Disney's America: Whose Patrimony, Whose Profits, Whose Past?

Author(s): Marcia G. Synnott

Source: The Public Historian, Vol. 17, No. 4 (Autumn, 1995), pp. 43-59
Published by: University of California Press on behalf of the National Council on Public History

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 Disney'sAmerica:Whose
WhoseProfits,
Patrimony,
WhosePast?

MARCIAG. SYNNOTT

Thislandisyourland,thislandis myland,
FromCalifornia
totheNewYorkIsland,
Fromtheredwood forest
tothegulfstream waters,
Thislandwasmadeforyouandme.
-Woody Guthrie

ON SEPTEMBER 29, 1994,theAmericanflagbeforeHaymarket, Virginia's

townhallwas flownat halfstaff, thepreviousday'sannouncement
following
byThe WaltDisneyCompanyofBurbank,California, thatitwas relocating
its proposed "Disney'sAmerica"themeparkfromthissmallcommunity,
locatedfourmileswestoftheBullRun/Manassas battlefields
and thirty-five
mileswestofWashington, D.C. Twice MayorJackR. Kapp had to re-raise
theflag,all thewhilefeelingthatthe$650 millionproject'scancellationwas
like "a funeral."The hopes of Haymarket's483 people had soared in
November1993,when The Walt Disney Companyhad chosen it forthe
project,aftertwoyearsofcarefuland secretiveconsideration ofthirty sites.
They had welcomedDisney'sAmericaforthe estimated3,000 directand
16,000indirectjobs thatit wouldbringto Haymarketand PrinceWilliam
County.Learningfromtwotop Disneyofficials ofthe relocationdecision
and possiblelossofan estimated$47 milliona yearforthestate'seconomy,
Virginia'sRepublicanGovernorGeorgeF. Allenwas reportedly "ashen";he
subsequentlypromised to assistDisney'sAmerica in finding another Vir-
ginia location. However, Maryland and West Virginiaare now also inter-
ested suitors.'
MARCIA G. SYNNOTrr,
who earnedherPh.D. fromtheUniversity of Massachusettsat Amherst,
is an associateprofessorin the Departmentof Historyat the University
of SouthCarolinain
Columbia. Since 1979,she has taughta graduatecoursein historicsiteinterpretation
forthe
department'sapplied history program.
1. JackR. Kapp,quotedin MichaelJanofsky,
"Town'Devastated'byLoss ofProject,"New
YorkTimes,September30, 1994, p. A12. AndreaStone and Carol J.CastanedawithDavid
43
The PublicHistorian,Vol. 17, No. 4 (Fall 1995)
? 1995 bythe Regentsofthe University of Californiaand
the NationalCouncilon Public History

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44 * THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

The Walt DisneyCompanyhad incurredmorethan$400,000in direct

lobbyingcostsduringthespring1994 GeneralAssemblysession,and had
been rewardedby legislativeapprovalof $163.3 millionin subsidies,of
which$131.4 millionwas topayforwidening1-66and Route15,expanding
existinginterchanges, and buildingnew ones. Havingwon approvalfor
zoningchanges from the PrinceWilliamCountyPlanningCommission,
Disney executives would probablyhavepassedtheotherregulatory require-
ments, but they could have done so onlyat the cost of becoming"Ugly
Americansat home."2The protestsby comparatively smallorganizations,
advocacygroups, and thousands ofconcerned citizens,someofwhomwere
indeed wealthy,had surprisedDisney ChairmanMichael Eisner,who
"expectedto be takenaroundon people'sshoulders"as a hero.He had also
developed a deep personalinterestin a Disney'sAmericathemepark,
followingvisitsto Russia,theholocaustmuseumsinWashington, D.C. and
Los Angeles,and historicJamestown. Atfirstglance,the $22 billioncom-
panyand Eisnerhad thecorporatemuscletohavewonthebattleforpublic
opinion.Butas Dan Ratherobservedon CBS News,Disney'sAmericahad
"lostcontrolofthescript."3
Instead,theprotesters recasttherolesofheroesandvillainsandwrotea
different to
ending Disney'sscript.FearingthatDisney'sAmericawould
endangerthe qualityof lifein the northern VirginiaPiedmont,as had
occurredinAnaheim,California withDisneyland(dedicatedin 1955)andin

Lieberman,contributing, battleagainstDisneywas no MickeyMouseoperation,"

"Virginians'
USA Today,September30-October2, 1994,p. 3A. MaryBethReganin Haymarket, Va.,with
Gail DeGeorge in Miami and Ronald Groverin Los Angeles,"MickeyDoes Manassas,"
BusinessWeek,November29, 1993,p. 46. Paul Anderson, "Disneyhaltsplan nearCivilWar
sites,"BostonGlobe, September30, 1994, p. 3. GovernorAllenlearnedin personof the
company'sdecisionto abandontheHaymarketsitefromMarkL. Pacala, Disney'sAmerica
General Manager,and Robert L. Shinn,seniorvice presidentof Disney Development
Company(PeterBakerand SpencerS. Hsu, "DisneyAbandonsPrinceWilliamCountySite,
Plansto FindAnotherVa. LocationforPark,"Washington Post,September29, 1994,pp. Al,
A15). SpencerS. Hsu and MarylouTousignant,"No Joyin Haymarket, ResidentsSay 'Fat
Cats' KilledtheGoldenMouse,"Washington Post,September30, 1994,pp. Al, A16;and Liz
Spayd and Paul Farhi,"Eisner Ended Disney Plan, ChairmanSaw Park FightHarming
Company'sImage,"Washington Post,September30, 1994,pp. Al, A16;andMichaelD. Shear
and SpencerS. Hsu, "'TheBeautyand theBeastin Disney'sDecision,ManyLivesChanged
For Betteror Worse In PrinceWilliam,"WashingtonPost,October2, 1994, pp. B1, B7.
Jonathan Yardleydoes notthinkthatDisneycan findanysiteinVirginiaand Marylandthatwill
not generatethe same oppositionthatit eventuallyfaced over the proposed Haymarket
location(Jonathan Yardley,"DisneyWar:The Mouse MayYet Bite Back,"Washington Post,
October,3, 1994, p. B2). For theirfaithfulnessin sendingme manyclippingsfromthe
WashingtonPost (June-October1994), I thankFrances Callan and Thomas Mason of
Alexandria, Virginia.
2. JeffGileswithAndrewMurr,"'TheRideGetsa LittleRougher," in"OfMice and Men,"
Newsweek,September5, 1994, p. 43. Michael Janofsky, "Town 'Devastated' by Loss of
Project,"New YorkTimes,September30, 1994,p. A12.
3. MichaelEisner,quotedinWilliamF. Powers,"EisnerSaysDisneyWon'tBackDown,"
WashingtonPost,June14, 1994,pp. Al, A18. RichardTurner,"DisneyHopes RetreatIs
BetterPart of Public Relations,"Wall StreetJournal,September30, 1994, p. B4. Paul
Anderson,"Disneyhaltsplan nearCivilWar sites,"BostonGlobe,September30, 1994,p. 3.
Dan Ratherand correspondent Bob Orr,CBS News,6:55 P.M., September29, 1994.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 45

Orlando, Florida withWalt Disney World (dedicated in 1971), a broad

coalition,each of whose membershas its own agenda,raisedwidespread
concernaboutthepotentialimpactofthe3,000-acresite.Bytheyear2010,
therewouldhavebeen a 405-acrethemepark,2,281residential units,1,340
guest rooms, 300 campsites,1.9 millionsquare feetof commercial space
(1,316,000square feetof retailand 630,000square feetin office/business
parkspace), twogolfcourses,and a 37-acrewaterpark.Althoughthetheme
parkwouldbe onlyone-tenth thesize ofWaltDisneyWorld,and mostofits
anticipated8,000,000 annual visitors
wouldbe day-trippers, theopponents
prevailed over the interests
of the businessboosterson the PrinceWilliam
County Board of Supervisors,in the VirginiaGeneral Assembly,and in
GovernorAllen'soffice.4
Manyscholarsobjectedto theproposedDisney'sAmericathemepark
fortworeasons.First,theygenerallydislikedthewayinwhichWaltDisney
hasportrayed episodesfromand culturalsymbolsoftheAmericanpast.For
example, they feared that Disney's America mightbecome another
Disneyland,describedbyKaralAnnMarlingas "pureL.A.,T.V.,high-tech,
shop-'til-you-drop1950s glitz." Main Street USA is, she says, "a
Williamsburgor a GreenfieldVillageadapted to the social climateof the
1950s,"in thatit"affirms thatthegood life-utopia-is American,middle-
class,and midwestern."5
Second, scholarsand othersopposed the theme park's construction
because of its potentialnegativeimpacton northern Virginia'snumerous
historicsites,especiallyon thecommercially besieged 5,100-acreManassas
National BattlefieldPark,whichdrawsabout 130,000visitorsannually.6

4. AndreaStoneandCarolJ.CastanedawithDavid Lieberman,contributing, "Virginians'

battleagainstDisneywas no MickeyMouse operation,"USA Today,September30-October
2, 1994,p. 3A. Sallie Hofmeister, to
"DisneyVows Seek AnotherParkSite,"New YorkTimes,
September30, 1994, p. A12. Editorial,"'Virginia, Say No to the Mouse," New YorkTimes,
February,24, 1994, p. A22. Public relationsinformation and zoningplans depositedby The
Walt Disney Companywiththe PrinceWilliamCountyPublic LibrarySystem,Gainesville,
Va.: "Disney'sAmericaFact Sheet,"May 23, 1994; "Disney'sAmericaMasterZoningPlan,"
May 20, 1994; "Disney'sAmericaGreenspacePlan,"May20, 1994;Designand Development
Guidelines. Disney's America,Prince William County,Virginia.Prepared for Disney's
Americaby Walt Disney Imagineeringand Disney DevelopmentCompany,in consultation
withHOH Associates,Inc., May 1994.
5. Karal Ann Marling,"Disneyland,1955,"AmericanArt 5, nos. 1-2 (Winter-Spring
1991), 206, 200, 168-207.
6. Writingin 1988, GeorgeWill recognizedthatthe Manassas/BullRun "battlefieldis
withinone ofthenation'sfastestgrowingareas,Washington's northern Virginiasuburbs,"but
he arguedthata developerwhowantedtoconstruct thesecondlargestmallinVirginianearby
"wouldimpairthepark'spedagogicfunction, makingithardertotaketheimaginative journey
back in timeto empathywiththe men caughtin theeventsthatchurnedand drenchedthe
earththere."Firmlybelievingthat"the protectionof places thatare partof our national
patrimony is theresponsibility
ofnational,notlocal,government," Willcalledon conservatives
to lead "thechargeon behalfoftheconservation ofbattlefields"(GeorgeWill,"WhereMen
Fought and Fell," Newsweek,July18, 1988, p. 68). "AntietamSupportersWin Shopping
CenterBattle,"NationalParks61 (Jan.-Feb.1987),37. PublicpressurepersuadedCongress,
in 1989, to buy Stuart'sHill foralmost$120 million,and,in 1990, Secretaryof the Interior
Manuel Lujan,Jr.,outlinedan AmericanBattlefield ProtectionPlan,underwhichthefederal

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46 m THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

Indeed, opponentsof Disney'sAmericaarguedfortheprotection of "the

entireregion-fromBull Run to the Blue Ridge,fromHarper'sFerryto
Monticello,"an area of about 8,700 square miles.JamesMcPherson,a
PrincetonUniversity historyprofessorand presidentof ProtectHistoric
America(PHA), a citizens'committeeoftwohundredscholars,painteda
bleakpicture:"Inevitably-tragically-urban sprawlwillreachformilesin
every all
direction, along the keyroadsintersectingthe region,destroying
thecharacterand cheapeningthehistorical attractionsthatdo notactually
get bulldozed."7
The NationalTrustforHistoricPreservation also dramatizedtheper-
ceived threatfromDisney's Americaby placingthe northernVirginia
Piedmontat the top of its 1994 listof America's11 Most Endangered
HistoricPlaces. A Disneythemeparkand real estateprojectcould have
negatively affectedeighteenCivilWar battlefields withina thirty-minute
driveof Haymarket.Since the ManassasBattlefield was just about four
milesaway,boththethemeparkandtheplannedand unplannedcommer-
cial development itwouldhavebroughtmighthavepermanently impaired
manyofitsfifteen vistas.8
McPhersonand David McCullough,twoPulitzerPrize-winning histori-
ans,and RichardMoe, presidentoftheNationalTrustforHistoricPreser-
vation,testifiedin Junebeforethe Senate Energyand NaturalResources
Subcommittee on PublicLands,NationalParks,and Forests.'Itschairman,

government wouldassiststateandlocalgovernments, conservation andpreservation organiza-

tions,and privatefoundations in protectinghistoricbattlefields
fromcommercialencroach-
ments.ArnoldBerke,"LujanUnveilsPlantoSaveCivilWarSites,"HistoricPreservation News
30, no. 9 (September1990),1,3; "Lujan'sPlan:A Local View,"a reprint fromPotomacNews,
Woodbridge,Virginia,in HistoricPreservation News 30, no. 9 (September1990), 4. David
LamboftheLos AngelesTimes,"Bulldozersadvancing on battlefields,"
TampaTribuneTimes,
September11, 1994,p. 14.A newlyestablishedAmericanBattlefield SitesAdvisoryCommis-
sion,fundedby$2 millionfromCongress,recordedas havingprincipalsignificance 384 ofthe
10,500siteslocatedin twenty-five stateswheresome fighting tookplace. Of thatnumber,it
urgedsomepreservation assistanceforfifty
sitesthataffectedthewar'sdirection andoutcome.
7. JamesMcPherson,letterto Dear fellowhistorian, June8, 1994.JamesM. McPherson,
statement in "A House Divided:HistoriansConfront Disney'sAmerica,"OAH Newsletter 22,
no. 3 (August1994),1,9. On May11,1994,ProtectHistoricAmerica(PHA) was organizedby
a groupofhistorians whoseco-chairsareC. VannWoodwardandJohnHope Franklin, bothof
whomare former presidents ofthreeleadinghistorical Organization
organizations: ofAmeri-
can Historians, AmericanHistoricalAssociation, and SouthernHistoricalAssociation.Among
the othermembersof PHA are the following luminaries:MaryFrancesBerry,Ken Burns,
Barbara Fields, Shelby Foote, Doris Kearns Goodwin,David McCullough,James M.
McPherson,RichardMoe, Nell Painter,MerrillD. Peterson,JamesI. Robertson, Jr.,Arthur
M. Schlesinger, Jr.,AnnieSnyder(battlefield WilliamStyron,
preservationist), NancyWeiss,
Tom Wicker,and RogerWilkins.
8. RichardMoe,statement in"AHouse Divided:Historians Confront Disney'sAmerica,"
OAH Newsletter 22, no. 3 (August1994),9. RichardMoe, "AtRisk:Our NationalHeritage,"
AudubonNaturalistNews 20, no. 7 (September1994), 20-21; ArnoldBerke,"Going Na-
tional,"HistoricPreservation News34, no. 4 (August/September 1994),21, 26.
9. David McCulloughis presidentof the Societyof AmericanHistorians,authorof a
PulitzerPrize-winning biography ofHarryTruman,hostofPBS's TheAmericanExperience,
narrator ofPBS's The CivilWarseries,and PHA executivecommitteemember."Whatdoes it
say aboutus,"he said rhetorically to theSenatesubcommittee:"... ifwe destroyor ... stand

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS m 47

ArkansasDemocratDale Bumpers,had playeda leadingrole in the 1989

federalpurchasefortheManassasNationalBattlefield Parkofthe540-acre
Stuart'sHill to preventit frombecominga shoppingcenter. He also
recognizedthe federalgovernment's "'dutyto considerthe potentialim-
of
pact' Disney on scores ofhistoric
sites scatteredthroughout thefarmsand
hillsidesoftheVirginiaPiedmont."'oMeanwhile,on June16, 1994,Texas
Democrat Mike AndrewsintroducedHouse ConcurrentResolution255
askingThe Walt DisneyCompanyto relocateDisney'sAmerica.Cospon-
soredbytwenty-nine otherrepresentatives, thisresolution"playeda critical
role in raisingthe debate over the Disney issue fromlocal to national
importance.""1
Historiansand preservationistsalso foundinfluential allies amongnu-
merous environmental groups. Raising over $1 million,the Piedmont
Environmental Council,a coalitionof 70 organizations and 5,000 families,
encourageddozensofenvironmental groupsto sounda clarioncall thatthe
projectwould bringthe dangersof air pollution,waterimpurities, traffic
gridlock,and unsightly urbansprawl.Environmental groupsrejectedThe
Walt DisneyCompany'sargumentthatcommercialgrowthin muchofthe
area around Haymarketand Manassas was inevitable;theybelieved that
stoppingDisney'sAmericawould slow futuredevelopment.Finally,Civil
Warbuffs,commuters, andvariouswell-to-dolocallandowners-andsome
middleclass-familieswho wantedto preservesmalltownand rurallife-
added theirprotests.And on September17, 1994, about 3,000 joined a
protestmarchto the NationalMall. The protestors, who receivedpositive
coverage and editorial
support from The New York Times and TheWashing-
tonPost,succeededinlaunchinga nationaldebatethatquestionedwhether
the PrinceWilliamCountysitewas "essentially a local land-usematter."'2

by whileothersdestroyhistoricalAmerica-knockit down,pave it over,blotit out--in the

name of so-called progressand corporateprofits?"(David McCullough,quoted in David
Lamb oftheLos AngelesTimes,"Bulldozersadvancingon battlefields," Tampa TribuneTimes,
September11, 1994,p. 14).
10. Senator Dale Bumpers,quoted in Spencer S. Hsu and Stephen C. Fehr, "Disney
CombatantsMarch Up Capitol Hill," WashingtonPost,June22, 1994,p. B5. George Will
"Where Men Fought and Fell," Newsweek,July18, 1988, 68. "AntietamSupportersWin
ShoppingCenterBattle,"NationalParks61 (January-February, 1987),p. 37. David Lamb of
theLos AngelesTimes,"Bulldozersadvancingonbattlefields,"TampaTribuneTimes,Septem-
ber 11, 1994,p. 14.
11. "Representative Andrews'Disney ResolutionProvesInfluential," HistoricPreserva-
tionNews 34, no. 6 (December 1994/January 1995),30.
12. JosephineF. de Give, directorof planningservicesof the PiedmontEnvironmental
Council of Warrenton,Va., "The Hidden Costs of Doing BusinessWithDisney,"Audubon
NaturalistNews20, no. 7 (September1994),4-6. Marie Kulik,Virginiaprogramdirectorfor
Clean Water Action,argued,in "Disney ProjectPuts Region'sWater Resources at Risk,"
Audubon NaturalistNews 20, no. 7 (September1994), 16: "Unlike mostotherhigh-tech,
commercial,and retailbusinesses,Disneyat Haymarketwouldbe a catalystfora mish-mash
of secondarygrowthin the formof t-shirtshops, fast-foodjoints,stripmalls,and other
unnecessaryland-gobblingand tax-revenue-depleting commercialstep-children." Andrea
Stone and Carol J.CastanedawithDavid Lieberman,contributing, 'Virginians'battleagainst
Disneywas no MickeyMouse operation,"USA Today,September30-October2, 1994,p. 3A.

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48 m THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

Although grassrootefforts
wereimportant, thecampaignagainstDisney
benefited fromsolidfinancing--over $2,000,000-andthepoliticalacumen
ofvariouskey"participants, paid andunpaid."Indeed,theopponentsdrew
on the expertiseof "publicWashington, frommediafirmsSquierKnapps
Ochs and FentonCommunication to DemocraticadviserJoelMcCleary
and formerBush administration membersBruceSmart,MarlinFitzwater
and MargaretTutwiler, as wellas consumeradvocateRalphNader."'3With
a well-orchestrated campaign,the opponentsultimately prevailedover
Disney's America executives and GovernorAllen, who had campaignedon
thesloganthat"Virginia was open forbusinessagain."'14
AtthesametimethatThe WaltDisneyCompanywasfighting thebattle
forDisney'sAmerica,ithad to swallowthelossof$900 millionfromEuro
Disney,whichhadopenedinApril1992andwhichtwoyearslaterrequired
a bailoutby Europeanbanksand $500 millionin assistancefroma Saudi
prince.Disney'snetincomehad fallentojustunder$300 millionin 1993,
comparedtoover$816 millionin 1992.Euro Disneywas Eisner's"first real
financialdisappointment" sincehe became CEO in September1984 (his
ownfive-year compensation ofapproximately $235 millionfor1990-1994
makeshim the highest-paid corporateCEO). In recentyears,The Walt
Disney Company has experiencedboth decliningvisitation to its theme
parks(althoughaboutone billionpeople havepassed throughtheirgates
since 1955) and continuing competition fromUniversalStudiosin Florida
andTimeWarner'sSixFlags.Attendance atDisneyWorld,forexample,has
decreasedsince 1990from33,700,000to 28,900,000visitors. Stockholders
and Wall Streetanalysts,then,maypreferthatDisneyenhanceitsexisting
themeparks,whose admissionsearningsare flat,ratherthanbuilda new
one on contestedground.'5

Sallie Hofmeister,"DisneyVowsto Seek AnotherParkSite,"NewYorkTimes,September30,

SayNo totheMouse,"New YorkTimes,February24, 1994,
1994,p. A12. Editorial,"Virginia,
themillionstobe giventoDisneyatthetaxpayers'
p. A22,criticized expense,because'Virginia
is notan Alabamaora SouthCarolinathatmustpayinvestors tosettlethere."Instead,thestate
was "one of the jewels of the Eastern seaboard, home to Jamestownand colonial
Williamsburg." "VirginiaApprovesDisneySubsidies,"NewYorkTimes,March13,1994,p.27.
SpencerS. Hsu and StephenC. Fehr,"DisneyCombatantsMarchUp CapitolHill,"Washing-
tonPost,June22, 1994,pp. B 1, B5.
13. SpencerS. Hsu and MarylouTousignant, "No Joyin Haymarket, ResidentsSay 'Fat
Cats' KilledtheGolden Mouse,"Washington Post,September30, 1994,p. A16.
14. Peter Rummell,statementin "A House Divided: HistoriansConfrontDisney's
America,"OAH Newsletter 22, no. 3 (August1994), 10. GovernorAllen,a Californianative,
quotedin SenatorJoeGartlan,Jr.,"A SorryDay fortheCommonwealth," AudubonNaturalist
News20, no. 7 (September1994), 13.
GileswithAndrewMurr,"The Ride Getsa LittleRougher"in"OfMice and Men,"
15. Jeff
Newsweek,September5, 1994, p. 43. JohnRossaniin Rome,withDouglas Harbrechtin
Washingtonand Ronald Gloverin Los Angeles,"How Disney Snared a PrincelySum,"
BusinessWeek,June20, 1994, pp. 61-62; "ReanimatingDisney World,"BusinessWeek,
December 5, 1994,p. 41. MarthaT. Moore,"Saudi princebuyingintoEuro Disney,"USA
Today,June2, 1994,p. 1. Its withdrawal fromtheHaymarket sitewas thefourthtimesince
May1988,whenitcanceleda Disney-MGMStudioBacklotin Burbank,thatThe WaltDisney
Companybacked awayfromone of its projects.In March 1992,it abandoneda $3 billion

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 49

Addingto thesefinancialwoes,The WaltDisneyCompanyexperienced

turmoilanda corporateshake-upaftertheaccidentaldeathofpresidentand
CEO FrankWells in a helicoptercrashduringa spring1994 skiingtripin
Nevada. In August,Eisnerunderwentemergencyquadruplebypassheart
surgery, and by month'send he had oustedhis formerprotege,the ambi-
tiousJeffrey Katzenberg,fromhis leadershipofWalt DisneyStudio'sfilm
and animationdivisions.EisnerdesignatedJoeRothtotakeoverthefeature
filmdivisionand vice chairmanRoy Disney, Walt's nephew, to head
animation.A new companypresidenthas not yet been selected. This
internalturmoilrequiredEisnerto actprudently in cuttingthecompany's
potential losses and in its
protecting image.'6
Given the mountingoppositionfrommanyquarters,Eisner evidently
decided thatkeepingthe Haymarketlocationwas notworthfighting envi-
ronmentalists' lawsuits, those
particularly based on tougherimplementation
of the Clean AirAct. Such lawsuitswould onlyintensify alreadynegative
publicity.Not onlydid it seem less likelythatthe themepark could be
opened as plannedin 1998,butby earlyOctober,Disneyhad to renewor
drop its optionson the land. In an apparenteffortto finda compromise,
DisneyChannelPresidentJohnF. Cooke,a friendofbothVice PresidentAl
Gore and RichardMoe, metseveraltimeswithMoe and historiansDavid
McCullough and JamesMcPherson.But when the discussionsbetween
Disneyexecutivesand Moe's groupfailedto resultin an agreement,Eisner
recommendedto his board, on Monday,September26, 1994, thatthe
Haymarketlocationbe abandoned.Withina fewdays,Disneyintendedto
announceitsdecisionin a jointmeetingwithMoe and the historians.But
leakstothemediachangedthetimetable.Thus,lateon September28,Peter
S. Rummell,presidentof Disney Design and DevelopmentCompany,
acknowledgedthe concerns"about the possible impactof our park on
historicsitesin thisunique area" and announcedthatDisney "willbegin
immediately sitewherewe can concentrateon
to seek a less controversial
ourcreativevision."The companywantedthethemeparktobe "a sourceof
prideand unityforall Americans," not"a sourceofdivisiveness."
The next

DisneySea themeparkproposalin Long Beach, California;and,in thesummerof 1994, the

companyputon hold a World'sFair projectin Anaheimto be calledWestcotCenter(Kirstin
Downey Grimsley,"Disney Packs Its Bags, HaymarketWithdrawalFollows PatternSet in
CalifbrniaCities,"WashingtonBusinesssection,Washington Post,October3, 1994,pp. 1, 16,
17; and "DisneySaysIt StillPlansa 2d SouthernCaliforniaPark,"New YorkTimes,December
29, 1993,p. D3). The companywillprobablychargea $15 and $20 millionlossforHaymarket
expenses againstits 1994 fourthquarterprofits.Concerned about the negativepublicity
generatedbyprotesters, Disneystockholders had alreadyfileda formalresolutionrequesting
a vote on "Disney's America"at the February1995 annual meeting(Michael Meyerwith
Stryker McGuire,CharlesFleming,MarkMiller,andAndrewMurrin Los Angelesand Daniel
McGinn in New York,cover "Eeeeeeek! Disney's Dilemma, Can the KingdomKeep Its
Magic?"story,"Of Mice and Men,"Newsweek[September5, 1994],p. 42). RichardTurner,
"Disney to Move PlannedTheme ParkTo 'Less Controversial' Site in Virginia,"Wall Street
Journal,September29, 1994,p. A3; and RichardTurner,"DisneyHopes RetreatIs BetterPart
of Public Relations,"Wall StreetJournal,September30, 1994,p. B4.
16. Michael Meyeret al.,"Of Mice and Men,"Newsweek,September15, 1994,pp. 41-47.

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 50 * THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

day,RichardMoe calledtheDisneyleaders"patriots" andpraisedthe"great

courageon MichaelEisner'spart"forreversing thecompany's"positionon
such a highlyvisibleissue."Moe's strongleadership,organizational skills,
recruitment work,anddiplomacy madehimthekeypersoninthecampaign
topersuadeDisneytowithdraw fromHaymarket. He alsospokeunequivo-
callyon the need forpreservationistshenceforth to participatein making
and
planning zoningpolicies forhistoricareas."
Columnistsand editorsused CivilWar imageryto describeThe Walt
Disney Company'sretreatfromthe Haymarketsite. For example,USA
Todayeditorialized that,liketheUnionArmy inJuly1861,thecompanyhad
run "into an unexpectedstonewall"of protesters,well-equippedwith
money,who stood firm:"Not-In-My-Backyard." Put in slightlydifferent
terms,thecompanymayhaveheeded GeneralRobertE. Lee's lesson,as
GeorgeWill had advisedin a column.Lee was "reveredbythenationhe
triedto dismember,reveredpartlybecause he knewhow to retreatand
whento surrender." Ultimately,The WaltDisneyCompanydecidedthatit
couldnotafford a barrageofnegativepublicity andretainitsfriendly, family
entertainment image. But thecompanyshouldalsorecognizethatitlostthe
battleby relying"on an old paradigmof how a megacorporation gets its
way."As columnistNeal R. Peircewrote,itstactics-secretmaneuvering,
co-optionof local officials, and "a pre-emptive political/publicrelations
blitzkriegto get fastapproval"-had backfired.But The Walt Disney
Companycan initiatea new paradigmof corporatedevelopment,if it
optionsseveralpotentialsitesforDisney'sAmericathatare accessibleto
existing publictransportation, andthenencouragesa positivepublicdebate
on thebestlocation."
Although Disneyexpectstopaymorefora newsiteinVirginia orpossibly
ina neighboring state,itsexecutivesfeelthatthecompanywillbenefitfrom
its"abilitytotestthewaters,buildinga localconstituency ofsupportbefore
going ahead." A more open "approach also mayhelprepairtheperception
thatDisneymovedintoVirginia undercoverofdarkness withoutconsulting
its new neighbors."In an effortto disarmsome of the critics,Eisner

17. Peter S. Rummell,quoted in Peter Bakerand Spencer S. Hsu, "DisneyAbandons

PrinceWilliamCountySite,Plansto FindAnotherVa. LocationforPark,"Washington Post,
September29, 1994,p. Al. Rummell,quotedin RichardTurner,"Disneyto Move Planned
ThemeParkTo 'Less Controversial' SiteinVirginia,"
WallStreetJournal,September29, 1994,
p. A3. Sallie Hofmeister,"Disney Vows to Seek AnotherPark Site," New York Times,
September30, 1994,p. A12.RichardMoe, quotedinLiz SpaydandPaul Farhi,"EisnerEnded
Disney Plan, ChairmanSaw Park FightHarmingCompany'sImage," WashingtonPost,
September30, 1994, pp. Al, A16; Allen Freeman,"Behindthe DisneyWithdrawal, Moe
commendsretreaton 'such a high-profile issue,'"HistoricPreservationNews 34, no. 6
(December 1994/January 1995), 11.
18. Editorial,"Disneybecomeshistory," USA Today,September30-October2, 1994,p.
10A. PeterS. Rummellquoted in Paul Anderson,"Disneyhaltsplan nearCivilWar sites,"
Boston Globe, September30, 1994, p. 3. George Will,"GeneralLee could teach Disney
lesson,"TheState(Columbia,S.C.), July17,1994,p. D3. Neal R. Pierce,syndicated
columnist
of the WashingtonPost WritersGroup,"LearningfromDisney,"Tampa TribuneTimes,
October16, 1994,p. 5.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 51

appointed new leaders for the project. For example, Disney Channel
PresidentCooke was namedto serveadditionally as chairmanof Disney's
America.In contrastto Eisner'scommentthathe foundscholarlyhistory
"prettyboring"and his quip in Junethat"theFirstAmendmentgivesyou
the rightto be plastic,"Cooke immediatelyindicateda new consensus-
orientedapproach:"We arestarting afreshandarereachingouttohistorians
whohaveopposedus tomakesureourportrayal oftheAmericanexperience
is responsible."Dana Nottingham, an AfricanAmericanwho,as directorof
development,had endeavoredto answersome of the environmentalists'
criticisms,was named presidentof Disney's America,replacingMark
Pacala, who leftthe company.'9
In applaudingDisney'sdecisionto relocate,some opponentsregretted
that it came afteralmost a year duringwhich "thousandsof hours of
volunteerlabor went into demonstrations, research,speeches at public
hearings, even a protestmarch." But such citizenand advocacygroup
is the
activity really only consistentforceavailable fordevelopinga national
consensuson identifying and preserving our nationalpatrimony,giventhe
limitedfederalcommitment and theeconomicpriorities ofmanystateand
local officials.Withouta doubt,bulldozerswill continueto advance on
AmericanCivil War battlefields, because mostof the majorfighting oc-
currednearor on thenation'sroads,railroads,andwaterways, whichtoday
defineourtransportation routes.20
Although The WaltDisneyCompanyhas
beaten a retreatfromManassas,the area aroundHaymarketmaystillbe
19. RichardTurner,"Disney Hopes RetreatIs BetterPartof Public Relations,"p. B4.
Michael Eisner quoted in William F. Powers,"Eisner Says Disney Won't Back Down,"
WashingtonPost,June14, 1994, p. A18; and JohnF. Cooke quoted in Sallie Hofmeister,
"DisneyVowsto Seek AnotherParkSite,"New YorkTimes,September30, 1994,p. A12. Dana
Nottingham defendedthe 3,000-acreproject,in "Disney'sView: A CorporatePhilosophyof
AudubonNaturalistNews 20, no. 7 (September1994), 12, 11,byciting
'Environmentality,"'
the "EnvironmentalMissionStatementof Disney'sAmerica":
Our approach... willbe to avoid adverseenvironmental impactwherepossible;
minimizeadverseimpactsbycarefulplanningand bestmanagement practices;and
mitigatethe impactthat does occur by traditionaland innovativemeans. This
approachis consistent
withtheongoingcommitment ofThe WaltDisneyCompany
to be a good neighbor,a carefuldeveloper,and a responsiblestewardofthe land,
air,and water.
20. Paul Anderson,"Disney haltsplan near CivilWar sites,"p. 3. ArnoldBerke,"Lujan
UnveilsPlan to Save CivilWarSites,"HistoricPreservationNews30, no.9 (September1990),
1, 3; "Lujan's Plan: A Local View,"a reprintfromPotomacNews,Woodbridge,Virginia,in
HistoricPreservationNews 30, no. 9 (September1990), 4. David Lamb of theLos Angeles
Times,"Bulldozersadvancingon battlefields," Tampa TribuneTimes,September11, 1994,p.
14.
Internationally,manycountriesare concernedtodaywithpreservingtheirculturalre-
sourcesfromphysicaldecayand loss as well as fromthedestruction caused byhumanagency
duringwars,arson,and commercialdevelopment.To protectits monumentsand historic
buildings,for example,France adopted "the PatrimoineNational, extendingthe Roman
concept of 'patrimonium'fromfamilypossessionsto the "'nationalinheritance."France is
discussingwhetherto include "industrialand farmingpatrimoniesand those of literature
landscapesand traditions," whichare,saysDr. Hind Sadek,presidentofECOPAST (Environ-
mentand Our Common Past), "conceptsso fardifficult to translatein termsof public and

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52 0 THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

developedintoa residentialcommunity and a commercialcomplex.An-

otherthreattotheManassasNationalBattlefield Park,whichis edgedbyI-
66 and traversedby twostateroads(Route 29 Warrenton Turnpikeand
Route 234 Sudley Road) will be the 77 millionsquare feet zoned for
commercialdevelopment southandwestofthebattlefield. Consequently,
theNationalParksand Conservation Associationand ManassasBattlefield
Parksuperintendent KennethApschnikat wantto protectthe battlefield
area by creatinga historicoverlaydistrict,
but such a measurewouldbe
opposedby most of PrinceWilliam County'spro-development In
officials.
additionto the ManassasBattlefield,suchotherareas as the Shenandoah
NationalParkthirty mileswestwardcouldbe seriously affectedbyincreas-
air
ing pollution and thealmostinevitable"low-intensitygrowth"ofresiden-
tialsubdivisions
along1-66.21

NowthatopponentshavewonthisbattleforManassasandtheneighbor-
inghistoricterrain,somemembersofthecoalitionmayfocustheiropposi-
tiondirectlyon The Walt DisneyCompany'sinterpretation of American
history.Although scholarsare for
probablywilling Disney to use as
"history
aninformal departure point foran entertainment
experience," they shudder
at a Disney reproduction of Americanhistory, givenEisner'saccolades
aboutDisneyWorld'sAmericanAdventure and Hall ofPresidents.Robert
Weis, seniorvice president of Walt DisneyImagineering, has also been
criticizedforinsensitively that
claiming Disney's America could "makeyou
a CivilWarsoldier.Throughan emotionalstatement, we can makeyoufeel
whatslaverywaslikeduringthattimeperiod,andwhatitwasliketo escape
on theUnderground Railroad."22Historymust"tellthedarkpoints,"among

privaterights"(Hind Sadek,"A Futureforthe Past,"NationalParks68, nos. 1-2 [January-

February1994],41, 38-42).
21. AfterDisney's departure,an Exxon Corporationland developmentsubsidiary,
FriendswoodDevelopmentCompany,will probablysell its 2,070 acres (named Waverley
Farms)toanotherdeveloperwhomaybuilda residential community ofup to2,800housesand
a commercialcomplexof 250,000 square feet (D'Vera Cohn, "Pr. WilliamOfficialsSay
DevelopmentInevitableon FormerDisneyTract,"Washington Post,September30, 1994,p.
A17). Superintendent Apschnikat emphasizestheimportance ofmaintaining "theintegrity
of
theviewfromwithinthepark,"so thatvisitors "don'tstandon thissacredgroundlookingout
at officebuildings"(quotedin David Lamb oftheLos AngelesTimes,"Bulldozersadvancing
on battlefields,"
Tampa TribuneTimes,September11, 1994,p. 16). See also ChrisFordney,
"EmbattledGround,"NationalParks68, no. 11-12 (November/December 1994),27-31.
22. MichaelWallace,Ch. 7, "MickeyMouseHistory: PortrayingthePastat DisneyWorld,"
in WarrenLeon and RoyRosenzweig,eds.,HistoryMuseumsin theUnitedStates:A Critical
Assessment(Urbana and Chicago: University of IllinoisPress,1989), 158-80. JonWiener,
"TallTales andTrue,"TheNation258,no.4 (January 31, 1994),133-35.RobertWeis,quoted
in MichaelWines,"DisneydoesAmericanhistory," TheState(Columbia,S.C.), November12,
1993,pp. 1A,12A; MichaelWines,"A Disneylandof History,Nextto theReal Thing,"New
YorkTimes,November12, 1992,p. A14. RichardTurner,"Disneyto Move PlannedTheme
ParkTo 'Less Controversial'SiteinVirginia,"
p. A3; RichardTurner,"DisneyHopes Retreat
Is BetterPartofPublicRelations,"p. B4.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 53

themslaveryand theVietnamWar"inorderto havea senseofuplift."After

all, Weis commented,withoutthe shootingof Bambi's mother,"the film
wouldn'thave worked."AlthoughDisney repudiatedWeis's statement
about slavery,the Black HistoryActionCoalitionthreatenedto boycotta
Disney'sAmericaunlessthe CivilWar and slaverywere omittedfromthe
themepark.3
WilliamStyron,PulitzerPrize-winning novelistand memberof Protect
HistoricAmerica,recognizesDisney'sFirstAmendmentrightto interpret
history,butquestionswhetherithas "a moralrighttopresentwhatwillvery
likelybe a funhouseconceptofourpast at anyplace in the nation."Given
Disney's"dismal[interpretive] trackrecordin thepast,"Styronfeelsthat
itwouldbe aninsulttotasteandintelligence tothink thatbysomevivid
cruelest
ofslavery's
display slaveshiportheauction
artifacts-the block-
therecouldbe evena remote ofthecomplexities
suggestion ofaninstitu-
tionthatlastedinAmerica for250years,andwasthecountry's greatest
transformingcircumstance.
While capturing"the blood and the noise and, as usual, suggest[ing]the
violence,"thepark"couldnevershowthedesperateclashofideals and the
indwellingagony.'"24
Weis's commentsmayalso havepromptedTom Toles's satiricalcartoon
in The BuffaloNews showingGoofyrunningpast a nakedVietnamesegirl
who had been burnedbynapalm.Below thatscene are tinyfigures, one of
whomcomments:"I lovedhearingMickeyread the EmancipationProcla-
mationin his funnylittlevoice."Weis has reassuredscholarsthatMickey
Mouse willnotappearin CivilWar reenactments, but he might"converge
withAmericanhistory" in theWorldWar II setting,since Disney'scharac-
tersappearedin wartimegovernment propagandafilms.25
Nevertheless, Disney's America needs to redefineitsmissionstatement
and determinewhatkindof historyit can effectively interpret.It might
beginby reexamining the theme parkconcept, as described in itsDesign
and DevelopmentGuidelines.Disney'sAmericawouldbe sited
inthemiddleoftheproperty andthepreservation ofmature forestsand
largeareasofnaturalmeadows will
createthe visualsegregation the
from
outsideworldthatisdesired,andyetprovide theguestwithanexperience
ofexpansiveopenspaceleftlargely initsoriginal condition.
agricultural
However,a themeparksegregatedfromexternalrealitymaynotbe thebest
place to develop an accurate and sensitiveinterpretation of American
history. "While visitorsare insidethe park,"Disney's America intended
23. RobertWeis, quoted in Peter Carlson,"MickeyMouse History:More Real Than
Reality,"The WashingtonPostMagazine,May 15, 1994,p. 28.
24. William Styron,"On Unshakeable Ground,"Audubon NaturalistNews 20, no. 7
(September1994), 21.
25. Tom Toles's cartoonin The BuffaloNews (UniversalPress Syndicate[September
1994]). RobertWeis, quoted in Peter Carlson,"MickeyMouse History:More Real Than
Reality,"p. 28.

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54 m THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

thatarepartofthethemepark.Thisisintended
thattheyonlyseethings
tosupport offantasy,
thefeelings from
escape,andseparation theoutside
worldthatcharacterizes
thethemeparkexperience, and makesit an
form
attractive ofrecreation.26
In claimingforitselftherightto shutoutmodernlife'sintrusions, Disney's
Americahas demonstrated muchless concernforthehistoricbattlefields
and siteswhichitmightaffect. As theBostonGlobeeditorialized, "Too bad
Disney executivesdon't have a sense of which
irony," would have allowed
"themto see rightoffthe follyof a proposalthatwoulddestroyhistoric
Americanlandto buildan Americanhistory themepark."27
Moreover,Disney's America's initialconceptualsiteplanpromisedmore
entertainment in ersatzhistoricalsettingsthanrealhistory.It was intended
to showcasethe followingtypicalDisney themes:nostalgia,small-town
America,the familyfarm,the Americanfamilyas the basic social unit,
privateenterprise and technology as theenginesofnationalprogress,and
thecontributions ofAmericanheroes.Highlighting episodesfrom1600 to
1945,theplan history stoppedtenyearsbeforetheopeningofDisneyland
in 1955.28
At Disney'sAmerica,visitorswouldbe able to participatein selected
episodesofAmericanhistory atninemultimedia "playlands":(1) Crossroads
USA 1800-1850, a replica mid-nineteenth centurytown selling 1990s
souvenirsand offering innaccommodations, thestarting pointfora tripon

26. Designand DevelopmentGuidelines.Disney'sAmerica,PrinceWilliamCounty.Vir-

ginia,p. 7, preparedbyWalt Disney Imagineering and DisneyDevelopmentCompanyin
Consultation withHOH Associates,Inc., May 1994 (depositedin thePrinceWilliamCounty
PublicLibrarySystem,Gainesville, Va.). See also "Disney'sAmericaZoningPlat,"February
1994 (PrinceWilliamCountyPublicLibrarySystem,Gainesville, Va.), showingAreaA,2,410
acres,ownedbyWaverleyFarmCorporation ofDelaware.Namedforan eighteenth-century
plantation,theWaverleytractwas rezoned,in 1991,byPrinceWilliamCountyto residential
plannedcommunity (RPC) use thatwouldalsoincludea smallcommercial complex."Disney's
AmericaMasterZoningPlan,"May20, 1994 (PrinceWilliamCountyPublicLibrarySystem,
Gainesville,Va.), showedhowthelandwouldbe used: Land Bay 1A,RC3 was to be the405-
acre themepark,whichhas an area designatedforhotel/lodging; land bay 1B, RC3, is for
severalhundredacresofparking; andlandbay1C, RC3, is fora campground. The themepark,
locatedin thecenterofthe3,006-acresite,wouldbe enteredbya connectorroadfrom1-66.
Two golfcoursesare shownin Resl 2B. "Disney'sAmericaGreenspacePlan,"May20, 1994
(PrinceWilliamCountyPublicLibrarySystem,Gainesville, Va.), indicatedthatalmost1,200
acreswouldbe maintainedas open space: 408 untouchedacres;and 790 acresofdeveloped
open space,witha wetlandmitigation area of about70 acres,reforested woodlands,camp-
grounds,twogolfcourses,and elevenmilesofpathways forpedestrians and bicyclists.
Green
colorindicateddisturbedgreenspace,muchofwhichwas designatedforthegolfcourses,the
campground, and thegroundsaroundthelodgings.Blackindicatedundisturbed greenspace.
Maroonindicatedpubliclands:a publicschoolsite,an elementary school,and a police/fire
station.
27. Editorial,"Disney'shistory lesson,"BostonGlobe,October2, 1994,p. 78.
28. Marling,"Disneyland,1955,"AmericanArt(Winter-Spring 1991),168-207.Wallace,
chap. 7, "MickeyMouse History,"in HistoryMuseumsin the UnitedStates,158-80. Jon
Wiener,"TallTales and True,"TheNation,January 1994,pp. 133-35.See theSouthAtlantic
Quarterly's entireissueon "Disney'sWorld"(92,no. 1,Winter1993):articlesbySusanWillis,
Karen Klugman,MiriamHansen,JaneKuenz,HollyAllenand Michael Denning,Shelton
Waldrep,AlexanderWilson,and ArataIsozaki.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 55

one oftwoantiquesteamtrains;(2) Presidents'Square 1750-1800,where

Disney's Audio-Animatronics U.S. Statesmentalkto visitors;(3) Native
America1600-1810,a recreatedPowhatanIndianvillagewitha Lewis and
Clarkwhitewater ride;(4) a CivilWar Fort 1850-1870,wherevisitorscan
see thedailylifeofUnionand Confederatesoldiersand a reenactedbattle;
theyalso can experiencecombatthroughDisney'sCIRCLE-VISION 360
technologyand see a nighttimereenactmentof the battlebetween the
Monitorand theMerrimacironclads;(5) We The People 1870-1930,where
in a settingrecallingEllis IslandvisitorsmeetAmerica'simmigrants, from
NativeAmericansto contemporary politicalrefugees, and learn about the
conflictsamong the diversegroups;(6) Enterprise1870-1930, a factory
town,wherevisitorscan takea roller-coaster rideon theIndustrialRevolu-
tionthroughan earlytwentieth-century steel mill;(7) VictoryField 1930-
1945, a World War II armyairfieldwhich offerscomputer-simulated
parachutedropsand tankand weaponoperationsand an opportunity to see
what Americansoldiers experienced;(8) State Fair 1930-1945, which
providesstructured, nostalgicamusementin small-townAmericawitha
ferriswheel, rollercoaster,and an all-starbaseball game; and (9) Family
Farm 1930-1945,whichcelebratesone oftheearlypillarsofAmericanlife
withcrop harvesting, cow milking, ice creammaking,a countrywedding,
barn dancing, and a buffet. The selection and juxtaposition of these nine
to
playlandsgave a new twist learning American historybytopics.29
A carefulexamination oftheconceptualsiteplan also suggeststheirony
betweentheactionsofDisneyexecutivesand theAmericathattheywanted
toportray. It is ironicthatvisitors' viewofDisney'sAmericawouldhave
first
been CrossroadsUSA 1800-1850,whichwouldbearno resemblanceto the
trafficcongestion,ifnotgridlock,on 1-66and the urbansprawlof hotels/
motels,gas stations,and fast-foodrestaurants near the park.30At Native
America1600-1810,theimageofpureriversofthepastis compromisedby
the alleged negativeimpactthatDisney'sAmericaand the accompanying
urbansprawlwouldhave on the region'swaterways, includingthe Chesa-
peake Bay.3'Disney's America would include a replicaofa CivilWar fort,
yet would have tripled the trafficon the two state roads (Route 29
WarrentonTurnpikeand Route234 SudleyRoad) traversing the Manassas
National BattlefieldPark.32The planned We The People 1870-1930
playland,with an Ellis Island recreation,would have attractedlargely
29. "Disney'sAmericaConceptualSite Plan" brochure,The Walt DisneyCompany.
30. Sandy Hiller, executivedirectorof the National GrowthManagementLeadership
Project,"ComingSoon?A TollboothNearYou?"AudubonNaturalistNews20, no.7 (Septem-
ber 1994), 15.
31. WilliamC. Baker,presidentoftheChesapeakeBayFoundation,contends,in"Disney's
Americawillact as funnel,notfilter,"AudubonNaturalistNews 20, no. 7 (September1994),
16, thatthe project"is a huge developmentin itselfthatwillalterthefiltering
characteristics
ofthesite,increasingpollutantloads to Bull Run,theOccoquan and Potomacrivers,and the
Chesapeake Bay."
32. RichardMoe, "AtRisk:Our NationalHeritage,"AudubonNaturalistNews 20, no. 7
(September1994), 20-21.

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56 * THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

middle-classvisitorsratherthanpeople comingfromdiversesocio-eco-
nomicstrata,sincetheHaymarket locationwouldnothavebeen accessible
bytheMetro,butonlybypassengercarsorbusses.In addition,mostofthe
projectedjobs wouldbe modestly payingones forthemeparkattendants,
hotel/motel employees,foodserviceworkers,and sales clerks,who,in all
likelihood, wouldhave had to migrateintoPrinceWilliamCounty,which
has about a 3 percentunemployment rate.Most employeesof The Walt
DisneyCompanymakeless than$20,000per year:thoseplayingDisney
characterslike Mickeyand Goofybeginearning$6.10 an hour;theyare
raisedto $8.95 an hourafterfiveyears.`3
The Walt Disney Company'saggressive,"Bare-knuckled Negotiating
Image ... hiringthe best legal,technicaland lobbyingconsultants," and
issuing ultimatums to the Virginia General Assembly and Prince William
Countyplanningcommissioners providesan ironiccommentary on its
of the
interpretation factory town of Enterprise. During thelatenineteenth
century, businessmenprosperedby hard-nosedtactics,generousgovern-
mentalsubsidies,and a minimumof regulation.m The celebrationof the
Family Farm is also ironic. Disney's America and the attendanturban
sprawl would have threatened, the American Farmland Trustbelieves,
some 6,000 farmswithover 1.2 millionacresin agriculture, in a twelve-
countyregion within fortymiles of the project."The Family Farm wouldbe
unreal, likeThe Walt DisneyCompany's Main Street USA thatdepicted
townslong gone,which,when theydid exist,were not as idyllicas the
recreation.While Main StreetUSA did offera model of main street
renovationto the historicpreservationmovement,it was unlikelythat
Disney'sAmerica'ssmall-town StateFair1930-1945playlandwouldoffera
positivemodeltoeitherHaymarket orThoroughfare, a historically
African-
Americancommunity ofabouta hundredpeople.WhileDisney'sAmerica
wouldnothavetodiscardallitsplaylands, itneedstorethink whatmessages
itshouldcommunicate. Few woulddoubtthatThe WaltDisneyCompany
is a masterof multi-media communication. In thisarea,emphasizesPeter
Rummell,itcancombine"filmmaking, animation, music,interactive media,
liveinterpretation, art,andtechnology" tobringtolifetheinterpretation of
Americanhistory.He sees the role of Disney'sAmericaas stirring the
interestofvisitors so thatthey"willseektoexplorefurther-through books,
through museums, through visitsto historicsites .... The park will not
whitewash or
history ignore the blemishes," Rummell insisted. "But neither
will we apologizeforthe beliefthat,even withAmerica'smistakes,the
33. PeterCarlson,"MickeyMouse History:More Real Than Reality,"pp. 25, 11-14, 17,
24-28. ThomasMuller,"Disney'sEconomics:It JustDoesn't Add Up,"AudubonNaturalist
News 20, no. 7 (September1994), 17.
34. SpencerS. Hsu, "'Bare-knuckled'NegotiatingImage Gets MixedRatings,"Washing-
tonPost,September19, 1994,p. Bi; SenatorJoeGartlan,Jr.,"A SorryDay fortheCommon-
wealth,"Audubon News20,no.7 (September1994),13.RichardFoglesong,"When
Naturalist
DisneyComes To Town,"The Washington PostMagazine,May 15, 1994,pp. 15-16.
35. ValerieBerton,editorofAmericanFarmland,"ProposedTheme ParkCould Swallow
Northern VirginiaFarmland," AudubonNaturalistNetvs20, no. 7 (September1994),18-19.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 57

Americanstoryis profoundlypositiveand uplifting."-'Ultimately,the

companymustdecide whetheritwantsto use itsresourcesto educateand
engage visitors,as does a historicsite like Colonial Williamsburg,
or to
entertainthemwithnostalgiaand fantasy-like playlands.

Disneyalso assembleda boardofadvisors,consisting ofacademichisto-

rians,museumprofessionals, CivilWarbuffs, teachers,students, and ethnic
and racialgrouprepresentatives. Among the academic advisors are Colum-
bia University ProfessorEric Foner,who was a DisneyWorld consultant
when it revampedits Hall of Presidentsexhibit,and GeorgeWashington
University ProfessorJamesOliverHorton.In addition,theAssociationfor
the Preservation ofCivilWar Sites,whichreceived$100,000fromDisney,
willbe a consultant."3
Hortonhas previously criticizedtheAmericanAdventureforbeginning
withtheMayflower, whileignoring theNativeAmericanswho had been in
NorthAmericafor30,000years;and he hasdescribedMainStreetU.S.A. as
"fantasy."Whileneitherhe norotherhistorians havecontroloverDisney's
America, he intends to "make a lot of noise ifwe see thatkindof fantasy
passed offas On
history." theother hand, Horton believes thata themepark
can actuallyteach interesting and accuratehistory, if it "sponsorspublic
lectures,researchlaboratories,and public educationworkshops,which
involvegraduatestudentsin teachinghistorymethodsto a publicthathas
littleidea of how historicalinformation is produced."The use of exciting
ridesand othertechnologicaldevicesoffers"realpossibilities... ifonlywe
can graspthem and importantresponsibilities if onlywe would assume
them."Hortonasks a questionthatis important forboth traditionaland
applied/public historians:
"Whatshouldbe theroleofhistorians whennon-
historianspractice historyfor profit?"He concludes,sensibly,that "if
Disneyis goingtodo history, andtheyalmostcertainly will,somewhere, why
not encouragethemto use theirconsiderabletechnology to do itwell?"38

36. Peter Rummell, statementin "A House Divided: HistoriansConfrontDisney's

America,"OAH Newsletter 22,no.3 (August1994),10. See MargaretJ.Kingforwhatmuseum
professionalscan learn fromthe "new language"of themeparks:"multisensory, entertain-
ment-based,three-dimensional, symbolic"(MargaretJ.King,'Theme ParkThesis,"Museum
News 69 [September-October1990],60-62).
37. RichardTurner,"Disney Hopes RetreatIs BetterPartof Public Relations,"p. B4.
Scott Heller, "Disney recruitsAcademicAdvisersto bringAccuracyto New Project,"The
Chronicleof HigherEducation,February16, 1994, p. A10. Paul Anderson,"Scholarsblast
Disneyparksite,"The State(Columbia,S.C.), May12, 1994,pp. Al, A7. As ofSeptemberand
October1994,neitherFonernorHortonwas an advisoron "Disney'sAmerica,"althoughboth
had communicated withseniorexecutivesand MichaelEisner(Susan ArielAaronson,"Bring-
ing LivingHistoryintoOur LivingRooms?"Perspectives[March1995], 11).
38. JamesOliverHorton,quoted in PeterCarlson,"MickeyMouse History:More Real
Than Reality,"p. 28; JamesOliver Horton,statementin "A House Divided: Historians
ConfrontDisney'sAmerica,"OAH Newsletter 22, no.3 (August1994),8, 1. On theotherhand,
Jane Kuenz pointsout thatDisney World continuesto presentinformation that"is either

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58 * THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN

Thisis nowthecentralquestion,withonlyone answer:historians should

"encourage them," and by that Horton surelyreferstoa critical
engagement
thathas alreadyto some extentbegun. In March,1995, fivehistorians
writingin AHA Perspectives all spokefroma commitment to "encourage
them"as critics,byexploring the tensions between education andentertain-
ment,and in variouswaysreminding futurehistorythemeparkmanagers
that a "sanitized"versionthat is merelyentertainment in a resolutely
cheerfulmodewillfallshortofhistory's potentialand face resistance
from
historianswhetherconsultingor outsideamongthe viewers-historians
who accept the entertainment part of the assignmentbut who want a
dialogue about the educational message.39
While scholarscontinueto debate the issuesof historical presentation
and interpretation at a stillprojectedDisney'sAmericathemepark,the
battle over the formerHaymarket,Virginialocationremainsa potent
warningto concernedcitizens,environmentalists, andpreserva-
historians,
tionists.How theyheed thatwarning willdetermine whetherthevictory at
Haymarket was, in thewords of David "a
McCullough, majorturning point
in the historyof preservation in thiscountry."'40The futurelandscapeof
Americais in thehandsofitspeople,as Tom Toles suggestsin hiscartoon,
"The Land thatWe Loved."He depictsa UnitedStatesdividedintoa long
East Coast themeparkfromFloridato Washington, D.C.; a huge theme

hopelesslyoutdatedoralreadyavailablefromtraditional
sources."Minimallearning willoccur,
she maintains,unless The Walt Disney Companyencouragesvisitorsto participatein a
meaningful wayin itsgamesand skits(JaneKuenz,"It'sa SmallWorldAfterAll:Disneyand
thePleasuresofIdentification,"
SouthAtlanticQuarterly92, no. 1 [Winter1993],71, 73-77,
63-88).
39. ViewpointsForumon "PublicHistoryand Disney'sAmerica,"Perspectives, American
HistoricalAssociationNewsletter,33,no.3 (March1995).See alsoCharlesAlanWatkins, who
arguesthatmuseumsneed to defendtheirrolesin thefaceof"a growingidea in thepublic
mindthattheworkofmuseumscan be sharedwith,ifnotentirely shoulderedby,entitiessuch
as themeparksand that'educationis increasingly represented as a formofrecreation"' (Dean
MacCannell,quotedin CharlesAlanWatkins,"AreMuseumsStillNecessary?"Curator37/1
[1994],25). "Forthemainplayersin the'legitimate' history biz,"wroteNeilAsherSilberman,
"thegreatestthreatposedbyDisney'sAmericawas itsfrightening reflection
ofwhattheywere
becomingthemselves." The difference betweenDisney'sAmericaand "themorerespectable
formsofhistorical entertainmentinAmerica"was theformer's "vastlysuperiorabilitytobuild
robotsandthrillrides,notinitsshallowness."Disney'sAmerica'sformula forsuccesswouldbe
to "combinethe geniusof P. T. Barnumwiththeinspiration of GeorgeFerris-feedingthe
tourist'sdesireto marvelat historicalcuriosities
whilesatisfying thefairgoer'scravingfora
mechanicalthrill"(Neil AsherSilberman,"The BattleDisney ShouldHave Won,"Lingua
franca5, no. 1 [November/December 1994],28, 26). In additionto resistingcommercializa-
tion,history museumand historicsiteprofessionals need also to counterthecriticisms from
someofthepressand thepublic"thathistorians in museumsshouldsticktopresenting facts,
notmeanings." Curatorsofhistoryexhibitsmustrecognize,BarbaraFrancosaid,"thatscholars
and thepublicpose different questions"and thatscholarship in museumsis a "balancingact"
(BarbaraFranco,"Doing Historyin Public:BalancingHistoricalFactwithPublicMeaning,"
Perspectives,AmericanHistoricalAssociationNewsletter 33, no. 3 [May/June 1995],5, 7.
40. David McCullough,quoted in SpencerS. Hsu and MarylouTousignant,"No Joyin
Haymarket, ResidentsSay'Fat Cats' Killedthe GoldenMouse,"p. A16.

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 DISNEY AND THE HISTORIANS * 59

parkingarea fromthe southernAppalachianMountainswestwardto the

MississippiRiver;decayedold citiesin the northeast;a giganticmallwith
parkingin the northcentraland plainsstates;a smallnaturepreserveand
largenatureparkingareaintheWest;andsuburbansprawlinthesouthwest.
The sectionsare unitedby a 1,247 lane highwayin the formof a gigantic
figureeight,witha largecloverleaf.41

41. [Tom]Toles, UniversalPressSynd.,in TheNewRepublic,June1994; reprinted

in The
State(Columbia,S.C.), June11, 1994.

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