refurbishment-in-early-2012.htm </ref>. During the trainsrenovations, guests are warned by The Prospector to keep their arms every single piece of track was redone and legs inside the vehicle at all times, "because this here is the wildest ride in the wilderness!"===Jason Surrell Backstory===According Jason Surrell in his book The Disney Mountains: Imagineering At It's Peak Tony Baxter came up with this back story:  {{Quotation|"In the Disney version, gold entire attraction was discovered in Big Thunder country in the 1850s, shortly after the Gold Rush began near John Arepainted. Sutter's Mill in CaliforniaFurthermore, leading to the formation many of the BTM Mining Companyattraction’s special effects that had become non-operational were fixed <ref> http://www. But the locals believed Big Thunder Mountain and the land around it to be sacred, and a protective supernatural force dwelt deep within the mountain to protect it from anyone who might deface it in the pursuit of profitwdwmagic. At first, the mining operation went along without incident, but as the miners began using explosives to blast deeper and deeper into the unforgiving rock and laying tracks for the mine train they'd use to retrieve its golden bounty, the com/attractions/big-thunder-mountain's ancient fury was unleashed. Strange noises emanated from -railroad/news/26may2012-video---take-a newly opened mineshaft. The spirits of long-dead miners could be heard tapping on the boarded walls of abandoned tunnels. Cavewalk-ins became common occurrences. And then the narrowthrough-gauge engines began rolling out of the station with no human hands -queue-and-onboard-ride-at -the controls-newly-refurbished-big-thunder-mountain-railroad. Entire trains, most times packed with unsuspecting passengers, would race driverless, at breakneck speed, along the spiraling steel and wooden trackhtm </ref>. The miners began to concede that perhaps the locals were right all alongIn March 2013 Thunder Mountain received a new “interactive” queue <ref> http://disneyparks.disney. Maybe go.com/blog/2013/02/first-look-an-imagineer-tour-through-the -big-thunder-mountain -railroad-and their mine interactive-queue- was cursedat-magic-kingdom-park/ </ref>. They abandoned their postsAt this time, the BTM Mining Company went bust, and soon Big Thunder became just another ghost town dotting the Old Westattraction also received a new backstory."}}

This back story was given with the opening of the Disneyland version of the attraction in 1979 and may or may not be the back story for the Walt ==Official Backstory==On November 19, 2012 Disney World versionannounced a new backstory for Big Thunder Mountain.The backstory goes:

===Music played {{Quotation| Barnabas T. Bullion is the founder and president of the Big Thunder Mining Company. The longtime mining magnate comes from a powerful East Coast family and considers gold to be his very birthright by virtue of his oddly appropriate name; in fact, he considers the ultimate gold strike to be his destiny.<br> And that is why he is having so much trouble with Big Thunder Mountain. According to superstitious locals, Big Thunder Mountain is very protective of the gold it holds within, and the unfortunate soul who attempts to mine its riches is destined to fail.<br> And so far that prophecy is coming to pass. The mine has been plagued by mysterious forces and natural disasters ever since.<br> And yet the Big Thunder Mining Co. is still in operation.<br> In fact, Bullion is discovering new veins of gold and digging new shafts every day, offering a closer look at the Big Thunder mining operation than ever before.<br> But a word to the wise for anyone attempting to visit the mountain: watch out for runaway trains.<ref>http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/11/walt-disney-imagineers-unveil-the Queue===-backstory-of-barnabas-t-bullion-prioprietor-and-president-of-big-thunder-mining-company/ </ref>”}}

The musical loop played inside ==Attraction Description=====Queue===In the queue for , guest climb up a hill before reaching the station building. As they climb, guests will notice old mining equipment all around them. This is because the station building was at one time the offices of a mining company. In the building, guests can also see a portrait of Barnabas T. Bullion (who has a suspiciously strong resemblance to Imagineer Tony Baxter), the president of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is approximitly 20 minutes long and features 14 songsMining Company. The songs included After winding through the station building, guests finally reach the loading area. As they are:getting into the trains they are warned by The Prospector to keep their arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times, "Because this here is the wildest ride in the wilderness!"

===Ride Plot===The ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad begins with guests leaving the loading load station. The train immediately enters a a dark tunnel and makes a left hand turn. In While in the tunnel the sound of bats screeching can be heard. The Inside the tunnel, the train makes a right hand turn and then begins to go up the attractions attraction's first hill. On the guests guest’s right, a series of caverns can be seeseen, before the train makes its way to the top of another hill. After another drop , the train turns right and goes up to two small hills. At this time it is possible to see another runaway train pass by. The train then enters the town of Tumbleweed.

[[Image:CousinElrodThunderMountain.jpg|thumb|400px|Cousin Elrod, one of the last inhabitants of Tumbleweed.|alt= Cousin Elron Tumbleweed Thunder Mountain]]====Tumbleweed====When guests under enter Tumbleweed they will notice that town has been flooded. On the left hand side of the town guests , riders will see the Dry Good Store, and the Gold Dust Saloon , which seems to be having a party on the second storyfloor. On the right sideof the tracks, a Tumbleweed sign says that they population went from 8015 to 247 to 15 , before now reading "dried out". Next to the sign, guests can see one of the few remaining residents of Tumbleweed, Cousin Elrod , who along floats along in his bathtub. Also in Tumbleweed on the riders left hand side is the rain man , Professor Cumulus Isobar, who's whose rain making machine seems to have worked a little too well. As the train passes through Tumbleweed riders will notice that the train seems to be sway swaying from side to side. This sensation ====Dave V Jones Mine and Boneyard====As guests exit Tumbleweed and head towards the boneyard, the train passes through another tunnel called the Dave V Jones Mine. As riders continue on, they go up another hill and eventually down a 540 degree helix to the left. At this time, there is created by banking a lot of scenery to see including: Audio Animatronic mules, a billy goat, a road runner and a snake, which all populate the tracks mountain landscape. After passing the animals, the train enters another tunnel, when suddenly an earthquake hits. As the rock rumble and shake, it seems that they will soon crush and bury guests, however The train makes it out just in nick of time. Now in daylight, the train drops away to the left towards the Rivers of America, before making another short turn and entering another tunnel. The train then enters the railroadboneyard scene.

===Dave V Jones Mine and Boneyard===As guests exit Tumbleweed and head towards the boneyard, the train passes through another tunnel called the Dave V Jones Mine. As riders continue on going up another hill and eventually down a 540 degree helix to the left, there is a lot of scenery to see. Audio Anamatronic mules, a billy goat, a road runner and a snake all populate the mountain landscape. Riders then enter another tunnel when suddenly an earthquake hits. As the rock rumble and shake, it seems that they will soon crush and bury the train. The train makes it by just in time. Now in daylight the train drops away to the left, towards the Rivers of America, before making another short turn and entering another shot tunnel. The train then enters the boneyard scene.  In the boneyard scene, guests will pass the bones of a dinosaur in the side of the mountain. As guests continue on the train rolls on, it passes through geysers which shoot up on either side of them. In recent years however, the geyser effect has not been in use. The trains train then hit hits a final break run and return returns to the station.

*The path that guests exit Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is called Nugget Way<ref> http://www.burnsland.com/2012/02/daily-photo-nugget-way-at-big-thunder-mountain/ </ref>.

* The Proprietor proprietors of the Dry Goods Store in Tumbleweed are D. Hydrate and U. Wither<ref> https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=Thunder+Mountain+%22D.+Hydrate%22 </ref>.

*In the queue for the attraction guests will can see crates from the fictional Lythum & Hyde Explosive Company.

*Another crate in the queue comes from the Clarksdale Miners Supply. Clarkdale was an Arizona mining town founded in 1912 by William A. Clark <ref> http://www.easywdw.com/uncategorized/big-thunder-mountain-railroad-and-frontierland-and-dumbo-patched-and-liberty-square-and-stitch-and-magic-kingdom-and-salad-update-part-1/ </ref>.

*Big Thunder Mountain Railroad takes up approximately 2.5 acres of land<ref name= "bythenumbers"> http://www.disneybythenumbers.com/wdw/wdwFrontierland.html </ref>.

*The track length of the attraction is 2,780 feetBarnabas T. Bullion looks very similar to Imagineer Tony Baxter

*The track length of the attraction is 2,780 feet <ref name==References==http://www.theneverlandfiles.com/tnf/disneyworld"bythenumbers"/thundermesa>.php

* In the Big Thunder Mountain queue, guests can find a plaque that reads "Joshua Hendry Machine Works, S.F. Cal." Not only did the Joshua Hendry Machine Works make real mining equipment in the 19th Century, but Arrow Development founders Andy Anderson, Karl Bacon, William Hardiman and Ed Morgan also worked at the company. Arrow Development would be instrumental in the creation of many of Disneyland's early attractions <ref> http://wwwthinkingofdesign.wdwmemoriesblogspot.com/disney2017/02/hendy-worldhomage-at-big-thunder-mountain-railroad.html</ref>

http* According to Imagineer Frank Mezzatesta, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was the first attraction to have a "lamp test" button on the dispatch controls. This was due to the fact that the lamps did not use LED lights and burnt out from time to time <ref> https://www.neatoramatwitter.com/2011FrankMezzatesta/05status/201547824230833672192 </neatoramaref>. ===Jason Surrell Backstory===According Jason Surrell in his book “The Disney Mountains: Imagineering At It's Peak” Tony Baxter came up with this back story: {{Quotation|"In the Disneyland version, gold was discovered in Big Thunder country in the 1850s, shortly after the Gold Rush began near John A. Sutter's Mill in California, leading to the formation of the BTM Mining Company. But the locals believed Big Thunder Mountain and the land around it to be sacred, and a protective supernatural force dwelt deep within the mountain to protect it from anyone who might deface it in the pursuit of profit. At first, the mining operation went along without incident, but as the miners began using explosives to blast deeper and deeper into the unforgiving rock and laying tracks for the mine train they'd use to retrieve its golden bounty, the mountain's ancient fury was unleashed. Strange noises emanated from a newly opened mineshaft. The spirits of long-factsdead miners could be heard tapping on the boarded walls of abandoned tunnels. Cave-big-thunderins became common occurrences. And then the narrow-gauge engines began rolling out of the station with no human hands at the controls. Entire trains, most times packed with unsuspecting passengers, would race driverless, at breakneck speed, along the spiraling steel and wooden track. The miners began to concede that perhaps the locals were right all along. Maybe the mountain-railroad-and their mine -- was cursed. They abandoned their posts, the BTM Mining Company went bust, and soon Big Thunder became just another ghost town dotting the Old West." <ref> Surrell, Jason. The Disney Mountains: Imagineering at Its Peak. New York: Disney Editions, 2007. Print. </ref>}}This backstory was given with the opening of the Disneyland version of the attraction in 1979 and may or may not be the backstory for the Walt Disney World version. Mr. Baxter’s backstory has since been superseded by the official Disney World backstory released in 2012.

http://www.2719hyperion.com/2007/02/snapshot-lytum-hyde-explosives-company.html http://www.wdwradio.com/2007/09/big-thunder-mountain-railroad/ http://land.allears.net/blogs/jackspence/2009/07/big_thunder_mountain_railroad.html Surrell, Jason. The Disney Mountains: Imagineering at Its Peak. New York: Disney Editions, 2007. Print.==References==