Weatherball
Click a link to view the Weatherball jingle.Quicktime for DSL or T1 Real Player 56k modem |
During its 33-year existence, the Weatherball did more than flash forecasts. Perched atop the Northwestern National Bank building in downtown Minneapolis, it also became a landmark on the downtown skyline, a common word in the local vocabulary, and the basis for a jingle that all residents could recite. Hailed as the tallest illuminated sign between Chicago and the West Coast, the 12-story Weatherball was introduced to Minneapolis amid great fanfare on October 7, 1949. Built to withstand winds of up to 140 miles per hour, it survived hurricane-force gales just three days after it began operating. Unfortunately, the Weatherball succumbed to a fire on Thanksgiving Day in 1982 that destroyed the bank building. It was not rebuilt. |
