Visiting grand central terminal for the third time I can confidently say that i am now more aware of the building’s history and can appreciate why this building holds so much value. It is interesting to see the emotional connection people have developed to a building, which has gone through three renovations and in essence have given this lifeless entity a personality. You can see how the building’s character effects those other structure built around it. It’s sad that such nice piece of art work has now  become polluted with modern age  construction  and personally think its detrimental to  NYC history and  to those that fought to preserve it.

Joyia Williams

Professor Almeida

LIB 2205/ARCH 2205

17 June 2016

New York Times. (1932, June 30). Commuter Service Called Inefficient. New York Times. p. 32

The New York Times (NYT) reports that New York Central Railroad is proposing a forty percent (40%) increase on its current commuter fare at a Public Service and Transit Commissions hearing, but consulting engineer John C. Brackenridge asserts that the proposed fare hike is completely unnecessary on the basis of resource mismanagement. Brackenridge alleges that NY Central uses more railcars than necessary to transport passengers to/from Westchester County, subsequently, requiring more manpower and electricity usage (p. 32). NYT mentions that Brackenridge sources his testimony by collecting his own “proper adjustment of car mileage to commuter traffic” (para. 3.), and utilizing “his own ‘liberal’ allowances for labor and material costs” (para. 3). Brackenridge’s findings conclude that NY Central earns enough profit from current commuter fare, and to approve any fare hike would be unjust to the passenger.

Though this is not a current source, this article would be a reliable source because NYT is a highly-respected newspaper, and,  is relevant to GCT’s demise. This article appears to be objective because there’s no indication of a hidden agenda from the writer, and the contradictory findings come from a professional hired directly by GCT. Also, the consulting engineer could’ve easily accepted a bribe from GCT and recommended the commuter passenger fare hike but yet he chose to make his own findings and do his job honestly.  would consider the source scholarly because only professional familar the  could peer review this source, and include it in an academic database.

This article exposes Grand Central Terminal’s “ dirty laundry” for those researchers looking to uncover GCT’s possible role in its own demise. Portraying GCT in an negative light, the article makes readers a little more inquisitive and even suspicious of GCT records/bookkeeping, its true financial status and the Commodore’s role in price gouging, if any.

Please note that the site report #2 is due Tuesday June 21 end of the day.

Review lecture notes / handouts

Be prepared to:

• Define key terms & architectural periods
• Identify major architectural sites, styles, & influences on the GCT
• Identify key people involved in the construction / preservation of GCT
• describe historical context & socio-economic conditions surrounding the GCT
• Identify parts of an APA citation
• Articulate a research methodology

During our second tour, I didn’t known what to expect that I would learn and if it would interest me. Now, on a very surprising note I genuinely did learn some things that I find quite interesting. If you see the two photos below, they depict some of the things I found quite interesting.

the picture above is an old train schedule and the fact that it is still preserved and in great condition plus with what seemed to be chalk writing is still visible and that is incredible.

This photo above is of the remaining buildings from terminal city. Terminal city was composed of building that were built on the real estate that GCT created when they covered their rail yards. All these building in terminal city were once connected to one another and GCT, which meant that one didn’t even have to step outside on the street unless they undyingly wanted to see the rest of NYC

“Grand Central, Reborn as a Mall” by David W. Dunlap

In the New York Times article, “Grand Central, Reborn as a Mall,” dated August 2, 1998, David W. Dunlap discusses the new changes Grand Central Terminal had been undergoing at the time. He mentions at length the types of stores and restaurants that will be renting out retail space such as the more luxurious Michael Jordan’s The Steak House N.Y.C. to more everyday shops such as Banana Republic, Rite Aid, and Two Boots Pizza. He relays several quotes from retail tenants, executives, and average visitors that express nothing but excitement for these changes and he has mentioned anyone in disagreement towards these new additions to the terminal. Dunlap himself encourages these renovations and claims that despite commercializing Grand Central Terminal, it still retains its architectural beauty.

Dunlap, D. W. (1998, August 02). Grand Central, Reborn as a Mall. New York Times. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/109904187?accountid=28313

The William Wilgus finding aid is organized by giving us a brief overview of all the resource materials, summarizing his biography, and then outlining his works that have been divided into eight specific series. The finding aid describes Wilgus’ life as a civil engineer and the important project he worked on such as the Buffalo Union Station and the new Grand Central Terminal as a chief engineer of New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. It then mentions his life after opening up his own private practice and after that, his life devoted to research.

The division of his work into series is useful for researchers who are looking for specific documents relating to Wilgus’ works. For example, if a researcher was interested in Wilgus’ experience analyzing the French railroad for transportation in the U.S. during wartime, he or she would know to look in series II, “American Expeditionary Forces – Transportation Corps.” Also, if there is a specific document a researcher wants to see, the “detailed description” tab is available.

After enjoying our first two visits to Grand Central Terminal and learning general facts about the building, it was great hearing about specific architecture points from today’s tour guide, Anthony Robins. Supplemented with a handout that depicts structures in France and Rome, we learned about the inspiration (and blatant copying) Grand Central Terminal architects drew from known foreign structures. For example, the Pershing Square Viaduct is taken directly from Paris’ Alexander III Bridge. The arches that cover the terminal are also reminiscent of the Roman triumphal arch and other arches that demonstrate a city’s greatness. The staircases that covers the east and west wing are also taken from the French opera house and the statue of Hercules, Mercury, and Minerva above GCT’s clock are sculpted similarly to the statue on Alexander III Bridge (although this is also because it is from the same sculptor, Jules-Felix Coutan). I love discovering how artists draw inspiration from outside sources and how they incorporate their own interpretations.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0wzyo5GLgExRUpOWnZTZ1pURms/view?ths=true