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00:10Behind the gates of Frontierland is the inspirational America of the past century.
00:15Here is the treasure of our native folklore.
00:18The songs, tales and legends of the big men who built the land.
00:22Some 250 feet north of the treehouse was Fort Wilderness, a two-story log structure straight out of a western movie.
00:35In its first years, the fort included the passageway down to the trails, a display of Davy Crockett and Andrew Jackson mannequins reused from the Davy Crockett Frontier Museum, a refreshment stand and lookout towers with rifles that delivered bulletless bangs.
00:51For many guests, Tom Sawyer Island has remained one of the most unique and entertaining locations in Disneyland, and not just because it offers an ideal place to relax on hot days under real trees near cool water without any big stores or restaurants on the island.
01:05Nothing distracts guests from their fun or coaxes cash from their wallets.
01:11Tom Sawyer Island is not a three-minute experience.
01:13Guests can stay as long as they want, with dusk the only deadline, and while other attractions bring guests indoors and away from the California sunshine, this one encourages visitors to stay outside in a paradise so low-tech it's almost no-tech.
01:27In regimental headquarters, Davy Crockett and George Russell, U.S. Army Scouts, are reporting to Major General Andrew Jackson during the Cherokee Indian Campaign.
01:37Several guests have tried unsuccessfully to hide on the island overnight, to even drown in the attempt.
01:43More bizarrely, forcing Disney officials to suspend raft trips to the island, chanting Yippee Day protesters invaded Fort Wilderness in 1970, and briefly replaced the Stars and Stripes with their own flag.
01:55The 21st Century Age finally caught up with the fort, and it's been closed permanently.
02:00In 2007, Disney demolished the original 1956 Fort Wilderness due to long-neglected termite and weather damage.
02:08A new Fort Wilderness was constructed.
02:10However, instead of being constructed with authentic hand-hewn logs, it was built with standard milled lumber.
02:16The new Fort Wilderness is not accessible to guests, and will instead house break rooms for island cast members and performers.
