Tom Sawyer Island: Walt Disney’s Childhood Dream is Now Your Ideal Adventure
“Thomas Sawyer. . .That’s the name they lick me by. I’m Tom when I’m good. You call me Tom, will you?”
Mark Twain (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer)
Tom Sawyer Island combines the magic of Disney with the rose-colored nostalgia of yesteryear – not to mention the wisecracks and witticisms of novelist Mark Twain!
Join Tom and his good buddy, Huck Finn, as they make mischief around the Mississippi River, leading you through dark caves, over bottomless pits, and across shaky bridges. (Uh, Tom? I can’t tell if this is supposed to be enticing or terrifying. . .)
Regardless of how you may feel about such things, Tom’s painted you a welcome sign in big, white-washed letters that reads:
“Ifn you dont like creepy old scary places, dont worry. . .Huck Finn and myself wuz plenty scared too. Huck was more scared than me.”
Oh, dear. I just realized Tom used Aunt Polly’s white-wash for his sign instead of her fence.
A Missouri Boy’s Love for Mark Twain
Now, you might be wondering, what does Tom Sawyer have to do with Disney World? Sure, the story is pretty fun, but it’s not exactly a fairy tale. (For some of us, it was simply a homework assignment back in seventh grade.)
However, to Walt Disney, the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer wasn’t a chore, and the name Mark Twain wasn’t the answer to a pop quiz. For Walt, Tom Sawyer and Twain represented more than just a boy’s life on the frontier – it represented his life in Missouri.
Walt was born in Chicago, but his first memories were of Marceline, Missouri, and his formative years were spent in that endearing farm town. It was there he received his first art commission (Doc Sherwood paid him to draw a horse1), he played the part of Peter Pan in his elementary school play, and he experienced a rural, rough-and-tumble boyhood that would inspire him throughout his illustrious animation career.2
“In the early cartoons,” Walt laughed, “I used to feature a little outhouse and I know darn well that I got that here in Marceline.”3
Of course, that wasn’t the only thing Walt picked up from life in Missouri. He also came to love a Missouri-born author and his Missouri-inspired stories. That author was Samuel Clemens – better known by his pen name, Mark Twain.
Just like Disney, Twain was often inspired by his surroundings.
For example, he got his nom-de-plume from his time working on the Mississippi: “mark twain” was a sailing term for “two fathoms,” the minimum river depth needed under a steamboat’s keel.4 And it’s believed his titular character, Tom Sawyer, was based upon a real person: a heroic fireman Twain met in San Francisco. . .named Tom Sawyer.5
Set in St. Petersburg, Missouri, on the bank of the Mississippi, the stories Twain created about Tom and Huck were deeply loved by Walt. They resonated with him, all the way down to his roots, and he wanted to share that feeling with the world. With the construction of Disneyland underway, Walt found that building plans were the new canvas on which to transfer his childhood memories.
The Island of Dreams
Walt already knew he wanted an island surrounded by a great river in Disneyland. The problem was what to put on the island?
The Mickey Mouse Club headquarters? Miniature Revolutionary American landmarks like Mount Vernon and Independence Hall? Or perhaps a horde of monkeys like the island at Silver Springs, Florida?
All of these thoughts (okay, maybe not the monkey one) ran through Walt’s mind. Finally, he settled on something entirely different. His boyhood dreams.
He would dedicate the island to his Missouri upbringing, letting it shine through the lens of Mark Twain’s heroes: Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Instead of a mere passive sightseeing experience, the island would be a place of active adventuring and discovery. Nothing could be better suited to the spirit of Twain’s characters, who, in the course of the story, ran away to an island to live as pirates.
Initially, Walt was going to have another Disney associate design the island, but he could already picture it so clearly that he ended up taking over the project and drafting the designs himself. In that regard, Tom Sawyer Island could be considered Disneyland and Disney World’s most personal attraction to Walt.
“I put in all the things I wanted to do as a kid—and couldn’t,” Walt said.6
If Tom Sawyer Island represents all the things Walt dreamed of doing as a child, it’s safe to say he was always destined to be the Chief Imagineer of a very magical company.
Endless Adventures on Tom Sawyer Island
Tom Sawyer Island was (and still is) an integral part of Disneyland and there are iterations of it in the Magic Kingdoms of Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong, and of course, our very own Orlando, Florida!
To get to Tom Sawyer Island, you’ll need to brave the wilds of Frontierland and hitch a ride across the Rivers of America! Each log-raft is named after a Twain character and is captained by a capable Disney cast member, providing a fun, unique, and leisurely journey to break up your day at the park!
Disembark from your raft at Tom Sawyer Landing and feel yourself being transported back to the Midwest of the mid-1800s. Authentic props like wagon wheels, lanterns, and old tools help date the island, while various signs painted by Tom help immerse you in Twain’s famous tall tale. However, more than just reading about Tom’s harrowing adventures, you get to experience each one for yourself as you freely wander the island. By the end, you might just want to reread Huckleberry Finn, and your kiddos might actually be eager for English class!
There’s so much to explore here – and while Tom and Huck saw some pretty crazy stuff in their books (you know, your typical graveyard murder), there’s nothing overtly spooky about Tom Sawyer Island. We’d recommend it for all kiddos! Here are some of the highlights:
- Old Windmill. This tall, blue and white windmill is perched close to the island’s edge, making it one of the first things you’ll come across. You can go inside and actually watch as the period-accurate machinery turns the latticed blades outside. An engineering marvel from days past!
- Mystery Mine. The Mystery Mine feels spooky, but there aren’t any jump scares – it’s just a place to let your imagination run wild! Dimly lit by lanterns in the wall, each corridor looks like that of an actual mine shaft, with packed dirt propped up by rickety wooden beams. These tunnels are big enough for kiddos and adults to walk through, though keep in mind that some tunnels can get a bit narrow. Creep along toward the sound of a waterfall where you’ll find flowing water and a glowing cluster of gemstones in the wall!
- Pirate Ship Playground. Back in the daylight, continue wandering the trails through the dense foliage of the island. (It almost feels like a State Park!) Picnic tables are available for snacking and resting in the shade, and there’s even a playground for the kiddos that looks like it’s made of old pirate ship pieces and parts. The little ones can pretend to become pirates, just like Tom and Huck did in the story!
Harper’s Mill. Named after the family of Tom’s friend, Joe Harper, this is old grist mill is pretty darn neat both inside and out! From the outside, you can watch the paddlewheel churn rhythmically in the water, and inside you can get an up-close view of the machinery behind it. There’s also a plethora of bird sound effects inside, and even some animatronic feathered friends for you to find in the rafters! (The owl is so very sleepy and cute!)
Barrel Bridge. Walk across a stretch of river atop bobbing barrels! (Don’t worry, there’s a netted, rope railing on either side of the bridge so you won’t fall in!) Kiddos will love to bounce across this bridge, and for us grown-ups, the barrel bridge is an exquisite, simple pleasure that calls us back to childhood games when the greatest thrills came from keeping one’s balance on a beam, a curbside, or any slightly raised surface.
Injun Joe’s Cave. Another place on Tom Sawyer Island that ties directly to the story is Injun Joe’s Cave. Murderer and treasure seeker Injun Joe used the cave as a hideout, and Tom stumbled upon him during one of his misadventures, but. . .(spoilers!) in the end, Tom got the gold, and Injun Joe got trapped in the cave. Is Injun Joe still lurking in the darkness? Probably not. . .
The cave is darker than the mines but still illuminated by golden lanterns, as well as mysterious glowing lights of red, blue, and green. Stalactites drip from the ceiling, and some rock formations even appear to be making faces! A zig-zaggy bridge carries you across a ravine, and the sound of rushing wind fills every twist and turn. There are a few different paths to take, so, like in a real cave, it’s possible to get a little lost before finding your way to the exit – and that’s all part of the fun!
Fort Langhorn. Cross a suspension bridge to a small island adjacent to the main Tom Sawyer Island! Still part of the Tom Sawyer experience, Fort Langhorn is a reference to Mark Twain – his real name, in full, was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. The fort looks like the ones you would’ve seen on the frontier, complete with rifle roosts, a blacksmith’s, and a game of checkers perched on a barrel. Peek into the blacksmith’s and watch some animatronic men hard at work, as well as a gentle horse, whiling away the hours by swishing its tail in time with the bellows.
Once you’ve finished exploring, you can exit the fort via Escape Tunnel if you so desire! (This underground tunnel is really tight, so if small spaces aren’t your thing, you may just want to circle back the way you came!)
Now that you’ve explored Tom Sawyer Island, there’s still one more Mark Twain-related experience you MUST embark on while you’re in the area: taking a trip on the Liberty Square Riverboat!
Protip: Tom Sawyer Island is a great place to explore in the morning before you get slammed with the heat of the day! However, the Mystery Mine is air-conditioned, so, if you get to feeling a little wilty, we recommend cooling down in the tunnels.
Take a Disney Cruise on the Liberty Square Riverboat
Hop aboard the beautiful, Colonial-era Liberty Belle, and take a half-mile tour around Tom Sawyer Island!
This gorgeous vessel is an authentic replica of the ferries that once roamed the Mighty Mississippi! At 47 feet tall, with meticulously detailed woodwork, a real working steam engine, and four promenade decks, the Liberty Belle is Titanic’s freshwater rival!
There is limited seating on the decks if you need to take a load off, as well as plenty of standing room along the railing for really excellent views! And as you make your leisurely way around the river, a narrator, in the voice of Mark Twain, will regale you with tales of the author’s life and times on the Mississippi.
During this fun, seventeen-minute river ride, enjoy the sights of Tom Sawyer Island from a totally new perspective. You’ll pass by Harper’s Mill, Fort Langhorn, and the Old Windmill, and probably even one of the log rafts on the way to the island – be sure to wave to your fellow wilderness explorers! Ahoy, there!
You’ll also paddle on by other scenes from Colonial America, including a ramshackle homestead and a peaceful Native American village. You might just forget you’re even in the Magic Kingdom until you spy the top of Cinderella’s castle peeking over the trees, that is! (You’ll also get some great views of Thunder Mountain and the Haunted Mansion!)
Tom Sawyer Island and the Liberty Belle are definitely time traveling at its finest.
“So endeth this chronicle. It being strictly a history of a boy, it must stop here; the story could not go much further without becoming the history of a man.”
Mark Twain (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer)
What’s your favorite area of Tom Sawyer Island? Did you run into Injun Joe?! Let us know in the comments below!
Cover Image
Photo: Chad Sparkes via Flickr
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