In 1964, Walt Disney began secretly buying millions of dollars worth of Central Florida farmland. As vast areas of land were purchased in lots of 5,000 acres here, 20,000 there -- at remarkably high prices -- rumors flew as to who needed so much land and had the money to acquire it.

The acquisition of the land for Walt Disney World in the 1960s was a masterpiece of secrecy and corporate maneuvering. To avoid a massive spike in land prices from speculators, Walt Disney utilized numerous "dummy corporations" with names like the "Ayefour Corporation," "Reedy Creek Ranch Corporation," and "Latin-American Development and Management Corporation." Working with local real estate agents who did not know their true client, Disney began buying up huge swaths of central Florida swamp and cattle pasture in Orange and Osceola counties. Some tracts were purchased for as little as $100 an acre. The secret was eventually blown by the Orlando Sentinel in 1965, but by then, Disney had already secured over 27,000 acres (roughly 43 square miles). To ensure total control over the development, Disney then lobbied the Florida legislature to create the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a private taxing district that gave the company the powers of a county government, including its own building codes, fire department, and the ability to issue municipal bonds to fund infrastructure, a setup that remained largely intact for over 50 years.