As London is recognized for Big Ben and Paris for the Eiffel Tower, so too, are cities in the United States known for their landmarks. From the West Coast to East Coast, here’s our list of the country’s most celebrated city landmarks and their historical backgrounds.
Golden Gate Bridge: San Francisco, California
Considered one of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World,” the Golden Gate Bridge, which links San Francisco with Marin County, opened ahead of schedule on May 28, 1938, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt pressed a telegraph key in the White House to announce the event to the world.
The concept of bridging the vast Golden Gate Strait was proposed as early as 1872 by railroad entrepreneur Charles Crocker. It was not until 1916, however, that the idea of a bridge was revived by James Wilkins, newspaper editor of the San Francisco Call Bulletin. He began an editorial campaign for a bridge that caught the attention of San Francisco City Engineer Michael M. O'Shaughnessy.
O'Shaughnessy began a national inquiry among engineers regarding the feasibility and cost of such a project. The majority of engineers said a bridge could not be built because of high winds, strong ocean currents and poor weather. Some speculated it would cost over $100 million. However, Joseph Baermann Strauss, a designer of nearly 400 spans, said such a bridge was not only feasible, but could be built for only $25 to $30 million.
Construction commenced January 5, 1933 and required the most rigorous safety precautions in the history of bridge building. The 1.2-mile bridge was successfully completed in just over four years.
Often cloaked in thick fog, the bridge sways 27 feet to withstand winds of up to 100 miles per hour. The color of the bridge, known as International Orange, was chosen because it blends well with the bridge's natural surroundings. The two great cables contain enough strands of steel wire (80,000 miles) to encircle the equator three times. The concrete poured into its piers and anchorages could pave a five-foot wide sidewalk from San Francisco to New York.
Today’s engineers speculate that the bridge will be able to effectively serve the public for 200 more years due to the great design and continued maintenance of the bridge – which has earned the reputation as the world’s most spectacular bridge and one of the most visited sites in the world.
Space Needle: Seattle, Washington
Sketched on a place mat in a coffee shop in 1959, the internationally known symbol of Seattle, the Space Needle, first came to be realized when Edward E. Carlson drew his vision of a dominant central structure for the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair.
Easier drawn than constructed, the structure’s unique design presented several obstacles and underwent many transformations – from a tethered balloon to a flying saucer. Just a year and a half before the fair was to open, the final design was chosen.
The underground foundation, measuring 30 feet deep and 120 feet across, required 467 cement trucks to fill the hole within one day. Special attention was paid to the observation deck and revolving restaurant level, which turned perfectly balanced with just a one horsepower electric motor. In following the Century 21 theme of the World’s Fair, the final coats of the needle were dubbed astronaut white for the legs, orbital olive for the core, re-entry red for the halo and galaxy gold for the sunburst and pagoda roof.
Completed in December 1961, the Space Needle cost $4.5 million and officially opened on the first day of the World’s Fair, April 21, 1962.
Built to withstand a wind velocity of 200 miles per hour and large earthquakes, the Needle has withstood 90 mile per hour winds and a 1965 earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale.
Today, the Space Needle still mesmerizes its visitors with a 50-story glass elevator ride to the top and a 520 foot level observation deck that provides views of Puget Sound, Mt. Rainier and downtown Seattle.
The Gateway Arch: St. Louis, Missouri
To commemorate the westward expansion of the United States during the 19th century, the St. Louis riverfront was selected in 1935 for the site of a national monument, which would include the Gateway Arch (America’s tallest monument) and the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (a 97-acre national park including the Arch, Old Courthouse and Luther Ely Smith Square).
Designed by famed architect Eero Saarinen, the stainless-steel Arch, which towers 630 feet and spans 630 feet, became the essential element of the $30 million memorial project that, between February 29, 1964 and June 8, 1966, went from concept to final product.
To build the legs of the Arch, the double-walled, triangular sections were placed one on top of another and then welded inside and out. What makes the Arch such an incredible sensory experience is that the complex engineering design and construction is completely hidden from view, including the seams where the Arch was welded. All that can be seen is the Arch’s sparkling stainless-steel outer layer and inner skin of carbon steel, which gives it its strength and permanence.
For a 30-mile panoramic view of the east and west, a unique conveyance system – a 40-passenger train made up of eight five-passenger capsules – travels to an observation platform at the top of the Arch. The journey begins 50 feet underground and ends 630 feet above the St. Louis riverfront. For more than 25 years the conveyance system has been in operation, traveling more than 200,000 miles and carrying more than 18 million passengers.
Today, the park and Gateway Arch stand where fur traders once made their fortunes, pioneers launched their dreams and the steamboat was king of the river, representing the hard work and success of Americans’ pursuit of happiness in a mission to move west.
Sears Tower: Chicago, Illinois
When the idea of building the Sears Tower was considered in the late 1960s, Sears, Roebuck and Co. had an income of almost $450 million annually, making it the world's largest retailer. It seemed natural that the company should also build the world's largest building – providing work space for more than 13,000 of Sears' employees around Chicago.
At 1,454 feet tall, the Sears Tower was the tallest building in the world when it opened in 1974 (the title went to the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1996). However, plans to add an extra 22 feet to one of its twin broadcast antennas may put the Tower back in the lead.
Designed by the firm of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, the 110-story Tower has 25 miles of plumbing, 1,500 miles of electric wiring, 80 miles of elevator cable, and 145,000 light fixtures. The building, all together, weighs more than 222,500 tons and cost more than $160 million to build.
Fast Facts:
- Its highest occupied floor is 1,431 feet above the ground.
- The foundation and the floor slabs have some 2 million cubic feet of concrete -- enough to build an eight-lane highway five miles long.
- A 106-cab elevator system (including 16 double decker elevators) divides the Tower into three separate zones, with skylobbies in between.
- Sears Tower elevators operate as fast as 1,600 feet per minute.
- More than 1.5 million tourists visit the Skydeck each year.
- On clear days, visibility from the Skydeck is more than 50 miles.
- There 2,232 steps from ground level to the roof.
Though Sears, Roebuck and Co. has since moved to a more suburban setting, Sears Tower remains one of Chicago's most prestigious buildings, which still lures tourists and houses a workforce of thousands.
Statue of Liberty: New York, New York
Considered one of the most universal symbols of political freedom and democracy, the Statue of Liberty, officially titled Liberty Enlightening the World, was a gift of international friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States for this country’s centennial celebration.
Dedicated in New York Harbor on October 28, 1886, the Statue of Liberty was designated a National Monument on October 15, 1924, and extensively restored in time for her spectacular centennial on July 4, 1986.
Designed by French sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi and structurally designed by Gustave Eiffel (who later built the Eiffel Tower), the statue commemorates the alliance between the United States and France during the American Revolution from 1775 to 1783. Funded completely through the donation of the French people, the 151-foot statue was dismantled into 300 pieces and packed into 214 wooden crates. According to Bartholdi, New York was the perfect locale because it is "where people get their first view of the New World."
The pedestal for the statue, designed by American architect Morris Hunt, is an 89-foot-high pedestal that sits upon a concrete foundation. The foundation required 24,000 tons of concrete, the largest single mass at that time ever poured. In May 1886, the Statue of Liberty began to rise over her new home in America, though it took six months to mount the statue to her base.
When the Statue of Liberty was finally dedicated in 1886, she was the tallest structure in New York, reaching to a total height of 305 feet. It wasn't until 1899 that she was overtaken by Saint Paul's Building, which rose to 310 feet, and since then many of New York’s high rises have passed her. Yet she remains the visual and spiritual center of New York Harbor.