One of the perks of living in such an amazing city as New York is the ease with which you can find significant buildings all around you. Regardless of what borough your in, New York City has years of history that can be unveiled by simply choosing the right structure to look at. An example of this can be found by studying Manhattan’s iconic railroad, Grand Central Terminal. After reading the Grand Central Terminal Wikipedia page, I found various facts about the rail road that I had no idea of. For starters, it is claimed as being one of the world’s most visited tourist attractions. It’s 44 platforms make it the rail road with the most platforms in the world. In addition to this, a random fact I found is that it’s more commonly known and referred to as Grand Central Station, which is the name of a nearby post office and not the actual rail road. On the more unusual side, the Terminal has a secret basement beneath the last floor that houses AC-DC converters. Apparently, this sub floor, known as M42, does not show up in any maps and has been a well kept secret that played a key role in World War 2. Finally, another fact that was surprising to me is that prior to it’s construction/layout, the final design for the Terminal was chosen through a competition that required participating firms to depict their version of what Grand Central should look like. Overall, the wiki page gave me enough facts to get me interested in the subject, but did so in a way that made me want to know more about it.
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Grand Central terminal is truly a remarkable piece of architecture that is rich in history and accentuates one of NYC many attractions. As the article stated, this station serves as an intersecting point between commuters from upstate New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and also has become one of the worlds most visited attractions. For those of use who are native of NYC, grand central terminal is simply just another subway station, which we use to commute to and from our destination and perhaps take for granted its rich history and secretes. From reading the article I learned that the station actually house a secrete sub-basement that contains the source of power supply to the M42 tracks which is not depicted in any maps. I also learned that prior to 1996 the astronomical image that is at the center of the station was filled with nicotine and tar, which were a byproduct of cigarette smoke that distorted the quality of the painting. I wonder what other mysteries and secretes grand central terminal holds?
Growing up in New York City has always been a whirlwind experience. Last year, I was finally able to land myself a part time job at a chocolate shop at Grand Central Terminal. Prior to being employed in the area, I had only been at GCT through passing- on trains going to other stops, or through the lens of movies (gossip girl anyone?). Stepping into the main hall for my interview that first day- swept me away. There was a sense of awe, and a little compassion for those out of city tourists who stood dumbfounded at the sheer enormity of the main building, with its impressive structured hall, its historic railroad feel (updated with little pop up computerized booths for instant self-help ticket stations), and wafty smells that arose from the downstairs dining concourse (later to become my place of work).
Whilst reading the wiki article on GCT, a new light to the face of the terminal came to mind. I’ve always seen GCT as a place packed with (never-ending) tourists and travelers, and although I’ve seen the tours that people take of the terminal, and I have been a part of GCT innovative cultural shows to attract more tourists into the terminal- I’ve never seen the underlying history of the terminal itself. The wiki article not only talked about places and events I’ve been a part of (Christmas exhibition at Vanderbilt Hall, etc), but it talks about the design of the terminal, the history, the actual architects of the buildings, the problems and dilemmas faced by those who wanted to make the terminal as large and grand as it turned out. Reading the article, was exactly what we discussed in class; about how we walk around in life not actually seeing, but seeing as though our brains were trained to see.
For me, reading the article was experiencing GCT in a whole new facet altogether. I can imagine the enormity of the project when William J. Wilgus took control of the project (after the train crash in Park Avenue tunnel), and can imagine the will to create something to rival that of any other in the country. I can appreciate the level of work and commitment put into the terminal, not just when it was first beginning to become Grand Central Terminal, but even today, with the constant events and planning that goes into taking care of the structure and all the developments, which ultimately gives the terminal the character and personality that it has today.
Through this course, I believe that I will understand the GCT platform through a much more personal scope, which will not only increase my knowledge of the place, but will enhance my experiences with one of the cores of NYC.