Okay well no, not a real murder. But a fun mystery game to play while waiting in line for the Haunted Mansion!
A few years ago the Haunted Mansion in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom park got a fun refurbishment that included an interactive queue in the attraction line. The interactive queue has all kinds of hands on fun including a book shelf with books that pop in and out of place, a crypt that blows bubbles and a instrument wall that plays the sounds of the instruments that you put your hand on. Tons of fun! But the one part of the queue that many people walk right past is the murder mystery game!
Have you ever noticed the 5 busts that are in a semi-circle in the line area? Have you read the inscriptions on the base of the busts? Let’s take a closer look and figure out exactly who killed who! **Spoiler Alert – I am going to reveal the answers below. If you want to try and figure this one out yourself, bookmark this page and then give it a try on your next visit to the Haunted Mansion. Then come back to this page and see if you are correct!
We will start with Uncle Jacob. His plaque plainly says he was the first to die.
Uncle Jacob was a greedy man. He died first and it says that he knew his killer. Look closely at what it says killed Jacob. “Greed was the POISON he had swallowed.” See that key word there? Let’s use it to examine the other busts…
Notice anything at the top of Bertie’s epitaph? There’s a nice little skull and crossbones on that bottle. Wonder what that means? But look at his slithery pet wrapped around his neck. My guess is that he got the poison venom from the snake and used it to kill Uncle Jacob for his riches! And how did Bertie die? “Avid hunter and expert shot, in the end that’s what he got.” Where does this clue take us?
Now at the top of Aunt Florence’s epitaph we find a gun. Guess she must have figured out who did her husband in and took all of the money that was rightfully hers! Of course she would want it back! While her plaque plainly reads that she never did a “dishonorable” deed, she most certainly did shoot Bertie and killed him! But she did it to avenge her late husband so while she did commit murder…it was to honor the death of Uncle Jacob.
But how did Aunt Florence die? Her plaque says she was found face down in canary seed. I’m sure that is our clue. Let’s look around and see what we can find!
Atop the plaque on the busts of the twins we find a dead canary bird. Guess we have found our culprits in the murder of Aunt Florence! But the other plaques showed images of the actual weapons that did the murderous deeds – the poison and the gun. Florence’s epitaph says she was found in canary seed, not killed by a canary. Unfortunately I didn’t get a good picture of this, but if you look closely behind Wellington’s bust, you will see a small bag. (This is really better seen as the line wraps around the back side of the busts). Inside this bag is….you guessed it! Bird seed!
So we’re getting closer to the end of our mystery. But we still need to know who killed the twins! They were found in their beds with bumps to their heads…
By now you should know exactly where to look for the weapon, and we find it on Cousin Maude’s epitaph. A hammer. It has been said that Cousin Maude was the twin’s nanny and we may never know if she killed them to inherit the riches passed down to them through the family line or maybe she was just a little tired of them being so unruly and evil!
But how did Cousin Maude die? It says that she never awoke when her dreams went up in smoke – she died in a fire in her sleep. But is it that simple? What caused the fire?
When the line makes it to the back of the busts, take a look at the back of Cousin Maude’s statue. Back in the old days, women often picked up whatever they could find and used it to pin their hair up. If you look very closely at Maude’s bun, you’ll find that she used the weapon that caused her death as a hair pin! Matches!!! Not so smart an idea to sleep with matches in your hair!
So there you have it. The murder mystery at the Magic Kingdom’s Haunted Mansion attraction in Walt Disney World. Next time you’re waiting in line take a closer look at this fun game and point it out to those around you. See if everyone else can figure out who killed who?
Melissa Furches is a travel agent with Magical Moments Vacations who specializes in Disney travel. If you are interested in booking your own family vacation to Walt Disney World, Disneyland or Disney Cruise Line, please contact Melissa at melissaf@mmvagent.com or on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Must.Meet.Mickey. All travel agent services are free, and can take the questions and worries out of planning your family vacation! Contact Melissa today!
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