I n a city seemingly overrun with opinions, it is no wonder that its city hall has been the object of so much admiration and scorn over the years. Officially, it's architecture is Second Empire French, but others have called it everything from "majestic" to "monstrous." A number of plans were conceived over the years to demolish the huge building, but they all failed, mostly because of the cost involved in razing and carting away the enormous amount of rubble that would be left behind -- the building covers 4½ acres of ground. For now, the building is safe from the wrecking ball, having been named a national historic landmark. City Hall was the subject of controversy even before construction began. It's original design called for a U-shaped building that embraced Independence Hall. That plan was rejected amid public outcry loud enough that the commonwealth legislature passed a law specifically vetoing the project. The voters were eventually allowed to choose the site, and they selected Penn Square, then called Center Square. At the time Center Square was parkland at the intersection of two roads. Constructing City Hall in this location would eventually make a mess of traffic in the area. A plan was drawn up in 1929 to demolish City Hall leaving only the tower surrounded by a traffic circle. In some ways it's a miracle that the building was ever completed. In addition to the cries for its destruction even before it was complete, money was an ongoing problem. The price tag kept jumping, and at the same time political games kept the workers from being paid. Construction was halted several times because the money ran out. Work would then resume once city council decided to start paying its bills again. Perhaps it was this toying that was the inspiration for the scenes cared into the south portal of the building where a cat plays with a mouse. The game only extended the amount of time it took to complete the building. In fact, it took so long that technology changed. The building had to be retrofitted in the middle of construction replacing gas lamps with electric lamps. Once completed, the building was a masterpiece. Simply walking up or down one of the six-story spiral staircases is a treat. The granite steps are cantilevered from the wall so they appear to float in air. Huge chandeliers illuminate mosaic floors, intricately decorated ceilings, sculptures, and artwork. It is the political hub of an industrial city, but its 700 rooms are easily suitable as the capitol building of a small nation. The founder of Pennsylvania was William Penn, whose bronze statue stands at the top of the building. It was created by Alexander Milne Calder and faces northeast and is another example of oversized detailing. The statue's fingers are 30 inches long. It nose 18 inches. And its hat 23 feet around. It is an enormous statue created at a time when the city and the country were entering an era of prosperity when bigger was better.
The clocks on Philadelphia City Hall are actually larger than those on Parliament Tower (Big Ben) in London.
The clock faces are 26 feet in diameter.
The minute hands are 15 feet long.
The hour hand 12½ feet long.
For an unknown reason, the south stairwell does not have entries onto each floor.
In the 1960's and 1970's there was a group of women known as the "City Hall Bunnies." Their job was to escort distinguished visitors around the building.
1871 - Ground breaking
1874 - Cornerstone is laid.
1894 - William Penn statue is placed on top of the building.
1899 - The clock starts.
2000 - An eight-year $347,000,000.00 renovation project is started. Years of neglect have led to leaking roofs, missing doors, rusting details, linoleum floors, and worse. Some corners are stained with urine, and homeless people occasionally use the rest rooms to bathe.
"A majestic and lovely show there in the moonlight ... silent, weird, beautiful."
Walt Whitman, 1879
"Perhaps the greatest single effort of late 19th-century American architecture."
AIA, 1957
RONALD JENKINS
Friday, May 28th, 2004 @ 5:59pm
Rating: Five stars. The ancient Romans build their greatest master pieces of architecture, and we the people of philly build the greatest master pieces of artchitecture. !
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Dubai, United Arab Emirates
RONALD JENKINS
Five stars.