Grand Central Terminal : railroads, engineering, and architecture in New York City / Kurt C. Schlichting.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Schlichting, Kurt C.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Grand Central Terminal (New York, N.Y.)--History.

Grand Central Terminal (New York, N.Y.).

Railroad terminals--New York (State)--New York--History.

Railroad terminals.

Railroad terminals--Conservation and restoration--New York (State)--New York.

Railroad terminals--Conservation and restoration.

History.

New York (State)--New York.

Physical Description:

xiii, 243 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm

Edition:

John Hopkins paperback edition.

Place of Publication:

Baltimore, Md. : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013.

Summary:

Grand Central Terminal, one of New York City's preeminent buildings, stands as a magnificent Beaux-Arts monument to America's Railway Age, and it remains a vital part of city life today. Completed in 1913 after ten years of construction, the terminal became the city's most important transportation hub, linking long-distance and commuter trains to New York's network of subways, elevated trains, and streetcars. In Grand Central Terminal, Kurt C. Schlichting traces the history of this spectacular building, detailing the colorful personalities, bitter conflicts, and Herculean feats of engineering behind its construction. Completed in 1871, the first Grand Central was the largest rail facility in the world and yet-cramped and overburdened-soon proved thoroughly inadequate for the needs of this rapidly expanding city. William Wilgus, chief engineer of the New York Central Railroad, conceived a new Grand Central Terminal, one that would fully meet the needs of the New York Central line. Schlichting concludes with an account of the public outcry that prevented the proposed demolition of the terminal in 1969 and the meticulous 1990s restoration project that returned Grand Central Terminal to its original splendor. More than a history of a train station, this book is the story of a city and an age as reflected in a building aptly described as a secular cathedral. Book jacket.

Contents:

1. The Commodore's Grand Central

2. The Engineer's Grand Central

3. The Architect's Grand Central

4. New York's Grand Central.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 223-232) and index.

ISBN:

142141192X

9781421411927

OCLC:

844727196

Publisher Number:

99954786435