VintageSeattle.org

Earlier this month when we started Part 1 of the Erecting The Needle series, concrete was being poured and leg pedestals were being bolted down. Worked progressed through the Summer of 1961. Each double-column leg was made of three massive steel I beams joined at the edges. These beams were three feet wide and seventeen inches across the flanged sides. The steel would weigh 300 pounds per foot — some as many as 90 feet long. All told (with fittings), each column was to weigh more than 90,000 pounds. Check out the photos below and click on the thumbnails for larger versions. Don’t forget to check out Part 1 of this Erecting The Needle feature, if you haven’t already. [see also: Part 3, Part 4]

A new leg section is a 25-ton dangle that could pinch the fingers of two tiny men. Derrick is at 200 feet. Copyright 1962, The Craftsman Press, Inc.

Standing on confidence, iron-worker toys with splice plates full of one inch boltholes. City is an acropolis below. Copyright 1962, The Craftsman Press, Inc.

Now the tower reaches full 200 feet in August warmth; onlookers can play game of Find the Eight Men. Copyright 1962, The Craftsman Press, Inc.

Derrick and men in skip, top left, are bringing in a curved section. Out-rigged lunch shack, opposite, is where iron-worker McDonald caught by his toes. Copyright 1962, The Craftsman Press, Inc.

Scrappy agility brings a curved leg into place at 400-foot level. These are tough when wind blows. Copyright 1962, The Craftsman Press, Inc.

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