What does an attraction at Walt Disney World in Florida have to do with Tulare County? Today on KVPR's Central Valley Roots - the connection between one of Walt Disney's last projects and a remote mountain valley east of Visalia.
Mineral King is a dramatic location. Situated on the west side of the sawtooth peaks that stretch across Tulare County, forming the Great Western Divide. As its name suggests, the area was home to considerable mining activity in the 19th century and later to collections of mountain cabins in places like Silver City.
The area's natural beauty and snow covered slopes caught the attention of Walt Disney. Following the success of the 1960 Winter Olympics near Lake Tahoe, Disney was looking to get into the ski resort business and Mineral King was just the place.
In early 1966, the U.S. Forest Service awarded Disney a permit to develop a resort there. Back then, Mineral King was part of the Sequoia National Forest. Disney envisioned a development with a hotel, restaurants, and a theater. There would be as many as 14 ski lifts, accommodating up to 10,000 skiers a day.
But shortly after the plan was announced, problems mounted. In late 1966, Walt Disney died. Soon the Sierra Club organized opposition to the plan and sued, seeking to preserve the alpine valley, and the Disney Company shifted its focus to building Walt Disney World. In 1978 Mineral King became a part of Sequoia National Park.
Only one element of Disney's vision for the resort was eventually built, but not in the Tulare County mountains. Instead, Disney's vision for a theater show with singing and dancing "audio-animatronic" bears was realized as the County Bear Jamboree, which you can currently find at Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Florida.
