​​​​​​​ Cleveland Union Terminal Construction Film, 1928 : The Cleveland Memory Project

Cleveland Union Terminal Construction Film, 1928

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Program Length - 08:32 min.

Spencer, White & Prentis, one of the country’s preeminent foundation engineering firms, held several contracts for work on the foundations of the Terminal Tower complex on Public Square, the Cuyahoga Viaduct and other projects for the Cleveland Union Terminal.

Construction Work by Spencer-White & Prentis for the Cleveland Union Terminals May 9, 1928 is a 16mm film discovered at a New York area swap meet and generously donated to Cleveland State in 2004.

The video is divided into three parts:

  • Part 1 (3:04 min.) - Station Building Foundation, P3 Block spread footings concreted with paving mixers and batch trucks, also caissons 100 feet deep.
  • Part 2 (1:35 min.) - Walworth Avenue Bridge foundation caissons, 60 feet deep, showing tripods, winches, etc.
  • Part 3 (3:52 min.) - Eagle Avenue Viaduct, showing false work and concreting methods, forms, reinforcements, etc.

For further study: see Spencer, White & Prentis still images in Cleveland Memory.

The original 16mm film was generously donated by Peggy Tavares, of New York. Researching the preservation and digitization of this film was a library school practicum project by Michael Boone and the work was performed by Summit Film Lab, in the spring of 2005, in time for the 75th anniversary of the dedication of the Cleveland Union Terminal, June 29, 1930.