When people first think of the Twin Towers, the first thing that comes to mind is the tragedy of 9/11. But before that infamous day, the Twin Towers were among the tallest buildings in the world. And at one point, the World Trade Center was even considered the world’s tallest TV station.

The North Tower, completed first in December 1970, stood at an impressive 1,368 feet. Meanwhile, its twin South Tower, completed in July 1971, stood at 1,362 feet.

Not long after being completed in 1971, the Word Trade Center was soon dwarfed by the Sears Tower in Chicago. Standing at an eye-watering 1,451 feet, the Sears Tower became even taller than the World Trade Center. 

But with a simple addition, the Word Trade Center was soon able to reclaim the title of “World’s Tallest Building.”

The North Tower: The Tallest TV Station in the World

Until its destruction on 9/11, the North Tower had the distinction of being the tallest building in the world at 1,728 feet. But how did the North Tower gain several hundred feet on its twin tower? The answer to that is simple: an antenna. 

Building the twin towers was very expensive. Along with the huge insurance policy that cost billions of dollars, the building’s upkeep, insurance, and rent were costly for its owners. To help offset the cost, they got the idea of turning the North Tower into the country’s largest television station.

In 1979, the owners decided to mount a television antenna on the North Tower. Often working in cranes and baskets almost two thousand feet above the streets of Manhattan, the crews were known as “cloud piercers.” This is because they were so high up they would often be standing far above the cloud covers. 

When completed, the tower provided television coverage for all of New York state. 

The Man Behind the Famous Photo of the World’s Tallest TV Station

Peter Kaplan was a famous photographer who was both a photographer and stuntman. Growing up in New York, Peter was fond of taking pictures from high places, even from a young age. But once he grew up, he took that love of photography to new heights – literally. 

After becoming famous for climbing the Statue of Liberty and snapping several, now world-renowned, photos, Peter Kaplan cemented his fame as both a photographer and daredevil. Clambering up places like the Empire State Building, St. Louis Arch, and Golden Gate Bridge, Peter made it his lifelong passion for showing the world what it looked like from its highest places. 

For the photo showing the antenna on the North Tower, Peter went up not once, not twice, but 12 separate times to get all the shots he needed. Talk about dedication!

Other Artists Who Have Scaled the World Trade Center

The “cloud piercers” and photographer Peter Kaplan weren’t the only ones to bravely make their way high up the World Trade Center.

August 7, 1974: High-wire walker Philippe Petit traversed a 131-foot-long cable between the Twin Towers and walked back and forth several time, 1,350 feet in the air. Even more impressive, he performed the act without a net.

July 22, 1975: Atop the North Tower, Owen Quinn performed the first ever (although unauthorized) parachute jump at the World Trade Center from the top of the North Tower. Follow Owen, four other people have parachuted off the Twin Towers between 1980 and 1999.

May 26, 1977: Toymaker and mountain climber George Willig scaled the entirety of the South Tower’s facade. The act was so impressive that he earned the nickname “the human fly.”

Looking Back at the World’s Tallest TV Station

The story behind the World Trade Center antenna photo is amazing. Not only was the guy that took it dangling almost 2,000 feet in the air, but he also had to do it a dozen times to get the shot he finally wanted. Not only that, but the photographer was well known for taking great shots of places most people would never dream of going. 

Because of how good his work was, Peter Kaplan’s photos have been preserved in places like the Smithsonian, New York Museum of Modern Art, as well as postage stamps in 13 different countries. 

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Like myself, you probably have heard or seen the famous photograph of “Lunch atop a Skyscraper.” Although a well-known photograph, have you ever wondered how it was captured – and who by? 

Charles Clyde Ebbets was the mastermind behind the piece, and his story is actually just as breathtaking as the picture. Here’s a bit about his incredible life!

Humble Beginnings

Charles Clyde Ebbets was born in Gadsen, Alabama, on August 18, 1905. He received his first camera at the young age of 8, using it to casually take pictures similar to myself at that age with a disposable. With each picture he took, he fell more and more in love with his hobby, mastering it further each time. By the 1920s, Ebbets’ family was financially struggling alongside so many other Americans. This prompted Ebbets to quit high school in his sophomore year. 

Ebbets started his career during the 1920s in St. Petersburg, Florida, as a still photographer. He traveled all around the southeastern United States, diving into many adventures. During this time, he picked up a lot of activities, from learning how to fly a plane, wrestling, and even racing cars. Ebbets’ fearless lifestyle began to leak into his photography. He started to shoot aerial pictures and action shots, a genre never seen before. 

The Rise to 700 Feet

In the 1930s, Ebbets’ cutting edge art peaked the interest of many. His growing name earned him a huge contract in 1932: Photographing the construction of the Rockefeller Center. He was hired as the photographic director, with the main goal of convincing viewers to lease out the building. Times were tough. The start of construction began a few years into the Great Depression, and no one was throwing bills around willy nilly.  Ebbets needed to capture the audience – and he did not disappoint.

Within the first year, his work appeared on multiple front pages. One of his masterpieces was “The Photographer” (seen below). However, his most famous was “Lunch atop a Skyscraper” This photo featured 11 ironworkers having bagged lunches on top of a huge metal beam. The image represented your average everyday worker caught in the chaos of the growing times. It is known as one of the most iconic representations of 20th century American photography. His daring aerial shots shocked Americans and led the building to a successful launch a few years after the end of the Great Depression.  

A Florida Staycation

In 1935, Charlie moved to South Florida, where he became one of the first official Associated Press photographers for that region. That same year, he was recruited to document the destruction of the Florida Keys from a category 5 hurricane. A few years later, in 1938, he founded the Miami Press Photographers’ Association and served as their first president. 

Similar to the opportunity in the Florida Keys, Ebbets was later hired to capture the opening of the Everglades National Park. It was here that he was able to develop award-winning shots of both the wildlife of the park along with the native Seminole Indian tribe. Many of these photos are still admired, depicting the beauty of the Seminoles and the growth of the region. 

A Nation at War

WWII began in 1939, and, like most citizens, Charles’ life changed drastically. His photography shifted from nature to documenting the military operations of the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical Institute. He was able to show off activities on the base, such as training, visiting political figures, and confidential images of the terrain. After the war ended in 1945, he and local publicist Ben Jacobs founded the City of Miami News Bureau. During his 17-year career there, he saw the bureau change names to the Miami Metropolitan News Bureau, growing from three employees to a full 24. 

Ebbets’ amazing pictures of Miami further expanded his name and became a huge part of South Florida tourism. Many wanted to visit the area just to see the beauty of the images in person. In the following decades, his photographs were featured in famous publications like Miami Daily News, The New York Times, and even National Geographic. 

The Final Photos

Ebbets left his job in 1962 but could never leave his love for photography. He continued to do freelance work up until his death in 1978, at the age of 72. His work can still be viewed online, in galleries, old magazines, newspaper copies, and even on old postcards. He truly was a legendary man who was ableto capture destruction, beauty, and the atmosphere of the times. 

The post Charles C. Ebetts: The Mind Behind “Lunch atop a Skyscraper” first appeared on History In Memes.

The best part of reading stories set in medieval times was dreaming of walking down the spiral staircases making a princess-like entrance or racing up the tower to slay a dragon. Well, at least that’s what the storybooks always detailed. But in reality, why did they make those damn stairs so narrow and spiraling? It sounds hard to maneuver with all that armor and a sword in your hand!

Most staircases in medieval castles were built to be extremely narrow and spiraling in a clockwise direction. But why? What was going on in these architects’ minds when they built these? 

Why Were There Spiral Staircases in Medieval Times?

Well, since medieval castles were built mainly as fortifications, staircases were designed to make it extremely difficult for enemy combatants to fight their way up. Most soldiers were right-handed, so they would need to round each curve of the inner wall before attempting to strike, inevitably exposing themselves in the process. 

This basically all means that the defenders coming down the stairs would be able to get clear shots at their opponents who were struggling to wield their weapon. This also helped them be less concerned with hitting walls or remaining unprotected from incoming strikes.

What Did the Spiraling Staircases Look Like?

The clockwise spiral stairs were very narrow with sharp turns. They were intentionally poorly lit and built to be uneven. This made it even more difficult for the attackers to gain any sort of balance or momentum during their fight to capture the castle. 

How Defending Soldiers Used the Spiral Staircases

The clockwise spiral staircase also allowed the defenders to use the inner wall as a partial shield and easily allow them to swing their weapon without being hindered by the curvature of the outer wall. Making the stairs very narrow with sharp turns made it increasingly difficult for invaders to launch a massive attack all at one time. 

Think about it: When people fight in an open field or on a straight staircase, all the invaders and defenders can race towards each other at once. But with the spiral staircase being so narrow, invaders had to climb them one soldier at a time. This also made it easy for the defenders to set up on the top of the stairs with crossbows and launch an air attack. This would happen all while the invaders struggled to climb the stairs quickly and shield themselves from fire. 

These stairs were built to give the defending castle’s soldiers a home-field advantage while also making it extremely difficult for the attackers to mauver smoothly.

Game of Thrones makes invaders mounting these stairs appear to be effortless. In actuality, invaders wouldn’t be able to see very well, would be tripping up the inconsistent steps, and couldn’t swing their swords well (unless they were southpaws).

We see that architects and building structures play a major role in successfully defending a base. And these setups are intentional and just as calculated as the way the troops are positioned. 

Are Spiral Staircases Used Today?

Nowadays, spiral staircases are incorporated in various buildings, not just castles. From churches, to towers, to tall buildings, and even homes. But the purpose of making the staircase spiral has since changed from the medieval days. 

Now, the spiral staircase design is more for aesthetics or to save space. Spiral staircases are mainly associated with kings, castles and wealth, but there is a truly fascinating history lesson behind them about architectural design that is purposeful and strategic.

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