One image from my latest Flickr album on fireworks really caught my eye. It is a 1929 postcard of the dedication of the Foshay Tower in Minneapolis, Minnesota:
The three day dedication event in August and September of 1929 included fireworks.
When I first saw this postcard, I knew nothing of the Foshay Tower. Now I know a little bit more. Wilbur Foshay built the tower as a headquarters for his utilities company. He claimed that the design of the building was inspired by the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.
I like to see what connections I can make across collections in the Prints and Photographs Division so I set out to see what other images of the tower I could find.
Knowing that not every photo in the Prints and Photographs Division is indexed to name every building included in it, I did some intense looking at photos of the Minneapolis skyline. I spotted the tower in the two photos below from the Farm Security Administration Collection. I have included accompanying detail images to help you spot them too.
The 32 story skyscraper was the tallest building in the Midwest for a number of years. You can see from this Carol M. Highsmith photo that this is no longer the case:
The Foshay Tower is now a luxury hotel. Can you spot it in this night view taken by Carol M. Highsmith?
Learn More:
- View the Flickr Album on Fireworks.
- See more Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information photographs of Minneapolis.
- Peruse the Carol M. Highsmith Archive.
Comments (2)
You would do well to further research Wilbur Foshay himself!
And JP Sousa’s connection with the Foshay Tower!
Interesting! Thanks!