It’s May 30th, 1967, and you’re attending a groundbreaking ceremony for a colossal construction project in central Florida. Roy Disney takes the podium and announces the official name of the project as “Walt Disney World” - a living legacy to his brother who passed away in 1965 shortly after announcing his intention to open a theme park and resort in the area.
The scope of the project is like nothing you’ve seen before so it doesn’t surprise you that it would be four years before the first phase opened. In October 1971 the Magic Kingdom, Contemporary Resort, and Polynesian Resort would welcome guests, all transported by a nifty transit system called the “Monorail.”
The History Of Walt Disney World: Five Decades of Magic