The Streamline Era Greyhound Terminals: The Architecture of W.S. Arrasmith - Hardcover

Frank E. Wrenick

3.2

5 ratings by Goodreads

9780786425501: The Streamline Era Greyhound Terminals: The Architecture of W.S. Arrasmith

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786425504 ISBN 13: 9780786425501

Publisher: McFarland, 2006

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In post-Depression America, Greyhound brought the glamour of travel within the reach of everyone, regardless of financial status. Their bus terminals functioned as gateways to the cities in which they were located. With this in mind, the Greyhound bus company found an architect who could embody in architectural form the sleek aerodynamics of the buses that served its transportation system: William Strudwick Arrasmith. This volume explores the life and achievements of William Strudwick Arrasmith, one of architecture's defining artists during the short-lived era of streamline design. It examines Arrasmith's development as architect, focusing on his work for Greyhound during their streamline era from 1937 to 1948, and thereafter. During this time, Arrasmith designed at least fifty terminals and other facilities for Greyhound--buildings which were literally spread across the country from Jackson, Mississippi to Erie, Pennsylvania. The final third of the book is dedicated to a detailed then-and-now examination of twenty-eight specific Greyhound terminals designed by Arrasmith, including those in Binghamton, New York (1938); Cincinnati (1941); and Boston (1950). A full chronology of Arrasmith's firms and commissions is also included.

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About the Author:

Retired attorney Frank E. Wrenick is a freelance contributor to the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper. He writes articles for a variety of other publications and lives in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

Review:

Finely detailed social history...intimate...charming...personalized. --The Journal of American Culture

The magnitude of...research... is impressive...a definitive academic reference work...belongs in every architectural...and...transportation history library. --Society for Commercial Archeology Journal

"Extensive chronology, notes, sources and index are impressively detailed. A fitting tribute to a little-known man behind an instantly recognizable icon of American transportation." --Hemmings Motor News

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