The Howard Wright Construction Company broke ground at the Space Needle site on April 17, 1961. The result of a design collaboration among businessman Edward E. Carlson, architect John Graham and University of Washington architecture professor Victor Steinbrueck, the Space Needle was built for the 1962 Century 21 Exposition (World's Fair) in Seattle. With the addition of the final torch tower, the construction of the 600 foot Space Needle was completed on December 8. 1961. Seattle's Pacific Car and Foundry Company was the subcontractor for the steel fabrication and erection.
This photo shows men working on the core section of the Space Needle. The Armory building, later the Food Circus, is seen at ground level, and the roof of the Coliseum under construction is just visible behind it.
Caption information source: Space Needle USA by Harold Mansfield and George Gulacsik, 1962.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. View the finding aid for this collection at https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:80444/xv40658
Credit: MOHAI, Alfred H. Fast Collection on the Space Needle, 2005.6.83
