This Day in History May 1, 1931

I visited New York City when I was 17 years old (almost 18), and it is an experience I shall never forget. Although all my pictures were lost in a flooded basement shortly after my marriage, I still have a video of it.  I used to have a picture of this building as well as a picture that included the Twin Towers (which I don't even recall while there).  I got the chance to go to the top of today's feature.  On this date in 1931, the Empire State Building was opened to the public.  It was the tallest building at that time at 1250 feet tall.  It was build as a result of the skyscraper race sparked by the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France in 1889.  It was taller than the recently-built Chrysler Building that stood a mere 1046 feet tall.  And just for good measure, they added a lightning rod to the roof which brought it to a 1454 feet tall.  At the height of its building of this structure, the workers averaged four and a half stories per day.

For more info:
http://famousdaily.com/history/empire-state-building-opens-in-new-york.html
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/wwii/jb_wwii_empire_1.html
http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/a/empirestatebldg.htm

This Day in History January 18, 1964

It's so hard to even see a picture of these beloved towers.  When I went to New York, I remember seeing them.  I used to have a picture of them, and the skyline of New York is just not the same without them.  But on this date in 1964, the plans for the Twin towers were made public.  They had such a boom of people and business following WWII, and the plans were to have 110 million square feet of office space in these towers.    They never could have dreamed that less than forty years later these beautiful towers would be the sight of the worst terrorist attack in our history.

For more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Construction_of_the_World_Trade_Center
http://www.nytimes.com/ref/magazine/08wtc-timeline.html
http://famousdaily.com/history/plans-are-revealed-for-the.html

This Day in History December 27, 1932

'Tis the season for the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes!  And we can be grateful that on this date in 1932, Radio City Music Hall first opened.  Originally, the name was going to be International Music Hall, and its name is actually derived from some of the first tenants of Rockefeller Center (where you find the music hall)--Radio Corporation of America.

Opening night boasted a tremendous spectacle in this theater featuring Ray Bolger and Martha Graham, but due to the length and sporadic nature of the show, it was not a success.  So January 11, 1933, feature films with short spectacles became the staple of the theater.  This film plus stage spectacle continued until 1979.

Of course, it now houses the Radio City Christmas Spectacular amongst other spectacles.  I have never seen a show there, but maybe I will one day!

For more information, please check out these links:
http://www.nyc-architecture.com/MID/MID061.htm
http://www.enotes.com/topic/Radio_City_Music_Hall