The Name Behind The Firm

Midtown Manhattan's Chrysler Building

With its Art Deco-styled architecture, the Chrysler Building is arguably Manhattan's most recognizable and photographed skyscraper in the aftermath of 9-11.

In the early part of the 20th century, there was much-ballyhooed competition in New York City to replace the Eiffel Tower in Paris as the world's tallest building. As a status symbol for his product, auto manufacturer Walter P. Chrysler purchased the building's original design from contractor William H. Reynolds.

Chrysler hired architect William Van Alen to plan a seven-story pinnacle for the 230-meter structure which, given the initial plan, would have fallen 53 meters short of the then-under-construction Bank of Manhattan building. In 1928, just one week after the Bank of Manhattan structure had been completed, Van Alen unveiled his pinnacle, which was first assembled inside the Chrysler Building and then hoisted into position through the roof opening and anchored on top in just 90 minutes.

The now 319-meter tall edifice included gargoyles depicting Chrysler car ornaments and a spire modeled on a radiator grille. One of the first uses of stainless steel over a large, exposed building surface, the Chrysler Building was restored in 1995 with all of its original glitter.

Southeast Michigan's Rouge River

In 1928, a scant eight years before completion of the Chrysler Building, a far less renowned but no less important structure was placed in service southwest of Detroit - the New York Central Railroad's Bascule Bridge over the Rouge River. Funded largely through a 1917 Congressional appropriation of $490,000, construction of the drawbridge replaced a swing bridge erected in 1887. More important than allowing continued rail transportation from New York to Detroit, it permitted use of the Rouge by large lake freighters at the Ford Motor Company.

The drawbridge was rebuilt by the Midwest Steel Company in 1982.

Historical information obtained from www.greatbuildings.com and www.michiganrailroads.com.