Vintage Photographs of Early Colossal Vertical Parking Garages, 1920-1960 – Design You Trust

Vintage Photographs of Early Colossal Vertical Parking Garages, 1920-1960

Freestanding 48 Car Elevator Parking Garage in Downtown Chicago’s business district, Built by the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, 1936.

The rapid rise of automobiles at the turn of the 20th century presented an immediate problem: where to park all these vehicles roaming in the streets?

The concept for the vertical parking garages was and is driven by two factors: a need for parking spaces and a scarcity of available land. The earliest use of the vertical parking solution was in Paris, France in 1905 at the Garage Rue de Ponthieu. The systems consisted of a groundbreaking multi-story concrete structure with an internal car elevator to transport cars to upper levels where attendants parked the cars.

h/t: rarehistoricalphotos

A vertical parking machine, 1930s.

The earliest such parking systems in the US appeared in L.A., New York, and Chicago in the 1920s. For the 1933 Century of Progress World’s Fair, the Nash Motor Company created the first glass-enclosed parking system. During this time, Kent Automatic Garages was installing automated parking systems with capacities exceeding 1,000 cars.

Citroen cars in Le Marbeuf garage in Paris, designed by architects Albert Laprade and L. E. Bazin. 1930s.

The popularity of automatic parking systems ultimately waned due to the long wait times required for customers to retrieve their cars, but they can still be found in cities worldwide especially in Asia.

Le Marbeuf garage in Paris. 1930.

Le Marbeuf garage in Paris. 1930.

A vertical parking lot structure in Chicago. 1940s.

The Nash Motors automobile elevator display at the Century of Progress International Exposition in Chicago. 1933.

Vertical parking garage in Chicago, 1936.

The Autorimessa Piazzale Roma, a garage in Piazzale Roma, Venice, Italy. 1950s.

The Autorimessa Piazzale Roma, a garage in Piazzale Roma, Venice, Italy. 1950s.

A man parks a car with the help of a forklift. 1955.

An “autosilo” garage in Karlsruhe, Germany. 1955.

The central well of an automatic car park in England. 1960s.

A car teeters at the top of a paternoster parking elevator as a result of a broken bolt in Denver, Colorado. 1970s.

If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Oh, Design You Trust,' our brand new Facebook page! Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Gallery Of 68 Competitive Designs For The Great Tower For London, 1890
Captivating Vintage Photos of People in Encampment, Wyoming From Between the 1920s and 1930s
This Curvaceous Wooden House Sits Among The Trees
Moonlight Rainbow Fountain in Seoul, South Korea
Architect Tadao Ando Envelops Giant Buddha Statue In Lavender-Planted Hill Temple
The Albee Rolligon: An Innovative Transport Truck From the 1950s
Turbo-Reactive Diesel-Punk: Flying Retro Cars By Alejandro Burdisio
These Men’s Fashion Ads From The 1970s That Will Leave You Speechless
Splendid Vintage Snaps Of Young Girls With Very Big Hair In The 1980s
A Broken Vintage Piano Turned Into A Unique Analog Hybrid Of 20 Instruments Connected To The Piano Keys
Inside of Blizzard's Office
The Eyeball-Licking Horror Manga of Suehiro Maruo and Strange Other Obsessions
Teach Yourself to Draw with The Help of The Man Who Influenced Walt Disney, 1913
1960s Space Age Toy Rocket Shoes Simulate Walking On The Moon
Transparent Bridge in China
Camera Enthusiast Builds a Coffee Shop Shaped Like an Enormous Rolleiflex Camera
The Earthquake Tower by Remco, ca. 1974
Tinker the Robot: The 1966 Real-Life Housekeeping Robot
Amazing Vintage Photographs Documented Inca Culture And Life In Peruvian Andes, Captured By Martin Chambi In The Early 20th Century
The Original and Outrageous 1979 Cocaine Calendar
Palermo Viejo: Photographer Captured Abandoned Vintage Cars in Italy
"Choose Your Retro Haircut!": Hair Style Selections From The 1950s-1980s
The Color Of Russian History: Beautiful Vintage Colorized Pictures Of The Imperial Russia By Olga Shirnina
Sleek Vertical Planters Let You Grow an Elegant Garden Indoors