Tower sights in Seattle
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Space Needle
Seattle’s signature monument, the Space Needle (originally called ‘The Space Cage’) was designed by Victor Steinbrueck and John Graham Jr, reportedly based on the napkin scribblings of World’s Fair organizer Eddie Carlson. The part that’s visible above ground weighs an astounding 3700 tons. The tower takes advantage of its 520ft-high observation deck – offering 360-degree views of Seattle and surrounding areas – to bombard visitors with historical information and interpretive displays. On clear days, zip to the top on the elevators (43 seconds) for excellent views of downtown, Lake Union, Mt Rainier and the Olympic Range mountains way across Puget Sound; don’t bother spen…
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B
Smith Tower
You can’t miss Seattle’s first skyscraper. For half a century after its construction in 1914, the 42-story Smith Tower was well known as the tallest building west of Chicago. The distinctive tower was erected by LC Smith, a man who built his fortune on typewriters (Smith-Corona) and guns (Smith & Wesson). Smith died during the building’s construction, so he never got to see the beauty that still bears his name. Walk into the onyx- and marble-paneled lobby, step aboard one of the brass-and-copper manually operated elevators and let it whisk you up to the 35th-floor observation deck for a great view of Seattle’s Waterfront. The ride up is as exciting as the view.
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C
Seattle Center
The remnants of the futuristic 1962 World's Fair hosted by Seattle and subtitled Century 21 Exposition are still visible nearly 50 years later at the Seattle Center. The fair was a major success, attracting 10 million visitors, running a profit (rare for the time) and inspiring a skin-crawlingly kitschy Elvis movie, It Happened at the World's Fair (1963).
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D
Seattle Tower
Formerly the Northern Life Tower, this 26-story art-deco skyscraper, built in 1928, was designed to reflect the mountains of the Pacific Northwest. The brickwork on the exterior blends from dark at the bottom to light on top, the same way mountains appear to do. Check out the 18-karat-gold relief map in the lobby.
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E
Columbia Center
Formerly the Columbia Seafirst Center, then the Bank of America Tower, this striking structure is also known as the ‘Darth Vader’ building. Catch a breathtaking view from the observation deck on the 73rd of its 76 floors.
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F
Water Tower Observation Deck
Keen seekers of views can climb 107 steep steps to the top of Volunteer Park’s 75ft water tower. Built in 1907, it provides wonderful vistas of the Space Needle and over Elliott Bay.
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