Minnesota
So Minnesota: Minneapolis Post Office light fixture
So Minnesota: Minneapolis Post Office light fixture
Few people know that the main Minneapolis Post Office has a feature that could fit in the record books.
Completed in 1933, the art deco structure, with its original sandstone walls and marble floors, has a long history.
The building’s claim to fame is having a long, unique feature: a light fixture that seems to go on and on, reaching several ZIP codes. The 365-foot-long, 16-ton bronze chandelier runs the entire length of the lobby.
“It’s a little debatable,” said Desai Abdul Razzaaq with the U.S. Postal Service. “They say it’s the longest in the world.”
Josef Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, heard about the chandelier in the Minneapolis Post Office. Stalin ordered that a light fixture be built in a Moscow train station a few feet longer than the one in the Minneapolis Post Office.
“At that time, there was a lot of competition between the United States and Russia, each country trying to outdo the other. So Josef Stalin didn’t want to be outdone,” Abdul Razzaaq said.