Let's pretend....

...it's not rainy and gray out today! This is the Federal Reserve Bank. This is where my daddy worked for 20 someodd years (hi dad!). This is one of the first buildings that I notice when I look at the Boston skyline, and it will be smack in the middle when you're driving North on the expressway into the city. The Fed is at the corner of Atlantic and Summer Streets, right across from South Station. This is actually the Boston Fed's fourth location, and here's more about the building itself:

The 604-foot 33-story office tower linked to a four-story wing was erected between December 1972 and November 1974. The architects, Hugh Stubbins & Associates, designed the tower office floors that rise from a 140-foot bridge "suspended" in the air between two end cores. A 600 ton major steel structure called a "truss" marks the beginning of the tower's "office in the air." The exterior is natural anodized aluminum, which acts as a curtain wall and weatherproof facing. The aluminum spandrels or "eye-brows" shade the building interior from the sun in the summertime and allow more sunlight in the winter months.

I remember going through the revolving doors when Mom would take us to visit Dad, and going through the security gate on the Summer St side of the building sometimes. One of my favorite memories was going Christmas shopping with Mom while Dad slaved away on a Saturday morning - we went into the city with Dad, dropped him off at work, and walked up to Downtown Crossing to shop. It was when the Enchanted Village was still in the Jordan Marsh building (and when Jordan Marsh still existed!!), and I remember loving a scene with little bears decorating for Christmas!