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The Unisphere, located in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, was the centerpiece and visual logo of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, symbolizing the theme of "Peace Through Understanding." It was designed by the noted landscape architect Gilmore D. Clarke, who had devised the geometric, Beaux Arts-inspired layout of Flushing Meadows Park which formed the basis of the plan for this World's Fair as well as the earlier 1939-40 World's Fair. The Unisphere, which was commissioned to celebrate the dawn of the space age, was constructed and donated to the park by the United States Steel Corporation after successfully meeting several engineering challenges. |
The Unisphere, located in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, was the centerpiece and visual logo of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, symbolizing the theme of "Peace Through Understanding." It was designed by the noted landscape architect Gilmore D. Clarke, who had devised the geometric, Beaux Arts-inspired layout of Flushing Meadows Park which formed the basis of the plan for this World's Fair as well as the earlier 1939-40 World's Fair. The Unisphere, which was commissioned to celebrate the dawn of the space age, was constructed and donated to the park by the United States Steel Corporation after successfully meeting several engineering challenges. |
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Clarke's geometric Beaux-Arts plan for the fair's northern section is composed of several major and minor boulevards and paths radiating out from a central point with major axes terminating at focal points containing major pavilions, fountains, and sculpture. This central point was the location of the Trylon and Perisphere and is now the location of the Unisphere. This formal plan was contrasted with the more naturalistic southern section, which has two artificial lakes and randomly arranged paths. The northern section was intentionally made very level to permit the fair's temporary architecture to dominate the landscape. |
The 140-foot-high stainless steel Unisphere towers over a circular reflecting pool containing fountains that spray water twenty feet in the air. The sphere is covered with representations of the continents, showing the major mountain ranges in relief, and is encircled by three giant rings at various angles denoting the first manmade satellites, which had been launched in the late 1950s. These orbit rings represent the tracks of Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth and Telstar, the first active communications satellite. America was at the height of the Space Age when Unisphere was constructed, and the rings serve as reminders of America's early space achievements.The capital cities of the world are marked by lenses which, during the fair, were backed by flashing lights. The Unisphere remains one of the most prominent structural and landscape features of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, as well as a striking visual reminder of the second of New York City's great World's Fairs. |
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The Design and Construction of the Unisphere and its Site
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Designed by Gilmore D. Clarke, the Unisphere was engineered, fabricated, and donated to the fair by the United States Steel Corporation (USS). The supporting base was designed by famed Industrial Designer Peter Muller-Munk. Its components were manufactured by the company's American Bridge Division at Ambridge and Harrisburg, Pa., and assembled at the World's Fair site. The original published rendering of the Unisphere closely resembles the structure as eventually built, except for a different arrangement of fountains. The pool and the fountains were designed by Gilmore D. Clarke's landscape architecture firm, Clarke & Rapuano, with J. Samuel Hamel of the engineering firm Hamel & Langer serving as a consultant. Both firms worked together to produce many of the fair's other pools and fountains. |
Clarke's design for the Unisphere -- a steel cage composed mainly of curving structural members, which represent the lines of latitude and longitude supporting representations of the continents and three suspended orbital rings -- presented several engineering challenges. Since the continents are the heaviest parts of the all-steel sculpture and they aren't evenly distributed, the Unisphere is top heavy. Very top heavy. It was carefully engineered to account for the unbalanced mass.The globe tilts from the vertical at an angle of 23- 1/2 degrees, the normal tilt of the earth. As an open structure, virtually every part is visible and exposed to the moisture, salt air, and high winds of the local climate. The USS engineers chose 304L stainless steel as the Unisphere's major element because of its weatherproof qualities and resistance to corrosion. They studied different surface textures for the land masses to determine which would look best at various viewing distances. After testing various materials including stainless steel mesh, non-directional textured stainless steel sheeting was chosen for the land masses. To show elevation, the sheeting was built up in contours. |
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Despite the enormous loads that the Unisphere's shape imposes on its curving structural members, these could not be too thick, cross-braced, or irregularly spaced without compromising Clarke's proposal to feature accurate representations of the earth's meridians and parallels. In addition, the concave inner surfaces of the land masses trap the wind and create an enormous amount of drag on the structure. The distribution of its weight and the effects of the wind had to be considered and a stress transfer pattern created to insure that the Unisphere would retain strength and stability at all times. By varying the sectional dimensions of the meridians and parallels, the engineers were able to achieve structural stability without compromising the design. The three polished steel orbit rings are anchored to the superstructure by aircraft cable. Altogether, the Unisphere contains a mile and a half of meridians, parallels, and orbit rings. The 700,000 pound globe is supported by an inverted tripod base made out of a low- alloy, high strength steel and weighing 200,000 pounds, anchored to the foundation by steel bolts having a minimum yield strength of 100,000 pounds per square inch. The poured concrete foundation incorporates the Perisphere's piling ring, which remained intact underground from the 1939-40 World's Fair. It was reinforced with 600 additional 100-foot piles. |
The famous Unisphere which dominated the central plaza and symbolized the New York World's Fair, was the largest stainless steel structure ever erected. The 120 foot edifice was 13 stories high. It weighed 900,000 pounds and is perched on a 20 foot base.The foundation for the base is comprised of 528 pressure cresoted Douglas fir piles that are 95 to 100 feet long. They were driven into the marshy soil of Flushing Meadow Park as the foundation for the Perisphere, symbol of the 1939 world's Fair. Although the piles were cut off several feet above the permanent ground water level and had been exposed to organic acids ever since in the marshy subsoil. After careful examination by two New York engineering firms (Andrew & Clark and Moran, Proctor, Mueser & Rutledge) found the existing piles to be completely sound and capable of satisfactorily supporting the great Unisphere as a permanent structure. The Unisphere structure and support structure were designed to be a pemanent structure and Americanlandmark, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris. (Permanence: Proven By More Than 75 Years of Service) |
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Built on the structural foundation that supported the 1939/1940 New York World's Fair's Perisphere, Unisphere is centered in a large, circular reflecting pool that is 310 feet in diameter and is surrounded by a double ring of water-jet fountains designed to obscure its tripod pedestal. The effect is meant to make Unisphere appear as if it is floating in space.The floor of the pool is of poured concrete, and incorporates drains, piping, and the fountain casings. Altogether there are ninety-six fountainheads, arranged in pairs. They spray vertically to a height of twenty feet. The pool's bulkhead is made of cast concrete sheathed in rose-colored granite. An aluminum plaque faces each of the park's four major walkways, which converge at the Unisphere. These plaques, which were donated by U.S. Steel, contain descriptive information about the structure. The Unisphere is floodlit at night from towers located just beyond the edges of the walkway that encircles the reflecting pool. |
During the Fair, dramatic lighting at night gave the effect of sunrise moving over the surface of the globe. Additionally, the capitals of nations were marked by uniquely designed lights that held four bulbs each. When one would burn out, another would rotate in place so that the bulbs would not have to be changed during the two-year run of the Fair. Both lighting effects are no longer in operation. |
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FINDINGS AND DESIGNATION
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On February 14, 1995, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a public hearing on the proposed designation of the Unisphere with its surrounding pool and fountains and the proposed designation of the related Landmark Site. The hearing had been duly advertised in accordance with the provisions of law. Six witnesses spoke in favor of designation. There were no speakers in opposition to designation. The Parks Department has expressed its support for the designation.
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On the basis of a careful consideration of the history, the architecture, and other features of this structure, the Landmarks Preservation Commission finds that the Unisphere with its surrounding pool and fountains has a special character, special historical and aesthetic interest and value as part of the development, heritage and cultural characteristics of New York City.
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The Commission further finds that, among its important qualities, the Unisphere with its surrounding pool and fountains was the centerpiece and visual logo of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, symbolizing its theme of "Peace Through Understanding"; that it was designed by noted landscape architect Gilmore D. Clarke, who had devised the geometric, Beaux Arts-inspired layout of Flushing Meadows Park which formed the basis of the plan for this World's Fair as well as the earlier 1939-40 World's Fair; that the Unisphere, which was commissioned to celebrate the dawn of the space age, was constructed and donated to the park by the United States Steel Corporation; that the design of the Unisphere, a steel cage 120 feet in diameter composed mainly of curving structural members, which represent the lines of latitude and longitude supporting representations of the continents and three suspended orbital rings, presented several engineering challenges; and that the Unisphere remains one of the most prominent structural and landscape features of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, as well as a striking visual reminder of the second of New York City's great World's Fairs. |
Accordingly, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 74, Section 3020 of the Charter of the City of New York and Chapter 3 of Title 25 of the Administrative Code of the City of New York, the Landmarks Preservation Commission designates as a Landmark the Unisphere with its surrounding pool and fountains, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, Borough of Queens, and designates Bourough of Queens Tax Map Block 2018, Lot 1 in part, consisting of the land bounded by a line extending around the inner edge of the walkway encircling the described improvements, as its Landmark Site. |
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The Fountain's Return
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When the restored Flushing Meadows-Corona Park reopened to the public in 1967, the Unisphere remained as a permanent element of the park. Its visual prominence, especially to motorists traveling along the major expressways that ring the fairgrounds, makes it a major Queens landmark. However, the lack of maintenance over time began to take its toll on the structure and its site. By the 1970s, the fountains were shut down; the pool floor and bulkhead were graffiti- scarred; and the Unisphere itself was covered with grime. In 1989, the respective fiftieth and twenty-fifth anniversaries of the openings of the two New York World's Fairs, the Parks Department began a 3.6 million dollar rehabilitation project in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Among the projects were the restoration of the Unisphere and its pool and fountains. Structural repairs to the sphere included replacement of the inner and outer cables and all loose rivets, and tightening and/or replacing all nuts and bolts. The globe was cleaned with a special solution and water under high pressure. The original 96 spray jets in the fountain at the base of the Unisphere were restored and two new 200 horsepower pumps and a timer were installed. The work, which was funded by the office of the Queens Borough President, was finished and the fountains were restarted on May 31, 1994. The Unisphere remains one of the most prominent structural and landscape features of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, as well as a striking visual reminder of the second of New York City's great World's Fairs. |
On August 12, 2010, jets of water shot nearly 20 feet high around the Unisphere as the city unveiled a restored fountain encircling the symbolic landmark in Flushing Meadows. A nostalgic Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe led a 10-second countdown to what he called the "magical moment" - the first time the fountain has been at full blast since the 1964 World's Fair. "This is very special to me," said Benepe, who recalled visiting the fair as an awestruck child. "All of us have memories here. We have a park that is getting better every day."
Borough President Helen Marshall, who allocated funding towards the project, said the restoration finally pays respect to a Queens icon. "Here in the park, there's peace," Marshall said.
(Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/queens/2010/08/13/2010-08-13_fountains_return_after_repairs_water_flows_at_unisphere.html#ixzz1B5GeyXO7) |
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Gilmore D. Clarke, Landscape Architect |
Gilmore D. Clarke (1892-1982) was born in New York City and studied landscape architecture and civil engineering at Cornell University, from which he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1913. He served as an engineer in the army during World War I. During the 1920s, he served on several local, state, and federal commissions as landscape architect, including the Architectural Advisory Board for the United States Capitol, the New York State Council of Parks (which was headed by Robert Moses), and the Westchester County Park Commission, among many others. For his work in Westchester County, which included the Rye Beach Playland, the Saw Mill River Parkway, and the Bronx River Parkway, Clarke was awarded the Gold Medal of Honor in Landscape Architecture from the Architectural League of New York in 1931. By the time of the Great Depression, Clarke was the most popular landscape architect in public works in America. |
