New York is by far one of the busiest cities in the world. With a combination of natives, transplants, and tourists, The Big Apple is full of some of the best sight-seeing in the US. While the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, and Empire State Building top the list on most tour guides, there are still plenty of places in the city to check out that most would never think of — one of them being the Panaroma of the City of New York exhibit at the Queens Museum.
Constructed by a team of 100+ people over the course of three years, Robert Moses’ masterpiece was first debuted at the 1964 World Fair — attracting an average of 1400 people daily throughout the fair. Stretching over 9,335 square feet, the model includes every single building constructed in New York City before 1992, and cost $672,662.69 — that’s almost $5 million today!
Throughout its opening, the exhibit included a continuous lighting cycle simulating a full day in the city, and guests could purchase tickets for a panoramic “helicopter ride” that gave visitors a chance to see the entirety of the exhibit over the course of nine minutes. The Panorama of the City of New York went through multiple updates in 1967, 1968, 1969, and 1974 in order to keep up with the rapid growth of the city. In 1992, Lester & Associates was commisioned to bring the entire model up to date, replacing over 60,000 buildings.
Since 2009, the Queens Museum has allowed guests to “purchase” a building through its “Adopt-a-Building” program to help continue to keep the model up to date.
For more information on the Panorama of the City of New York at Queens Museum, check out the official website here!
