From the deck of one of Walt Disney World’s ferryboats, Magic Kingdom is briefly visible in the middle of Seven Seas Lagoon. In the distance, Cinderella Castle rises against the Florida sky, hazy and nearly flawless. The majority of visitors are occupied with pointing cameras or preventing kids from leaning over the railing. Few people pause to look at the name painted on the side of the boat that is transporting them there.
That’s most likely intentional. Disney has never made a big deal out of this specific custom, which speaks volumes in and of itself.
Three of the four ferryboats that traverse Seven Seas Lagoon have been named after actual people since 1997: the Admiral Joe Fowler, the General Joe Potter, and the Richard F. Irvine. These weren’t fictional characters or famous people. They worked as engineers, planners, and builders—people who dedicate their careers to resolving issues that no one else anticipates. After serving in the military with distinction, Fowler and Potter both joined Disney.
Before Fowler was personally hired by Walt Disney in 1954, he had overseen the building of enormous aircraft carriers during World War II. Before being given the responsibility of creating the subterranean infrastructure that still exists beneath Walt Disney World today, Potter had been in charge of the Panama Canal Zone. These men were serious. Disney also placed their names on ferryboats.
That might seem like a strange decision for a business that specializes in fantasy and escape. However, observing Disney’s decades-long handling of this custom gives the impression that the gesture is very deliberate. A back office plaque is not the same as a ferryboat. It’s in motion. Every year, it transports millions of people. Since it’s often the first thing visitors see when they arrive at Magic Kingdom, those names are seen by more people silently and unceremoniously than nearly any monument the company could have constructed.
Disney is now growing the fleet for the first time since 1976, almost thirty years after that renaming in 1997. Engineers are constructing a fourth ferryboat, which will be put together in parts at a Florida marina over the course of about a year before it ever sets foot in the lagoon. When it does, in 2027, it will be renamed the Meg Gilbert Crofton in honor of the fourth president of Disney World.
In 1977, Crofton began working for Disney as a marketing manager. That particular detail is important. She wasn’t a general, a founder, or someone whose name instantly conveys significance to the outside world. Over the course of several decades, she rose through the ranks of the company to become the head of Walt Disney World from 2006 to 2013, during which time the Art of Animation Resort opened and New Fantasyland was expanded. According to most accounts, she was an effective manager who genuinely cared about those around her. According to reports, she thought that “what truly lasts is how you make others feel.”
It seems easy enough to reject that philosophy. In reality, it appears to be precisely what Disney is incorporating into this naming custom. Not the power of stars. not a legacy at the box office. Perhaps something more robust and quieter.
It’s difficult to ignore the fact that each of the four names—Fowler, Potter, Irvine, and Crofton—belongs to someone who either led others or built things. Walt Disney was more well-known outside of the company than any of them. They all influenced the physical and operational characteristics of Walt Disney World. One could argue that this is how Disney truly pays tribute to its own history—not through museums or retrospectives, but rather through functional artifacts.
It’s genuinely unclear if future tourists will read the plaques or inquire about Meg Crofton’s identity. Most won’t. However, adding a fourth name to a short list and believing that the gesture has meaning even when no one is looking exudes a subtle confidence.
The boat has not yet been launched. The lagoon remains unchanged. However, one more story will be carried across the water on the ride to Magic Kingdom next year.⁖※
