Pennsylvania Station

Rating:
Summary: A splendid tribute to a lost landmark, and a lost era.
Review: In 1963, a crime was perpetrated on the people of the city of New York. One of the most magnificent monuments ever to grace the streets of this city was taken from us, robbed by the forces of greed and shortsightedness; a fortress built to last for centuries destroyed, systematically dismantled after only 53 years. To anyone who's ever passed through the grim, cluttered, underground rat trap that is Penn Station today, or had to find their way around the horrendously designed Madison Square Garden that sits on top of it, the mere image of those great marble columns, the 150-foot high coffered ceiling, and most of all that magnificent steel-and-glass roof convey a tremendous sense of tragedy and loss. This book brings the lost station back to life with full-page photographs and architectural drawings, along with concise and informative text. It reminds us of what we've lost, but also provides optimism for the future now that plans to convert the adjacent Farley building, also designed by McKim, Mead and White, into a glorious new railway terminus will shortly, finally, become a reality.

Anyone interested in railroad history, turn-of-the-century neoclassical architecture, or New York City history will be mesmerized by the images of this lost palace.