The new site selected for Magic Mountain was at the foot of the mountains at Apex Gulch southwest of Golden. During the Colorado Gold Rush, this had been part of the site of Apex, an early base camp community at an important crossroads of thoroughfares leading to the gold fields, including the Apex Road, which led up the gulch. At the same time, Cobb learned of the new theme park creating firm of Marco Engineering, Inc., formed by Cornelius Vanderbilt Wood, and hired them to design Magic Mountain at this location. Among the members of Wood's firm were several veteran Hollywood art directors, including some who had worked on Disneyland itself. The lead designers for Magic Mountain were Wade B. Rubottom and Richmond (Dick) Kelsey.
