"1964 World's Fair" Unisphere Mohawk Ironworker's Tribute

Many ironworkers from Akwesasne and Kahnawake began and completed the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows for the 1964 World's Fair. The Unisphere is a massive structure of a globular steel framework representing the whole world with all the continents attached. In the span of its construction, the American Bridge Company ran into some unique problems in the field of welding and in facing the task of giving the highest polishing job initially. There was also a problem in addition because of the Unisphere being a global and hollow framework and very difficult to get around on because there were no flat surfaces. In order to somewhat make the job easier, a portable grinding attachment was devised and rigged up into a special frame that would take two men to produce the required polished shine finish. This apparatus included rubber wheels which would touch the steel and also provided a brace so only the exposed steel would be polished. This frame was devised by the late Julius Cook, the welding foreman. Julius wasn't given the credit for this cleverly made frame because it was made on company time and materials. Platforms, ropes and buckets were used to hoist up the men onto the structure inside and out.

Thanks goes out to all the ironworkers and welders that made their mark at the 1964 New York World's Fair as they built the Unisphere. Your dedication and pride as Mohawk Steel Workers has made us proud. It is unfortunate that the complete list of the Unisphere creators weren't here to remember and celebrate the 50th anniversary celebrations from May to mid-October 2014. This was a huge accomplishment along with all the other numerous buildings and bridges you men have made.

We would like to honor and celebrate the men who have touched the world in making one of the biggest and spectacular structures in the universe. The Unisphere is the symbol used around the world to represent the 1964 World's Fair in Flushing Meadows in Queens, NY. It took 162 days to complete. The theme was "Peace Through Understanding" for all countries to display their ideas, along with accomplishments and customs.

Following is a list of men who worked on the 1964 World's Fair. Some names may be missing but not purposely. After this list, you will read some comments from men who survive:

Deceased

Julius Cook, Jake Cook, Ray Thompson, Leonard Thompson, Joe Thompson, Louie Francis Sr., Clarence Thompson, John Jacobs, Reginald White, Teddy Francis, Sam David, Charlie White, Lawrence Francis, Noah Point, Lawrence Oakes, Paul Horn, Russell Skye, Donald Skye, Frankie Benedict and Morris Adams.

Living

Dick Francis, 41 years

William Francis, 41 yrs.

Mike Smoke, 36 yrs.

Philip Francis, 50 yrs.

Ronald Thomas, 42 yrs.

Henry Arquette, 43

Roy Adams, 43

Mike Smoke helped to add more names to the list for us. We are trying not to leave anyone out. He said it was a very big job, which is why the list of men is so long. Mike worked as an ironworker for 36 years.

Henry Arquette also worked on this gigantic Unisphere and remembers all the men on the list. He too, added a couple more names. His steelwork career spanned over 43 years. Henry said, "It was for a long time and many miles (1950-1993)." His work took him all along the Eastern Coast of the U.S. During his jobs, he usually stayed on the outskirts of the city and didn't enjoy the busyness. He has two sons who are still working as ironworkers, Chico and Vaughn. After so many years, Henry just became sick of it. The worst haul was the job in East Maine across from New Brunswick. "That drive was 12 hours each way, I just got so sick of it," recalls Henry. He did mention that he felt bad that he wasn't here to help his wife with the children, but he had to go to work to make money to raise them. "I worked with many good men including the guys from Kahnawake."

Phil Francis worked on the Unisphere construction about the halfway point of its completion. "You and your buddies have built a beautiful structure to represent the skill and strength of the Mohawks." In all of his 50 years of ironworking, he had traveled to the Buffalo area for ten years. His experience as an ironworker has included many cities in the U.S and Canada. His career began in 1952 and he retired in 2002. Congratulations for the dedication to your career and to your family.

Dickie Francis has 41 years of ironwork involvement in helping to construct the "Unisphere" at Flushing Meadows for the NY World's Fair in 1964. A couple of injuries had set him back for a time, but he always found or was given another job to do at the site. Although he wasn't able to climb, there was work on the ground. It was always a collaborative effort among his friends as they worked on this symbolic structure. He said, "It seemed like we worked through winter and by summer it was finished."

Ronald Thomas has 42 years with his experiences as an ironworker. The most difficult part was building the base for the unisphere which jutted up like three points upward to support the main structure. After that job was done the rest was just guiding the two cranes to place the steel. The next difficulty was placing the ring orbiting the globe. They left their mark there as a landmark with reflector lights to show Akwesasne. After 50 years it's a mystery to know if it is still in place. Ronald never felt they were in a hazardous condition, always safety first. The men he worked with always made the best of any situation and kept the humor going. It made time pass.

Roy Adams. Many risks were taken at some of the sites they worked at during his 42 years as an ironworker. They had good times as well as bad times at some. When the men would go for jobs, they usually requested straight time or overtime to balance out or profit the cost of travel, room and board. Some of the cities were so far away that the men couldn't see their families as regularly. As a retired man, Roy admitted that he does miss working sometimes. He did enjoy riding to and from NYC with Henry Arquette on the World's Fair job. The men were supplied with rubber soled shoes to climb the steel on the Unisphere. "Everything on that structure was rounded and would be very hard to climb if we didn't have the buckets."

William Francis had been a foreman for this particular job for American Bridge Co. and oversaw the Unisphere construction with Akwesasne and Kahnawake men. He remembered the Skye brothers very well but they have since all passed away. William has accumulated about 42 years or more as an ironworker. He remembers very well when Julius Cook was working on the machine. If anyone thought of making the work easier, they would do it. It was a big job and involved many men to build the Unisphere. When William's son was learning the trade, he taught him to "Respect the iron, it can knock you down or make you fall. Always pay attention to what you are doing on the iron, think of it as if it's alive," he told him. He spoke about his friends and told humorous stories about how they lived and got along so well. They all built this Unisphere and it was the first for them to build a global shaped structure as this. They all learned together. They had to be very careful. He added, "We were very lucky we didn't lose any of our men, we always had to work carefully."

Niawen to all of you for your time and for sharing.

Thank you to Elda Cook for bringing forth the suggestion to write a story pertaining to the New York World's Fair. Because of this, we were able to acknowledge past and present ironworkers who built this unforgettable Unisphere. As Elda enjoyed watching this US Tennis Open in NYC, she saw the Unisphere and was reminded of her husband Julius's time as a team member in constructing this beautiful and permanent landmark. This was such an appropriate time to give tribute to all the past and present ironworkers involved in completing this project and the celebration of 50 years since its birth.