In 1626, it is said that, Dutchman Peter Minuit bought the island of Manhattan for $24.
People often joke about that, but twenty-four bucks wasn’t such an unreasonable price. It was a lot of money back then, and it’s not like Mr. Minuit just turned around and built Times Square. Manhattan was a big rock in the middle of cold rushing waters and the weather was awful, even for a Dutchman. It wasn’t even a city until February 2, 1653, when it became New Amsterdam. It had a population of 800 at the time.
Eventually it was renamed New York, which, according to the 2010 census, has a population of more than 8.3 million. This represents an increase of more than one million percent. At this rate, by the year 2319 New York will have a population of over 80 billion.
Anticipate more traffic.
Co-incidentially or not
February 2, 1913 –
The new Beaux-Arts style Grand Central Terminal in New York City opened on this date.
The cost to construct Grand Central Terminal was a staggering $43 million. The price was offset by the sale of “air rights” over the enclosed facility.
Many majestic buildings were constructed including the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. For many years, the elevators in these buildings would be powered by third rail current provided by the New York Central.
The railroad needed to invest in electrifying its rails, and carve deep into Manhattan’s bedrock (workers would ultimately excavate 2.8 million cubic yards of earth and rock).
And I’m sorry, if you were hoping that my brother might have just driven your train into the station, you’re out of lucky – he retired last year
Lucky fellow.
The Haus of Dcaligari 