Dr. Lee Gray
Dr. Lee Gray, professor of Architectural History and senior associate dean of the College of Arts + Architecture at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, has written more than 200 monthly articles on the history of vertical transportation (VT) for ELEVATOR WORLD since 2003. He is also the author of From Ascending Rooms to Express Elevators: A History of the Passenger Elevator in the 19th Century. He also serves as curator of theelevatormuseum.org, created by Elevator World, Inc.
When EW Met Ellie the Elephant
A fascinating chapter of moving sidewalk history by Dr. Lee Gray, EW Correspondent When subscribers received the January 1961 issue of ELEVATOR WORLD they may have, at first glance, wondered...
Keighley Lifts, Ltd.
What can a catalouge tell us? The recent acquisition of a Keighley Lifts catalogue provides additional insights into the pre-World War II British vertical-transportation (VT) industry. However, prior to an...
Elevator Insurance
A collision between two industries leads to cooperation. by Dr. Lee Gray, EW Correspondent In the mid-1880s, the technological world of the vertical-transportation (VT) industry collided with the actuarial world...
Joseph C. Tamsitt’s Second NAEC Education Program 1960-1964: Lessons
This History article looks at the specifics of the program and its success. by Dr. Lee Gray, EW Correspondent The March 1960 issue of ELEVATOR WORLD included the announcement of...
Lift Tenders (Invited, Accepted and Rejected) 1921-1929
An attempt to identify general lift prices during this time period By the 1920s, British vertical-transportation (VT) companies often participated in a formal tender submission process that allowed for the...
Residential Elevators 1878-1893
NYC’s wealthy robber barons incorporated VT into their mansions during the Gilded Age. The topic of residential elevators has been addressed in past articles with a focus on elevators specifically...
Elevated Banking in the 1950s
Retractable sidewalk teller systems The 1950s witnessed the development of numerous technological innovations that changed how people interacted with their physical environment. Many of these innovations, such as the operator-less...
The Dahlstrom Metallic Door Co. (1925)
In 1924, the Dahlstrom Metallic Door Co. celebrated the 20th anniversary of the company’s founding. The following year, it published its first catalog devoted to elevator doors. This event highlighted...
The First Ocean Liner Passenger Lift
A popular symbol of modernity and cutting-edge transportation technology The introduction of the electric lift in the late 19th century, coupled with the rapid expansion of the use of electricity...
Conclusion of The American VT Industry in the 1880s
A look at early elevator call systems The emergence of an industry sector that supplied many vertical-transportation (VT) companies with elevator call systems (typically referred to as elevator annunciators in...
