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Trees. There are so
many BIG trees. That's what today's Fairgoer thinks when
they visit Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. The mind's eye remembers
the new saplings and small shrubs planted for the Fair -- landscaping
being important requirement in the contracts signed by all exhibitors.
Pavilion sites were to be attractively landscaped and plantings
suitable to a park were to remain or be transplanted following
the Fair. Those little trees are 40 years old and all grown up
now just like us!
The New York Hall of Science
is undergoing major changes with the addition of a whole new
wing on the site of the former US Space Park to the north of
the Hall. The dilapidated Space Park, of which only a few rockets
still remain, was dismantled more than a year ago and shipped
to Ohio for renovation. It will eventually be installed in a
new Space Park to be located to the east of the Hall on a portion
of the former site of the Ford Pavilion.
New York Hall
of Science... Changes
since the Fair include the rotunda addition erected on the west
side of the Great Hall and a children's Exploratorium constructed
to the south. The Great Hall, with its undulating walls of deep
blue, red and yellow stained glass set in concrete, is still a
wonderful legacy of the Fair to visit.
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Photos Source:
&COP 2002 Rod Smith, All Rights Reserved
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Unusual reminders of the
Fair can be found around the Park -- from the engraved stones
with philosophical quotes in the old Garden of Meditation to
the foundations of pavilions that have made their way to the
surface of the park as the land settles. There's even a rumor
that the Underground World Home was simply covered over following
the Fair and it too lies undisturbed beneath the Park waiting
to be raised from the dead.
Raised from
the Dead? ... Flushing
Meadow is a reclaimed ash dump covering a swamp and the ground
is constantly settling. Here, foundations of the support towers
for the Monorail poke up through the ground in what was once the
Amusement Area of the Fair -- now Meadow Lake recreational area.
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Photos Source:
&COP 2002 Phil Ras, All Rights Reserved
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Unisphere has has been
granted Landmark status by the Landmarks Preservation organization
in New York. The 12-story stainless steel symbol of the Fair
has been refurbished. The Parks Department has restored the Fountains
of the Continents that surround Unisphere as well as the reflecting
pool and Fountains of the Fairs that lead from Unisphere to The
Rocket Thrower on the Fair's Main Mall. Unfortunately, they are
sometimes used for bathing and open sewers by Park patrons. Their
operation is, therefore, sadly limited.
Fountains
of the Continents splash
at the base of Unisphere on a rare day that the Parks Department.
has turned them on.
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Photos Source:
&COP 2001 Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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Photo Source:
&COP 2001 Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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 (Courtesy of Bill Cotter)
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Source: Consulting
Engineer Magazine
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| The Most Famous View? Perhaps the best known
view of the Fair is the shot of The Rocket Thrower silhouetted
against Unisphere with the Fountains of the Fair splashing in
the foreground. Contrast this shot from the Fair (above) with
today's view (below). |
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Granite Court
Commemorates the Fairs ... The Main Mall of the Fair as it looks today from
the base of Unisphere. The gorgeous black granite salute to the
Fairs of Flushing Meadow by Matt Mullican can be seen in the foreground.
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Photo Source:
&COP 2001 Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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Photos Source:
&COP 2007 Bruce Eylmann, All Rights Reserved
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Photos Source:
&COP 2007 Matt Mangione, All Rights Reserved
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Marble Bench
Commemorates the Vatican Pavilion ... After the Fair, this bench was placed
on the site of the Vatican Pavilion to commemorate the Vatican's
historic presence at the Fair and the visit to the Fair, New York
and the United Nations in October, 1965 by Pope Paul VI.
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Photos Source:
&COP 2007 Matt Mangione, All Rights Reserved
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Photos Source:
&COP 2001 Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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Photo Source:
2001 Bradd Schiffman, All Rights Reserved
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| Yesterday/Today The Fountains of the
Fairs once created a cooling effect for weary Fairgoers. Today,
the restored fountains splash for weary soccer players. |
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A Welcomed
Change ... Evidence
of the Park's rennaissance can be seen at the base of The Rocket
Thrower. Compare the photo on the left from 1998 with photo on
the right of the same view taken in the Summer of 2001.
Photos Source: © 2001
Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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Ghost Images
... This
section of the Park was once the most heavily traveled spot at
the Fair -- the site of the General Motors Futurama exhibit.
Now it's just a large grassy meadow along the Grand Central Parkway.
Photos Source: © 2001
Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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| webmasters note: Ron Dominguez writes: Over the years,
whenever I have seen anything vaguely remotely connected to the
fair it immediately catches my attention. Some years ago I spotted
something interesting that you may find interesting too. A book
came out "Above New York" which showed helicopter
views of New York City. In one part, the helicopter flew over
the old fair grounds and the picture shows the area roughly covering
the old General Motors site. Today, there are a couple of baseball
fields on the site. The reason this is of interest is because
of a little known trick of nature. I read that the World's Fair
contracts required the exhibitors to remove all pavilions and
foundations down to a three foot depth in the ground. So, if
a pavilion required deeper foundations the exhibitor did NOT
have to remove all of them but just cover them over. There is
a curiosity of nature that dictates that if there is a "disturbance"
to the natural ground strata, over time, the grass covering will
differ according to the differences. (For example, at Valley
Forge Pennsylvania, they were able to locate some of the redoubts
from Washington's troops because oddities in the soil were visible
from the air. The grass grew and colored differently from other
areas. So they could "see" the shadow of the redoubts
from the air.) I have a feeling that this circumstance may have
been in play with the General Motors pavilion. As I look at the
photo from the air, you can clearly see a distinct coloration
difference that follows one long side of what would have been
the side of the pavilion facing the Grand Central Parkway. The
"shadow" clearly is in the location of where the foundation
would have been. From the ground, nothing is visible but from
the air you can clearly see the one wall of what was the pavilion.
So, I think part of the GM futureama is still down there. I'm
not certain of course but it sure looks that way. Thought you
would find that interesting. Ron Dominguez, via email 2/08/2010. |
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Photos Source:
&COP 2007 Bruce Eylmann, All Rights Reserved
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Waiting for
Someone to Care ... A study in contrasts. The restored Theaterama
building of the New York State Pavilion hosts the vibrant Theater
in the Park. Ten feet away sits the rotting hulk of the roofless
Tent of Tomorrow and the Observation Towers of the Pavilion. The
terrazzo map of NY State is a broken irreparable shambles. Curiously,
Park Department signs on the chain-link fence that keeps visitors
out tell of its history and Park Department efforts over the years
to maintain it. Too little -- and perhaps too late. A grass-roots
effort is underway to restore the building as an Air & Space
Museum.
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Photos Source:
&COP 2001 Larry Hubble, All Rights Reserved
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