Historic Preservation

Driving past Euston train station in London the other day on the bus made me think that this hideous little building could not have been the original structure, and lo and behold, there once was a grand structure before it which was demolished in the 1960s. The 60s turned out to be a terrible decade for preservation and architechture around the world as old buildings were torn down in the name of progress to make space for brutalist concrete behemoths which reflected the utilitarian ideology of the time. Every reaction has an equal and opposing counter reaction however and so the 60s saw the rise of preservationist movements in the US and abroad. Here are two examples of Train Stations torn down in the name of progress. Let me know which version (the old or the new) you prefer:

Euston Station, London (Old):

Euston Station, London (new):

This is lifted directly from the wikipedia page (full disclosure is in effect):

Writing in The Times, Richard Morrison stated that "even by the bleak standards of Sixties architecture, Euston is one of the nastiest concrete boxes in London: devoid of any decorative merit; seemingly concocted to induce maximum angst among passengers; and a blight on surrounding streets. The design should never have left the drawing-board - if, indeed, it was ever on a drawing-board. It gives the impression of having been scribbled on the back of a soiled paper bag by a thuggish android with a grudge against humanity and a vampiric loathing of sunlight". link

Perhaps even worse than Euston however is the story of Penn Station in New York City which was also demolished in the 1960s and replaced with a new station underneath the new Madison Square Garden.

Old Penn Station, NYC:

New Penn Station, NYC:

What a shame...