Theophilus Van Kannel was inducted into the National Inventors’ Hall of Fame in 2007.
To digress, my brother was inducted as a diocesan lay reader in the Church of Ireland some years ago. Theophilus’s invention is pictured above – a revolving door. It is to the credit of Hilton that many original features have been retained, though parts of The Majestic are probably listed. It is a fine example of a wooden revolving door and the doors can be folded back if required. There is one design fault, namely a small but treacherous step immediately outside. I saw an unfortunate guest taken unawares and come a purler. You will recall from yesterday’s post The Majestic opened in 1900 when a revolving door was distinctly novel. I like the small brass plaque instructing users on which side to enter. It is one of the earliest examples in the world.
“In 1899, the world’s first wooden revolving door was installed at Rector’s, a restaurant on Times Square in Manhattan, located on Broadway between West 43rd and 44th Streets.”(Wikipedia)
There is another contender at St Pancras Station.
Not a good picture because this part of the building is fenced off for restoration but it is a wooden revolving door at the entrance to what was The Midland Grand Hotel that opened in 1876, prior to the invention of the revolving door. It was fitted in 1899 so has a claim to be at least in a dead heat with the one on Broadway, with The Majestic, perhaps, coming in third.
Revolving doors are still being used on modern buildings. When I started working in the City in 1976 The Corn Exchange was home to the sugar, coffee and cocoa futures markets. Today a new building is home to my dentist and has double revolving doors.
