<P> Today, Walt Disney World is the most visited vacation resort in the world, with an average annual attendance of over 52 million . The resort is the flagship destination of Disney's worldwide corporate enterprise, and has become a popular staple in American culture . </P> <P> In 1959, Walt Disney Productions began looking for land to house a second resort to supplement Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which had opened in 1955 . Market surveys at the time revealed that only 5% of Disneyland's visitors came from east of the Mississippi River, where 75% of the population of the United States lived . Additionally, Walt Disney disliked the businesses that had sprung up around Disneyland and wanted more control over a larger area of land in the next project . </P> <P> Walt Disney flew over a potential site in Orlando, Florida--one of many--in November 1963 . After witnessing the well - developed network of roads and taking the planned construction of both Interstate 4 and Florida's Turnpike into account, with McCoy Air Force Base (later Orlando International Airport) to the east, Disney selected a centrally - located site near Bay Lake . To avoid a burst of land speculation, Walt Disney World Company used various dummy corporations to acquire 30,500 acres (48 sq mi; 123 km) of land . In May 1965, some of these major land transactions were recorded a few miles southwest of Orlando in Osceola County . In addition, two large tracts totaling $1.5 million were sold, and smaller tracts of flatlands and cattle pastures were purchased by exotically - named companies such as the "Ayefour Corporation", "Latin - American Development and Management Corporation" and the "Reedy Creek Ranch Corporation". Some are now memorialized on a window above Main Street, U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom . The smaller parcels of land acquired were called "outs". They were 5 - acre (2 ha) lots platted in 1912 by the Munger Land Company and sold to investors . Most of the owners in the 1960s were happy to get rid of the land, which was mostly swamp at the time . Another issue was the mineral rights to the land, which were owned by Tufts University . Without the transfer of these rights, Tufts could come in at any time and demand the removal of buildings to obtain minerals . Eventually, Disney's team negotiated a deal with Tufts to buy the mineral rights for $15,000 . </P> <P> Working strictly in secrecy, real estate agents unaware of their client's identity began making offers to landowners in April 1964 in parts of southwest Orange and northwest Osceola counties . The agents were careful not to reveal the extent of their intentions, and they were able to negotiate numerous land contracts with some including large tracts of land for as little as $100 an acre . With the understanding that the recording of the first deeds would trigger intense public scrutiny, Disney delayed the filing of paperwork until a large portion of the land was under contract . </P>

When did disney start buying land in florida