Presented by:

Tara Wend-Barbour

SEATTLE SPACE NEEDLE

HISTORY

The Space Needle was created from a simple sketch on a napkin in 1959 by the Seattle World’s Fair Commission chairman, Edward “Eddie” Carlson. His design was inspired after he visited the Stuttgart Tower in Germany.

The theme for the World’s Fair was Century 21 and Eddie wanted to have a powerful “space-age” symbol to represent the fair’s theme.

The Space Needle is an internationally known structure and symbol for the emerald city known as Seattle, WA.

The building of the Space Needle was the very first of it’s kind and was the tallest building West of the Mississippi at that time. It was built in record time of one year.

CONSTRUCTION

On April 17, 1961 construction began only one year before the opening of the 1962 World’s Fair in Seattle, WA.

467 cement trucks were needed to pour the concrete foundation that measures 30 feet deep and 120 feet wide. It was the largest “continuous concrete pour” ever attempted in the West.

The Space Needle is attached by 72 bolts, each measuring 30 feet in length.

The height of the Needle measures 605 feet and a revolving restaurant called SkyCity was also built at the top of the Needle.

No lives were lost during the construction period.

FUN FACTS “The Space Cage” was the original nickname for the Space Needle and the

restaurants nickname was “Eye of the Needle”. Hoge Sullivan was the very first manager of the Space Needle and suffered from

acrophobia which is a fear of heights. It is the #1 tourist attraction in the Northwest, with more than 1 million visitors a

year. Elvis Presley, the entire Cheers cast including Kelsey Grammar, Demi Moore, John

Travolta, Vanna White are a few of the famous people who have visited the Needle.

There were plans to build a stork’s nest at the top of the needle, but the plans were cancelled once they learned that storks could not live in Seattle’s climate.

It would take about 1,320 Milky Way candy bars to reach the height of the Space Needle which measures 605 feet.

OBSERVATION DECK

The observation deck gives visitors a chance to view the city of Seattle in a whole new light.

With a 360 degree view you can see all the amazing wonders of the Puget Sound.

There are complimentary Swarovski Telescopes to look through on the deck that allow you to see the city sites up close and personal.

You can also interact with the city by using SkyQ which uses “cutting-edge technology” to teach visitors about Seattle and some of the great people who contribute to the culture of Seattle.

Restaurant

SkyCity is the revolving restaurant that is located in the saucer of the Space Needle. Named the 2009 Restaurant of the Year by the Washington Wine Commission.Enjoy 360 degrees of beautiful views that the Puget Sound has to offer. It makes a full revolution every 58 minutes. Don’t forget to make your reservations!

ORIGINAL NEEDLE COLORS

Orbital OliveRe-entry Red

Galaxy Gold