What a landmark for modern times that would be. Still waiting the day the building envelope and systems will be brought into 21st Century condition and get energy/climate smart. Worked in this legacy dowager of a building for many years. A glorious 1914 tower symbolizes the United City There’s much to love about this triumphant work of architecture: the vaulted entrance with Guastavino ceiling tiles, the bas relief panels, and the gilded copper statue, “Civic Fame,” perched at the top of the central tower. 3/27: Bronx Pot factory blaze Union Hall fire Revolutionary War gravesite | SpotCorner Says:.I miss the days before every building had metal detectors, security guards, etc. Anyone who tries that today would be arrested. This was way before 9/11, and could not happen today, but it was an ephemeral experience I’ll never forget. I had a camera, but sadly only 2 film exposures left, so the images were uneventful. At the top, a small door led to a balcony outside with an awesome view and an old office chair out there, with stuffing popping out. No doors were locked, no one seemed to mind, and I was alone. Years ago, in suit and tie, with some time from my work to spare, I ventured into this beautiful building, and with no questions, simply kept climbing beyond the elevators, beyond the radio stations, up a beautiful but neglected wooden spiral staircase to the interior directly under the statue. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.ġ0 Responses to “A glorious 1914 tower symbolizes the united city” You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. This entry was posted on Maat 6:50 am and is filed under Lower Manhattan. Tags: Audrey Munson statue, City Hall NYC, Civic Fame statue, early skyscrapers New York City, Greater New York 1898, Manhattan Municipal Building, Manhattan skyscrapers No disrespect to the former mayor, but like the Queensboro Bridge becoming the Ed Koch Bridge, it doesn’t quite roll off the tongue. Since 2015, the Manhattan Municipal Building has been renamed the David N. “Also on the crown are dolphins, symbolizing New York’s maritime setting.” This is a “mural” crown-”a crown with five crenellations as of a city wall, representing the five boroughs of the city,” according to nyc.gov. The second is the crown Civic Fame is holding up with her left hand. The first is above the middle section (left), where “there are three tiered drums on top of another, flanked by four smaller pinnacle turrets, symbolizing the four boroughs joined to Manhattan,” states. After all, in the time between the building’s conception and completion, Greater New York was born-an “Imperial City” of five boroughs that doubled Gotham’s population and increased its size sixfold on January 1, 1898. The united city theme certainly made sense. There’s much to love about this triumphant work of architecture: the vaulted entrance with Guastavino ceiling tiles, the bas relief panels, and the gilded copper statue, “Civic Fame” (modeled by Audrey Munson), perched at the top of the central tower.Īnd amid these and other beautiful features are two hidden symbols of the recently united metropolis. Officially a skyscraper at 40 stories high, the building’s design was inspired by the 12th century Giralda Tower in Spain, with its central arch (once open to cars) borrowed from Rome’s Arch of Constantine. In the 1880s, it was clear that the expanding city of more than one million residents needed bigger quarters if New York’s government was going to grow and function properly.Īfter 30 years of planning-selecting the site at One Centre Street, holding design contests (McKim, Mead, and White won out), and then constructing the new office tower-the Manhattan Municipal Building opened for business. Manhattan in the late 19th century was running out of space-government office space, to be precise.Ĭity Hall, which had been home to New York’s officials and agencies since 1812, was bursting at the seams by the middle of the Gilded Age.
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