Up: The History of the Elevator

Versions of elevators have existed for millennia. But the development of elevators safe enough to carry passengers is relatively new. The History Guy remembers the history of an invention that allowed us to build skyscrapers.
This is original content based on research by The History Guy. Images in the Public Domain are carefully selected and provide illustration. As images of actual events are sometimes not available, images of similar objects and events are used for illustration.
All events are portrayed in historical context and for educational purposes. No images or content are primarily intended to shock and disgust. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Non censuram.
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Script by JCG
#history #thehistoryguy #elevator

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

As a couple of viewers have noted, the London Colosseum was based on the Roman Pantheon, not the Greek Parthenon. I am sorry for the error.

[@mattclements1348]

u should put out a raffel,winner gets to have a few beers with ya,ya k ow ask questions,i bet you a lot of ppl would

[@garysarratt1]

Darn them to heck for combing through your splendid videos with slide rules.

[@gondolacrescent5]

I confess: I have made the same mistake; I am learning to forgive myself...

[@OldDood]

It was eye opening (or should I say Ear Opening) to me when we went up the Empire State Building to the top for our first time. (circa 1999-2000) We were surprised to feel our ears 'Pop' since the elevator was so fast at climbing. There is actually two elevators that you ride to the outside deck for the Empire State building. One long main one and then another shorter one. I guess they replaced the elevators in that building since we went up it so I do not know how it is today...I would assume it is similar.

[@JamesThompson-oz8kh]

Rats! I thought I would be first to jump on that. Apparently there are a number of sharp-eyed viewers that are quicker than I am.

[@1stPCFerret]

The history of elevators has had its ups and downs.

[@rjg3876]

It's not the ups and down it's the jerks. Very old elevator joke

[@glennso47]

Lots of people got the shaft.

[@jbmbryant]

You had to go there...

[@chevyon37s]

1stPCFerret they really brought things to new levels

[@glennso47]

@@rjg3876 Jerky like the shoe leather-like snack you get in the grocery store?

[@charlesbaldo]

I swear the history guy could make anything interesting.

[@mrkitty777]

That elevated quickly. 😸

[@mrdigi2t]

Next up, the curious evolution of the Pooper Scooper, and how it changed how humanity walks. History, that deserves to be remembered. I'm in.

[@charlesbaldo]

@@mrdigi2t I tried to think of something he would not do an make interesting. No matter what, I said nah he could do it. Even a simple thing like a pencil eraser could be made interesting.

[@TheAuntieBa]

Charles B But only, I think, if The History Guy spoke on it.

[@davidvogel6359]

@@mrdigi2t I think I'll pass on needing to know about that but I still would have to watch if he makes it. LOL

[@ArsenalEcho]

There I was, dozing off out of boredom in history classes in high school. And here I am today, binge watching history made interesting. Developing interest is key in teaching stuff. Thank you!

[@kevinheard8364]

So true .... So true I even find myself with a sense of "nostalgia" as somehow, History Guy's telling of his histories brings back many "long lost" emotions. Maybe I'm not the only one??

[@TheFlatlander440]

Thanks for an interesting subject. My father worked for Otis Elevator from 1940 until 1979 with a 2 year break serving on a RCN Korvette from 1943 until 1945 during the Second World War. He worked his way up from draftsman to the one of the youngest plant works managers at 28 at the Hamilton Ontario Otis Elevator plant (the original Otis Elevator factory was based in Yonkers, NY). In the 1960's he was promoted and transferred to Otis corporate HQ in New York City in the International Division. He retired from Otis at 55 in 1979 as Vice President of Corporate Production. He passed in 1982 at 58 years young. I also worked for Otis Elevator from 1980 until I was laid off in 1992 but worked on many elevator projects including the engineering team for the "inclination" elevators installed at the Luxor Hotel, in Las Vegas.

[@mickeyjanowski9457]

Most city firehouses have a fire fighter that is nicknamed Otis. The “Otis’s” are familiar with elevator mechanics and carry override/master keys and are the go to person during elevator emergencies.

[@ex-navyspook]

Another bit of history or trivia that deserves to be remembered. Nice!

[@mickeyjanowski9457]

The Otis character on the TV show Chicago Fire just got killed off. Maybe he asked for a raise :-)

[@TyMoore95503]

Mickey Janowski It sounds like he got "shafted!"

[@blockbertus]

@@mickeyjanowski9457 Well, that is a downer. :(

[@mmack7268]

That’s bullshit

[@mjklein]

As a professional musician and record producer, we used to say: "You know you've made it when you hear your tune in an elevator".

[@mrkitty777]

😮

[@calendarpage]

You know you're old when you hear Jethro Tull in an elevator. I almost passed out when that happened. : )

[@halonothing1]

By that logic, Chuck Mangione should be the most successful musician ever.

[@Adawg420]

@@halonothing1 Feels so good!

[@catjudo1]

Either Dave Grohl or Kurt Cobain said that Nirvana knew they had made it when Weird Al Yankovic spoofed Smells Like Teen Spirit. The day I hear that in an elevator, however, is the day I know that I am officially old. No matter what my teenage daughter might say.

[@mercator79]

Elevators kept "Girl from Ipanema" (in)famous for decades.

[@chevyon37s]

And this is why The History guy is awesome on so many levels

[@Cal-cf2vo]

I see what you did there

[@jackfrost2146]

Did you make that up yourself, or did you lift it from someone else. I'll go now...

[@MrRecrute]

I’m impressed when he mentioned the Shard building in London he referred to its elevators as “lifts”. Nice switch in nomenclature.

[@TheAlanSaunders]

And a pretty good stab at saying 'Australia' in an Aussie accent.

[@millomweb]

I've said elsewhere that the UK does have elevators. They're more inclined belt type affairs - best example loading & unloading baggage from aircraft.

[@UserUser-ww2nj]

@@millomweb Thats a bit of a loose interpretation of the ''lift '' as we know it . There is also the grain elevator . The type you refer to is a kind of escalator

[@tygrkhat4087]

Another building that owes it's growth to the elevator: the hospital. Horizontal hospitals would take up too much space, vertical hospitals allow for much more efficient movement.

[@1959ticktock]

My operation was delayed because the elevator was out of action, and the theatre was on the top floor of the hospital.

[@johntabler349]

Good point

[@cheriefrench6956]

High rise hospitals cause delays in Dr's responding to cardiac arrest calls. One tall hospital I trained at had one car in the bank of elevators that had an attendant who would exit public fast, board responding MD s and zoom to needed floor or Emergency

[@cheriefrench6956]

Harder to evacuate high rise hospitals in case of fires, earthquakes and tornadoes. Ff would have to carry every patient and needed equment down all those stairs. Believe me when you work in them you know the danger.

[@kevinmartin2516]

The hospital nearest me has lifts with doors in both sides (so patient trolleys can go forward in, forward out). What I always get wrong, is working out which side is going to open. The answer is, it depends which set of buttons you press, the nearest ones, will open the door that you entered, or if you press the 2nd lot of buttons, then the far side will open. If people press both sets of button, then both doors will open. The planning of these is very complex.

[@anutterperspective]

Laughed out loud when Elevator Music played instead of Ye soundtrack! Delightful!

[@bryantq3740]

Same here! Sooo funny!

[@Thor-rq4lk]

Hilarious!

[@Mondo762]

I'm old enough to remember department store elevators that announced the various items at each stop.

[@JrGoonior]

Wabi Sabi “Fourth floor : Hardware, children’s wear, ladies lingerie.”

[@marksims6425]

Reminds me of the intro to the TV show “are you being served”

[@glennso47]

Some elevators have recorded voices announcing each stop. The elevators at William S Middleton VA Hospital in Madison are an example.

[@Mondo762]

@@glennso47 Right, that's what I'm talking about. Those elevators with recorded voices used to be more common in the past.

[@TheAuntieBa]

Wabi Sabi I’m old enough to remember a lot of thar - and, the Twilight Zone episode where it’s the night the manikins come alive. I’ll see it soon; my hubby gave me the complete Twilight Zone Blue Ray set.

[@dirtcop11]

The first elevator I ever rode in was in the 1950s, it had an operator. The most interesting elevator I rode in was the one in the Gateway Arch in St Louis. It resembles a barrel and turns as it ascends and descends.

[@COIcultist]

No mention of the paternoster:kzbin.info/www/bejne/iKCWd5aVrqxmppI The film is modern stupid fear mongering. They are very safe. I rode the one in Salford University in the early 1980's. Becoming increasingly rare.

[@cathipalmer8217]

I rode in that one in 1969. I thought it looked just like my mother's washing machine - it felt about the same size, too.

[@DavidPowellAU]

When I first encountered our city's new Metro, it struck me how like the history of the lift/elevator it was. In contrast to the older suburban trains, they're driverless. And there are doors at the station platforms that control access to the 'shaft': they only open when there are carriage doors opening behind and with them. Even the timetable is more like a shuttle schedule. Basically a horizontal elevator!

[@millomweb]

I don't remember my first elevator ride but excluding elevator doors, I remember my first encounter with automatic sliding doors - that was Newcastle Airport, UK. Operated by a pressure mat in the floor.

[@Gail1Marie]

@@cathipalmer8217 No place for the claustrophobic, either. Not the elevator OR the low-ceilinged observation level at the top.

[@ShiftingDrifter]

As a boy growing up in small town USA in the late 50s, I still remember two buildings downtown that had elevator operators. I always looked forward to riding those elevators.

[@hilupianoservice]

The Midland Theater in Kansas City had an operator into the 80s, and I think at least one building in Chicago still has them.

[@tamijoiskewl]

I'm of the Otis family and I always look for the Otis name on the threshold! There aren't many around anymore, or family sold out years ago. The Otis elevator company still exists but other competitors are much more known. I too remember spending many trips up and down our towns first elevator!

[@radon360]

Recognizing that this episode wasn't a deep dive into elevator technology, I still was a little surprised that hydraulic lift elevators didn't get a mention, given their widespread modern use in buildings usually less than 5 stories.

[@Tmrfe0962]

Thank you sir, once again ....I happen to be an elevator tech in NYC and have been for over 33 years. My company, Schindler Elevator along with Otis and Many others, have been using steel belts as of late, much lighter than steel ropes, and there are elevators in use that use magnets, the same theory behind maglev trains. We here in NYC have several buildings that are well over 100 floors, and there are many the world over. The computers that control elevators are quiet sophisticated and are hard to compare to units of old. In my early days, I saw everything from water hydros to drum elevators. You did a fine job with the history and I throughly enjoyed your deep dive into what I find to be a fascinating field.

[@godfreypoon5148]

Is your database of installed elevators called the Schindlers List?

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

"How's business?" Otis: "Up and down"

[@wonniewarrior]

My stepfather and sister had a ritual banter they went through whenever they visited us. 'Hows life on the hole?' he would ask. My sister would reply 'is has it ups and downs'.

[@Scott__G]

Ian Macfarlane ...all those years working as an elevator constructor, you’d think I would’ve heard that before. That was pretty funny, did you just make that up?

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

@@Scott__G Thank you - I'm not sure if I made it up or it was tucked away in the recesses of my mind. If appropriate, like many people, I'll try to come up with a quip or occasionally, a pun, and that one came to me, but I've got to imagine that it has been told before. I also enjoyed @Greg Moonen's telescope joke - clever and funny.

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

@Greg Moonen That's extremely witty, and I love the thought of someone called Moonen being involved in telescopes.

[@CANControlGRAFFITI]

Ian Macfarlane it was a basic dad style joke.. you should get out more.

[@JamesD92763]

I remember how old I suddenly felt when I heard a Beatle song on an elevator.

[@rcknbob1]

In my case, it was the irony of stepping into an elevator and hearing "Stairway to Heaven".

[@JrGoonior]

Bob Stewart OMG!!!! That’s funny!!!😂😂

[@rcknbob1]

@@JrGoonior Of course, we could reflect upon the fact that there is only a "Stairway to Heaven", but a "Highway to Hell". Are the traffic patterns that different?

[@JrGoonior]

Bob Stewart If you get philosophical about it, the “Highway” is fast and easy, the “Stairway” is slow and more difficult.

[@ELCADAROSA]

I was going to comment about hearing Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" as elevator music, but "Stairway to Heaven"? That beats all!

[@richardparrott7192]

As an employee of Otis for over 43 years now, I'm glad I found this great presentation! I had a colleague who re-enacted the Elisha demo for our 150 years (I think!) at a trade show down here in Oz that was quite entertaining!

[@brucetowle9689]

Your channel reminds me of Paul Harvey's rest of the story.

[@GalenGreenlaw]

Check out Mike Rowes “The Way I Heard It”

[@032319581]

Wonderful complement! Paul Harvey was awesome!

[@thgenral]

Loved the”elevate us” pun at the end!

[@kotori87]

*groan!* yeah that one was pretty special :)

[@ibindare]

And the Muzak during the outro.

[@blamb42]

When I was a kid the Sears in Bangor had an attended elevator and one day I was allowed to go to the toy department on my own. Being a rather nerdy kid I headed to the elevator to see its operation but the attendant was not there. I had seen the elevators operation many times before so I got on board and took myself to the 5th(?) floor without incident. I don't think elevator operation was all that difficult if a nerdy 8 year old could figure it out.

[@TheFlatlander440]

Yes, it was called "Car switch" operation.

[@annebradley6086]

A five yr old taught me how to use a vice when I volunteered at a hospital. No kidding 😁

[@Gail1Marie]

Ruth Bader Ginsberg's son attended a private school with an elevator operator, and he did the same thing. The school called her husband and told him their son had "stolen" the elevator. The father's response: "Well? How far could he get with it?"

[@captainskippy6622]

I thought I knew the history of the elevator. Now I do. When I was a kid in the 1960’s in South Carolina my mother was a manager of one department in a regional chain department store. It had three above ground stories and a basement. There was a small elevator probably close to 5x8 feet that was attended by a sweet black lady with white gloves. The control was a vertical wheel like device that had a handle and mounted on the wall. Pushing the handle counter clockwise made the elevator descend and pushing clockwise made it rise. She had to time it just right to stop the elevator even with the floor and she was always spot on. Then she would manually pull back a thick brass “screen” and open the door. Being the sweet kid that I was she would let me handle the controls but my timing wasn’t comparable to hers and I usually had to bump the control a time or two to get it situated properly. As we jounced up and down she would look down at me and smile. Growing up in the 60’s was awesome!

[@MadBiker-vj5qj]

That's just a lovely story. :-)

[@MichaelSHartman]

A sweet story, and it brought out the skill required to properly operate an elevator, and underlined why the operators strike succeeded.

[@kevinconrad6156]

There was an elevator like that still in use in a sporting goods store in downtown Philadelphia in the 1980's.

[@larrybrennan1463]

@IngLouisSchreurs What an interesting person you must be at parties.

[@captainskippy6622]

IngLouisSchreurs you’re an ass. You don’t know me and probably not a damn thing about my country and upbringing. I pointed out she was black because she had a pivotal and important job. Without her skill and knowledge everyone would be using the stairs. Everyone in the building respected and appreciated her. The owner of the business, in what was admittedly uncommon for the time, hired people of color and they held various jobs. I’ll be the first to admit it was difficult for blacks at the time. But don’t you dare call me a racist! I grew up in an Army family. My parents best friends were a black couple and again, contrary to norms at the time, we all frequented each other’s houses and many social events. So take your uppity liberal socialist elitist attitude and stick it.

[@JrGoonior]

One of the three best history channels on KZbin. Techmoan, Technology Connections and The History Guy.

[@Wallyworld30]

JrGoonior You missed the best one Mark Felton Productions!

[@JrGoonior]

Marty Moose Haven’t seen that yet...

[@EddieErion929]

The best is fire of Learning by far! And this guy!

[@kct1975]

I completely agree with you!!!!

[@Wallyworld30]

@@kct1975 If you enjoy Naval History I highly recommend Drachinefel as well!

[@ChadWSmith]

12:35 Technology Connections theme as "Elevator Music"

[@ogjk]

Yeah I heard that to. I interpret that as a challenge to Technology Conection to make an elevator video as well haha.

[@ChadWSmith]

@@ogjk He's done a couple. :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/amnLiGCBbMuEiq8 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nGLJmK14epd5nM0

[@PurpleRhymesWithOrange]

I love learning the history of things people use everyday and never give a thought to.

[@josephgaviota]

Exactly.

[@Paladin1873]

This episode was very uplifting because it reminded me of the only electrical elevator we had in our small town in the 1960s. It was in the five-story Masonic building and was operated by an elderly black woman who opened and closed the cage door and managed the operating lever. We also had a rope and pulley operated cargo lift elevator in our two-story hardware store, which was certified annually by a state inspector. We used it from the late 1920s until the 1970s, when the state decertified it. Because we could no longer lift material upstairs, the upper floor storage room became frozen in time. The few items we could store upstairs had to be manually carried up the staircase, but eventually rain rot through the roof made it unsafe to use the second floor for this purpose. This presented a bit of a problem because the lavatory was on the second floor, so in order to use it one had to be careful where to step, lest a foot went through a floorboard. Everything began to decay, including an old 48 star flag, unused display cases, a glass cutting table, and sales record books dating back to 1909 (a different store had been used across the street prior to the construction of the new store around 1929). In the end an electrical spark ignited a fire that burned the place to the ground. Aside form a safe, the only other things I salvaged were a few hundred bricks from the outer wall which I used to pave a walkway in front of my house. When I sold my home and moved away, I took a couple of leftover bricks as a reminder of a time and place that is no more. All this because of a a faulty elevator.

[@user-vm5ud4xw6n]

As always, with the History Guy touch added, history is no longer one of the most boring subjects on the high school roster of classes. A torture session to gain credits needed to graduate! Thanks HG! Another bit of history comes to life !

[@bigblue6917]

One of my first jobs was working in the stockroom at the top of a department store. This included using a lift with the metal scissor gate which I hated as I had come close to trapping my fingers in on more then one occasion. Especially when opening it. So I used to slam it open or shut as hard as I can moving my fingers out of the way as I did so. And I was not alone in doing this. Even the stockroom manager used to do it, roundly cursing it as he did so.

[@absalomdraconis]

They should have designed a finger shield into it, would have been a good place to put their branding & everything.

[@mariogiresi6792]

What impressed me most about some of the older lifts was the beautiful artwork in them. New York still had some older models from the 1920s and 30s ( with operators too) being used in the early 70s. Wood interiors with carvings or paintings on the ceilings made you feel safe and calm. Now we nothing more than cold steel and metal walls with blinding reflections and used coffee cups on the floor.

[@mikeyoung9810]

I used to make deliveries in KC mo back in the 80's and lots of older buildings had freight elevators with those metal cage doors that popped from above and below to meet in the middle and you used a lever to move the elevator. And I remember the Muelbach Hotel on 12th street had elevator operators using that lever with no buttons. Very fancy elevators. And in the state capitol of Ks in Topeka had an open air elevator in the center of a large area under the dome that moved very fast and was essentially a cage. I had the honor of being a page there while in the 6th grade back in the 60's.

[@shaddonon]

The enthusiastic muzak over the closing remarks was an especially nice touch

[@NSUGS]

*Technology Connections intenfies*

[@DarkAudit]

*Historically smooth jazz*

[@Jivolt]

12:36 Groove on that Technology Connections (KZbin channel) slow jam.

[@ogjk]

Hopefully challenge is accepted.

[@randomvintagefilm273]

My boyfriend's dad bought this old building in Zumbrota, MN. that served as a funeral home in the 1800's. In the back was this huge 8x8 elevator that emptied and filled with water to carry the coffins to the 2nd floor. First time I'd ever seen that! Very cool.

[@Johnnycdrums]

Manual elevators didn't go away in 1945. As a High School kid during the Seventies I ran a manual elevator in a five floor office building.

[@notsosilentmajority1]

There are still some elevators run by operators in buildings in NYC. I'm sure there are other places as well.

[@Cyberpuppy63]

The Eatons department store, right here in Hamilton had them until they closed, mid 90's.

[@Studio23Media]

Did you know an elevator chimes once when going up and twice when going down? This is an accessibility feature mandated by the ADA in the US.

[@josephgaviota]

I did _not_ know this, and now I will pay attention to it.

[@sallygomez8799]

Never paid attention to it!!

[@AaronOfMpls]

Technology Connections has an excellent video about that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/amnLiGCBbMuEiq8 EDIT: Also, turn subtitles on -- he has some fun ways of marking the chime noises in there.

[@fl0atpvnk]

Thanks, Alec from technology connections!

[@lepkeb2252]

When I was a kid in New York back in the late 60s and early 70s elevator operators were still a thing. And remained a thing in industrial warehouses around the city for quite some time after.

[@orangelion03]

It was considered a union job, Teamsters, akin to truck drivers.

[@mikitz]

Also, going on a strike can be detrimental when your job is already completely obsolete.

[@kevinmartin2516]

Often it was a case of some buildings had multiple owners (large number of owners, owning a small number of apartments). This meant that it was difficult getting agreement to spend money on upgrades!

[@Bobrogers99]

I worked in an office building in Boston in the 1950s, and Helen and Peggy were our two elevator operators. I think all the elevators in office buildings in the area had operators.

[@TSemasFl]

I've been watching your channel for over a year and you finally hit home. I'm a IUEC Elevator service technician for Otis Elevator Co. for the past 31 years. I'm very impressed with your research on my profession. You pretty much summed up our whole NEIEP apprenticeship year 1 module in 15 minutes. Bravo' I learned all this and was tested on it my first year in our union. God bless the IUEC, they're the ones who make it all happen. The best and strongest Union in the country. Fantastic job, The History Guy.

[@zr1sparky1]

I'm elated with the history guy lifting my spirits with the ups and downs, highs and lows of the history of the elevator. The history guy is elevating us to new heights.

[@JrGoonior]

For a second I thought I was watching Technology Connections....

[@CharlesFigueroaJr]

I was like "Where is the scrolling Patreon supporters and clever closing joke?"

[@jasonwomack4064]

It caught me offguard, I had to fight the sudden urge to disassemble electronics.

[@PhillyRacer121]

Came to the comments section just for this.

[@TintelFruit]

12:36 yes

[@tigerkill420]

Agreed

[@dbeaus]

I love these snippets because I have read History for 60 years. But, the elevator attendants were not completely eliminated in the 20's. Growing up in the 50's in Chicago there were quite a few buildings, mostly dept. stores such as Sears, Wieboldts, Grants, Marshall Fields, and others who I remember as a young boy having elevator operators. Some clever owners had only good looking girls for obvious reasons. They were slow and stopped at every floor, but no one seemed to care. It was a sign of the times, we weren't always in a hurry for no reason. I remember those elevator rides with my family. We were filled with eager anticipation as to where we were going, even though we rarely knew where that was. As always, Thank you.

[@DrPowerElectronics]

1896 Ward Leonard electrical drive system became universally adopted in elevators up to the 1980s, when electronics took over. It gave fine control and a smooth ride. Great episode! Thanks.

[@wizardmix]

I went to school at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in the late 90s -- which were the last years of the old building. In the building existed what I believe were the last two elevators with hired operators in the city. I have to admit it was nice to know your elevator on a first name basis and the express runs to the 10th floor were appreciated. The school moved to a new building in 2000 and I followed it there and I assume those manually operated otis elevators were replaced after we left but I have to admit really loving that system for the two years I was in that building. I'm most likely the very last generation to have ever experienced it.

[@brentfarvors192]

Cant recall if I evef had an operator, but definitely experienced the "what we can do in here without one", phase...No cameras; Didnt last long...

[@wizardmix]

@@brentfarvors192 Not completely understanding your comment. I think anyone who lives today would have 1 to 2 weeks of withdrawal from their constant information fix. Perhaps the youngest generations would have it the hardest. That said I think some value would be gained and certainly some appreciation for how we got here would be had. That's why I appreciate being an adult before it happened. Anyone born in the mid to late 70s would have been trained to live in the world without BUT we're also the generation who has no problem functioning with.

[@brentfarvors192]

@@wizardmix I cant help you...

[@Gail1Marie]

The Bradbury Building in Los Angeles has the classic open-cage elevators with an elevator operator, seen in the movie "The Artist." (It's also featured in more other movies and TV shows than I could count, including "Blade Runner.")

[@sac3528]

12:35 wow golly that's some tasty muzak I feel like it has some kind of connection to technology

[@josephdemartino6053]

Thanks for covering this and for giving the Crown Prosecutor due credit.

[@TintelFruit]

12:36 I suddenly feel a technology connection...

[@ogjk]

Hopefully he accepts the challenge.

[@shanevaughan2440]

I work for the "elevator music" company, love telling people the story of the company's founding...most people chuckle and find the history pretty cool! Also, the company was started by a WW1 vet, General George Squire, and pioneered sending the muzak over existing power lines to NY high rise buildings....way ahead of its time for the 1920s!

[@Gail1Marie]

I worked in a business in downtown Minneapolis 50 years ago, and discovered that (at least there) the Muzak played on a two-week loop. Every other Friday at 3 p.m. it played a distinctive song that had tom-toms (THUMP-thump-thump-thump-THUMP-thump-thump-thump).

[@deanrobert8674]

I wonder how many professions "striked" Themselves out of a job.

[@chrispza]

Dean Robert Printers. Theirs was a skilled, well-paid profession, and many misused their privileged status to demand ever-increasing perks. The British printers' union was egregious in this regard. Newspaper-owners and printshops found it cheaper in the long run to buy expensive electronic kit than to deal with the constant threat of stoppage.

[@wschart]

Air traffic controllers

[@dbmail545]

In 1968 ( I think) Leon county Florida teachers went on strike for more pay. Turned out to be a strategic error. So many legislators had their children in Leon county schools that they passed a law designating ALL school personnel, teachers and support as essential employees like fire fighters and police officers. A "no strike" provision has been in every contract since.

[@annebradley6086]

It's just a drop in the bucket compared to what these Evil NWO's have done to us riding on a fake pandemic. macrotrends.net show the death rate has not changed this year from last year. Neither Trump or Biden should be elected. Pence should be placed as President. PubliusRoots.com

[@cynthiaamitrano8915]

I worked for an insurance company which insured Otis Elevator. Safe risk. Very well made and maintained. You remind me of my physician not only in appearance buy mannerisms. I like him a lot. He was going to retire, but I told him I would have to look for a new doctor. He said, okay, I won't retire until you croak. His exact words. I can't hold him to it, but it was a nice gesture.

[@paulbelo]

Nice job, really enjoyed that. There is a book: "Faster" that has information; not about how high a lift can go, but, technology to make them faster without getting people sick. How fast can you go, no one wants be in a slow lift. Make it "Faster", it's a delicate balance.

[@joanhoffman3702]

I remember this fictitious slogan: Otis elevators: guaranteed never to let you down.

[@pugle1]

...Only, they do, but in a controlled fashion ;)

[@fredblonder7850]

I thought that was “Good to the last drop”, or was that Maxwell House?

[@ex-navyspook]

@@fredblonder7850 If it's not, it should be.

[@tonyk1584]

history guy, in the 1970's I was in a building in Frankfurt Germany that had a "Pater Noster" elevator. It took some courage to jump into the little booth at first and you had better be paying attention because you had to step off as it streamed pass the floor you needed to get off on. Also, why didn't the brakes work on the elevator in the Empire State Building when the bomber crashed into it. If I remember from your podcast, the lady survived because the cables underneath the car cushioned her fall .

[@TheFlatlander440]

The "brakes" are also controlled by a separate cable which controlled a speed regulator. If all the cables are severed, you free fall.

[@tonyk1584]

@@TheFlatlander440 Oh!

[@davidvogel6359]

@@TheFlatlander440 wasn't that in the video?

[@randycollins9698]

They "think" the air pressure in the shaft actually slowed the car just enough for her to survive. Elevator lore has it she ask the elevator service tech what to do if this should occur, apparently he gave her great advise, lay flat on the floor across the middle of the cab. It distributes your weight on impact and the middle is the strongest in case pokey things come through the floor.

[@chiconian49]

I lived in a four story apartment building in San Francisco built in 1912. The old Otis elevator had steel walls that went up four feet, then elaborate metal filigree that not even a small child could not get their hand through, all the way to the ceiling. There was a sliding door from the hall the elevator facing the halls and a sliding gate inside. I only used the elevator if I was tired as the building had wide stairways in the halls. I liked to run up them. The elevator would not work unless both doors were completely closed. This could be a problem when people forgot to close the doors all the way. You would have to find out which floor the elevator was stuck on and close the doors. I loved being able to see the counter weights going up and down through the filigree whenever I rode it.

[@ddierschow]

I worked for Otis in the mid 1980's on their next highrise elevator. At the time, there were over thirty safety features that all have to be reporting "safe" for the elevator to function. I was pretty impressed by how much effort was put into these features.

[@danmenz9572]

I alway thought it strange that the "Otis Elevator Company" office (had to have been a sales office) in Dayton, Ohio, was a single story building.

[@RhettyforHistory]

History that's uplifting!

[@servinguptheclassics2053]

I see what you did there

[@STARDRIVE]

It can bring you down too..

[@RhettyforHistory]

@@STARDRIVE Depends on how you push it's buttons! ;)

[@MrJamesjustin]

I have to hand it to you mate. I would never have thought a video about the history of elevators could possibly be interesting. As you're never failed to hold my interest yet, I thought I'd give it a go, and indeed it was very interesting. Thanks for that.

[@coyoteroadkill]

Love the Elevator Music at the end.

[@jeffmorris8872]

"Did anybody watch this video using an elevator?" "Nope, it was the stares."

[@krissfemmpaws1029]

That was an interesting video. I can remember going to one store in Bellingham that had an elevator operator in the early 1960s I think it was the Woolworths store. At this time they still had the freight elevators that came up out of the sidewalk to move freight to the basement.

[@edschaefer6597]

History Guy: As always, this is an excellent video. In January, 1945, an army B-25 Mitchell medium bomber flew into the Empire State building between the 78th and 80th floors. Elevator operator Betty Oliver fell 75 floors and survived the fall with major injuries. Supposedly, it's still the world's record for surviving an elevator fall. It's certainly not a record I want to break.

[@HSMiyamoto]

Sprague was also instrumental in the development of what we now call light rail transit, as well as the technology of multiple-unit operation. The next time you see two or more locomotives pulling a train, thank Frank Sprague.

[@franknicholson6108]

Good Pun at the end there."Elevate Us Even More" Excellent Pun. As always very informative and also why Otis seems to be growing what seems to be larger every day. Thank You

[@steevee1945]

When getting into the elevator in the Space Needle at the 1962 Worlds Fair in Seattle, WA, I could feel the car rising and falling a half inch or so, as the wind pushed on the 500+ foot exposed cables. The glass walls did not help my acrophobia.

[@marsgal42]

I've ridden the elevators up the CN Tower. Excellent view, but I can see how it could make people nervous. The opposite extreme might be the Empire State Building. Since it was somewhat over-engineered it's cramped and dark inside, almost claustrophobic.

[@GH-oi2jf]

steevee1945 - With the most recent renovation, the observation deck now has a glass floor and retaining wall.

[@kevinmartin2516]

@@marsgal42 Yes I went on the CN Tower. I dived in and turned around so I could grab a front spot. Only to discover that what I thought might be a popular location, I ended up on my own and everyone else cowered at the back!

[@cmonkey63]

Two elevators worth mentioning from the former British Empire are the Marine Building in Vancouver, BC and the CN Tower in Toronto ON. I've been up (and down) both of them, and each building was, in it's hey day the tallest building in the commonwealth. If you have a chance, take the 'lift' in the Marine building. The lift cars are inlaid with intricate woodwork, a true marvel of craftsmanship in 1930, just before the Depression took hold.

[@StevenOwensby]

I've never thought of elevators until now. And now, I'll marvel about how they work every time. Keep up the good work History Guy.

[@randybentley2633]

The Biltmore House has a beautifully done Otis elevator that was built in 1895 and still functions last I read.

[@otpyrcralphpierre1742]

Did Otis "Pirate" someone else's invention? You know, cause every Good story has Pirates in it....

[@claires8735]

Haha! That muzak at the end of the episode amused me. 😄

[@seavee2000]

Happy to say I served my engineering apprenticeship with Otis Elevator Co., before UT took over. Was a good firm back then. Thanks for posting.

[@justme8837]

The Hassayampa Inn in Prescott AZ still has a working Otis elevator. There is an attendant that works it for you.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Actually, Otis is still in business and there are working Otis elevators all over. The elevator at the Hassayampa was installed in 1927.

[@lachlanbird9688]

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel I was disappointed that you did not mention the , OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANY manufacturing plant that was in Stockton , California ! (My home town) The buildings are still in use today as an industrial park , I have been inside some of the original shops there , including where the machine shop was located .

[@IvorMektin1701]

@@lachlanbird9688 I'm surprised they didn't turn it into a meth lab 😂

[@663rainmaker]

Celita G W Cheyenne Wyoming USA 🇺🇸 The Majestic Bldg! 1603 Capitol Ave used to operate a original Otis Elevator!! Still in operation today! Super Dependable too.. parts are getting few

[@justme8837]

@@663rainmaker that's so cool.

[@volrath__]

That outro music, I swear I know it from somewhere, my brain seems to think it's the melody of a Sonic the Hedgehog level theme but I can't think of which one... Also hearing Technology Connections theme music threw me a bit lol!

[@thumbwarriordx]

The development of self-powered elevator carriages on rails instead of cables is fascinating. There can be more than one per shaft, they can move horizontally, even go on one-way trips and park somewhere out of the way. They can do all the things a trolley could do. We're probably not even a decade away from having them thoroughly tested and proven robust enough to start installations. The Star Trek turbolift is gonna be real.

[@Locomattive8572]

Dear History Guy Would you one day cover the life of Richard Trevithick? The man invented the steam locomotive, the steam carriage, took on the Watt company, revolutionised mining pumps and gave us high pressure steam. Yet he died a poor man, and is mostly forgotten by history. Love your work. Matt from England.

[@johnoberst1045]

I once knew a guy who was a one-way elevator operator. He was on the up-and-up.

[@user-ss2ly1ir6j]

Ba-RRRUM-PUM ! I got a million of 'em !

[@DaveNagy]

Tip: when adding bgm to a track have at least half or a third as loud as your main voice track. So if voice is set at -6db, set the bgm to -18db. That Muzak was hella loud.

[@ronfullerton3162]

For an old geezer like myself with hearing loss, it was loud enough to make hearing what the HG was saying rather hard.

[@HSMiyamoto]

Yeah, 6-12 dB Is the right difference whenever you want to layer two sounds over each other.

[@helenevans1109]

Anybody remember the movie "Airplane" with the "raindrops are falling on my head" gag?

[@johnopalko5223]

In my late teens I spent about six months working in a factory that had three manual elevators. One had an operator but the other two were do-it-yourself. If the elevator wasn't on your floor you had to take the stairs (fortunately it was only three stories), get the elevator, bring it back, and then load your stuff. The controls were a lever that opened the door and two pushbuttons ("UP" and "DOWN") that you held and then released at just the right moment. I actually got pretty good at stopping the car at the right place. Oregon City, Oregon, has the only outdoor municipal elevator in the U.S., which is one of only four in the world. It connects the central business district, on the banks of the Willamette River, to a neighborhood on top of a 90-foot bluff. The original, water-powered, elevator was installed in 1915. The current elevator is an automatic elevator, with only two stops. Nevertheless, it has an operator. I suspect the operator is there mostly to discourage vandalism. The elevator was, naturally, made by the Otis Elevator Company.

[@DavidVanmeterDutch]

All the elevator puns for and in this video really raises the bar on pun usage! Pretty impressive.

[@DerrickOil]

You know are old when you hear your favorite rock anthem turned into elevator music.

[@josephgaviota]

I'm not sure if that makes me happy or sad :-/

[@awizardalso]

Back in the 1980's, I had a friend who worked for the Haines Company who made the Criss-Cross telephone books that you could find the person who had the number by looking up the phone number or the street address. He brought me and another friend to various cities where they would hire delivery people from a motel to deliver the new book and pick up the old ones. He rented me a hatchback Ford Pinto and I delivered/picked up books to office buildings in the downtown areas. In St. Louis, some of the office buildings had elevators that each only serviced 10 floors at different levels.

[@mymorningjacket3436]

I will never look at an elevator the same again great vid keep up the great work.

[@loganpe427]

"Elevate us even higher!" Its great how certain story element's allow a great pun! 🤔😁

[@v.e.7236]

Cute! Ending the segment w/ "elevator" music. Or, would that be musac? Thank you for this very uplifting history lesson.

[@radon360]

Or Muzak: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muzak Possibly a seed for a future, more encompassing topic on this channel, perhaps.

[@Scott-RoyalExplainer]

The music at the end! 😂

[@malcolmbacchus421]

Love the pauses before "lift". If you had more time, I guess a mention of the old Paternoster (now sadly outlawed in the UK) would have been fun. As would a mention of the very modern ThysennKrupp cable-less elevator which will also go sideways as well and up and down.

[@markrossow6303]

I got to ride the contiuous belt pater noster in U.S. Army HQ in Frankfurt 4th grade it also appears briefly in "Night Train to Berlin" movie

[@randycrocker9459]

About the history guy making anything interesting, i commented a while back that i believe he could make a snail crawl interesting. His best work, in my opinion was the enthusiasm demonstrated when talking/ educating us about transistors. That day reigns supreme as the most excited i have seen from his otherwise composed but informative nature. If ever a person wanted to take notes on becoming a teacher, that day was a standard of excellence that would be hard to equal and even harder to maintain....

[@jamesgorman5692]

I remember my mother having a conversation with an American and saying "we call them lifts", he said we invented them to which she replied we invented the language. Parents can be embarrassing!

[@raytrevor1]

Elevator or lift. Seems that they are only for going up!

[@chrisneedham5803]

So what my Mother invented the 'pork chop' ......... well maybe not

[@josephgaviota]

@@chrisneedham5803 Dr. Evil's father invented the question mark. Well, that's what they said in the movie ...

[@paulredinger420]

And he said. " yes, but we perfected it."

[@shawnr771]

There are plans? to build an elevator to outer space. I have a 1903 copy of a Sweet's Construction Catalogue. It has many lift systems to get materials especially mortar for bricks up the sides of buildings for use by people working on scaffolds.

[@psw4763]

It's a marvelous invention but I still worry about getting stuck in one. I felt better years ago when someone managed the elevators. Sadly that's another job that was taken away from people. Now each day more stores are closing also. It's really depressing. Thank you for another great video

[@geoffrogerson9937]

Always nice that The History Guy remembers us here in Australia. Now for my elevator story. About twenty years ago, my best mate wound up in the hospital because of a serious work injury. As they were wheeling him upstairs for more tests, we were rolled onto a lift made by the Schindler Elevator Company. I said “Hey Mate, look at that! You’re on Schindler’s Lift!” It was the only time he ever laughed at one of my jokes, as bad as it was. Come to think of it, he might only have been laughing because of the painkillers he was on.

[@erictaylor5462]

12:00 They struck themselves right out of work.

[@user-ss2ly1ir6j]

That's unions for ya. The greedy wheel gets the boot

[@johntabler349]

Unions are often terribly short sighted

[@erictaylor5462]

@@johntabler349 All they really care about is their own bottom line. If you can't see beyong your next check, you are bound to screw yourself.

[@josephgaviota]

True that ... now we have the "Fight for Fifteen" crowd ... who are being replaced by kiosks.

[@richardklug822]

When young, I remember riding in an elevator that lacked a "13" button on the floor selector panel. Was this a common practice in older buildings?

[@rabbi120348]

Often floors would actually be numbered ... 11, 12, 14, 15... Great scene in "Oh Gd" where John Denver gets in the elevator and goes to the 26th floor to meet Gd -- in a 17-floor building.

[@phalynwilliams4119]

Yes, oftentimes 13 was omitted because of the number’s association with bad luck. The letter “A” would replace the number 13.

[@bobbulat1393]

In East Asia it was either 3A or M

[@bobwild9995]

I know of one building that the 13th floor is a mechanical mezzanine marked with a "M"

[@glennso47]

When the building only had 11 or 12 floors yes!

[@whitedomerobert]

Elevator music, oh really, ouch. We love you history guy.

[@deplorablecovfefe9489]

the industrial elevators ive used had two gate doors you had to pull down,(one for the lift,one for blocking the shaft) before the lift could work. Simple limit switchs on the gate doors keeps elevator from moving if gates are up.

[@twzted_synapse221]

Was really hoping you would have discussed the "inclinators" in the Luxor hotel in Las Vegas. A different type of elevator that actually moves in a diagonal line. Those were a very interesting experience to ride in.

[@rdaltry777]

Also the St Louis Arch. As you go up, the elevator cars begin to tip to one side, then they periodically straighten out.

[@TheFlatlander440]

Yep, I was on the Otis Elevator engineering team that helped designed those inclination elevators. Interesting enough, we actually borrowed the design concept from the Eiffel Tower elevators which were also an original Otis design.

[@publicmail2]

Tech connections- "elevator music! why that SOB."

[@Pfsif]

It's not the fall that hurts, it's the sudden stop.

[@ordinaryman1904]

The elevator music at the end was a nice touch.