--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Before the war, five-stories was the…" description: "\"“Before the war, five-stories was the rule, and commercial life was carried on primarily at ground level—in streets and showrooms, at sales counters, o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd6/mike-wallace-5222_elevator_before-the-war-five-stories-was-the-rule_2062280.jpg" --- # Before the war, five-stories was the rule, and commercial… ![“Before the war, five-stories was the rule, and commercial life was carried on primarily at ground level—in streets and showrooms, at sales counters, on exchange floors. After the war, office buildings went vertical, climbing to unprecedented heights—six stories, seven, eight. “Our business men are…” quote by Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd6/mike-wallace-5222_elevator_before-the-war-five-stories-was-the-rule_2062280.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd6/mike-wallace-5222_elevator_before-the-war-five-stories-was-the-rule_2062280.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd6/mike-wallace-5222_elevator_before-the-war-five-stories-was-the-rule_2062280.jpg) > ““Before the war, five-stories was the rule, and commercial life was carried on primarily at ground level—in streets and showrooms, at sales counters, on exchange floors. After the war, office buildings went vertical, climbing to unprecedented heights—six stories, seven, eight. “Our business men are building up to the clouds,” one newsman exclaimed. The elevator made this possible. Lift technology had improved since the vertical screw used at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. Now the “steam and drum” method was available. Steel wire cables were run over a drum at the top of the shaft, which was then revolved to raise or lower the cab. An alternative model hauled the cage up and down the shaft by looping its wire cable over a pulley, then attaching a wrought-iron bucket almost as weighty as the cage. When filled with water from a tank, the bucket descended by gravity, pulling the cage up. At the bottom, an operator emptied the bucket, shifting the weight balance in favor of the cage, which then descended and pulled the bucket back up.”” [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes how elevator innovations enabled buildings to grow taller, reshaping urban business environments. **In simple terms:** Elevators let buildings go higher, changing city skylines. Key Takeaway Embrace technology that expands possibilities. Themes urban development technology architecture business history Mood informative historical Type explanatory educational When to use this quote - real estate planning - architectural design - city tourism - historical research Key Concepts vertical transportation industrial innovation urbanization Questions to Reflect On - How did elevators change daily life? - What challenges did early elevators face? A Different Perspective Elevators also required new safety standards and maintenance costs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elevator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elevator/) [Elevator Possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elevator-possible-3940664/) [Improved Vertical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/improved-vertical-3940666/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Lift Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lift-technology-3940665/) [Vertical Climbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vertical-climbing-728749/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [I love to read about the exploits of technical mountain climbers, but I've never done any vertical climbing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-hobbs/i-love-to-read-about-the-exploits-of-technical-mountain-climbers-but/) [Will Hobbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-hobbs/) > [“Among other wonders, the Fifth Avenue offered private bathrooms, an unprecedented extravagance, as well as the city’s second passenger elevator (equipped with Otis’s safety…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/among-other-wonders-the-fifth-avenue-offered-private-bathrooms-an/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“Marvin," he said, "just get this elevator go up will you? We've got to get to Zarniwoop." "Why?" asked Marvin dolefully. "I don't know,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/marvin-he-said-just-get-this-elevator-go-up-will-you-we-ve-got-to-get/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [The reason I quit being a sales manager over twenty years now is because I hate elevator pitches. I want to write stories and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-busiek/the-reason-i-quit-being-a-sales-manager-over-twenty-years-now-is/) [Kurt Busiek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-busiek/) > [“Things to do in an elevator: Install a glass display, like in a museum, over the floor buttons and have a sign affixed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/things-to-do-in-an-elevator-install-a-glass-display-like-in-a-museum/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“in the blink of an eye, one’s whole world could take a swan dive; the elevator from heaven to hell was a fast-moving one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sierra-rose/in-the-blink-of-an-eye-one-s-whole-world-could-take-a-swan-dive-the/) [Sierra Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sierra-rose/) > [Life tells you to take the elevator, but love tells you to take the stairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/life-tells-you-to-take-the-elevator-but-love-tells-you-to-take-the/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [When I get in an elevator, before I press a button, I look at everyone inside & say: Are you ready to take this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itsme867/when-i-get-in-an-elevator-before-i-press-a-button-i-look-at-everyone/) [Itsme867](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/itsme867/) > [The elevator shaft was a kind of heat sink. Hot food was cold by the time it arrived. Cold food got colder. No one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-elevator-shaft-was-a-kind-of-heat-sink-hot-food-was-cold-by-the/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“He stepped aside, allowing me back into the hallway. As we headed to another elevator, he was glued to my hip. "As close as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/he-stepped-aside-allowing-me-back-into-the-hallway-as-we-headed-to/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [Almost all of us have an elevator or two in our lives somewhere. We wait for them, we ride on them. We're annoyed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/almost-all-of-us-have-an-elevator-or-two-in-our-lives-somewhere-we/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Every time I get in an elevator, the operator says the same thing to me: 'Basement?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/every-time-i-get-in-an-elevator-the-operator-says-the-same-thing-to/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [“The rent should rise with the elevator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-rent-should-rise-with-the-elevator/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [When I go to my health club, and it's in the basement, you have to take the elevator down. And this drives me crazy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/when-i-go-to-my-health-club-and-it-s-in-the-basement-you-have-to-take/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-girard/the-elevator-to-success-is-out-of-order-you-ll-have-to-use-the-stairs/) [Joe Girard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-girard/) ## More by Mike Wallace > [It's astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way. That's why a reporter's job, as you know, is such a joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/it-s-astonishing-what-you-learn-and-feel-and-see-along-the-way-that-s/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“Residents grimly spoke of the crisis as “O Grab Me”—“embargo” spelled backward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/residents-grimly-spoke-of-the-crisis-as-o-grab-me-embargo-spelled/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“The key to success in the Gold Room was information. Knowledge of a battle’s outcome obtained an hour before one’s competitors could be parlayed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/the-key-to-success-in-the-gold-room-was-information-knowledge-of-a/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“When the popular actor John Hodgkinson appeared in the red coat of a British officer, hecklers wouldn’t allow him to continue until he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/when-the-popular-actor-john-hodgkinson-appeared-in-the-red-coat-of-a/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [When I came to CBS it was the mother church. I mean that was - everybody wanted to go to work for CBS News.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/when-i-came-to-cbs-it-was-the-mother-church-i-mean-that-was-everybody/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [Even though Jack Kennedy and I were about the same age and lived in the same neighborhood and attended the same elementary school, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/even-though-jack-kennedy-and-i-were-about-the-same-age-and-lived-in/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“Warner took to writing in hopes of making money and submitted a pious and sentimental novel to Harpers, which rebuffed it with the single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/warner-took-to-writing-in-hopes-of-making-money-and-submitted-a-pious/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“Horace Greeley cautioned one upstate hopeful: “You do not realize how little the mere talent of writing well has to do with success or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/horace-greeley-cautioned-one-upstate-hopeful-you-do-not-realize-how/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“Political editors were a truculent breed. Leggett’s boss, William Cullen Bryant, took a cowskin whip to William Leete Stone of the Commercial Advertiser in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/political-editors-were-a-truculent-breed-leggett-s-boss-william/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [But I was never, you know, when I see some kids today who are close to their parents, close to their friends... I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/but-i-was-never-you-know-when-i-see-some-kids-today-who-are-close-to/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“And among the prissiest. Gilder’s method of raising public standards of taste and morality required the production of bloodless pages. As custodian of genteel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/and-among-the-prissiest-gilder-s-method-of-raising-public-standards/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [Covering Richard Nixon's triumphant run in 1968 turned out to be my last major assignment as a general correspondent for CBS News. In September…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/covering-richard-nixon-s-triumphant-run-in-1968-turned-out-to-be-my/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [There's not a better job in journalism than the one we have, seriously on '60 Minutes' - not a better job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/there-s-not-a-better-job-in-journalism-than-the-one-we-have-seriously/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [Both my parents came from Russia and suddenly they wound up in Boston, Massachusetts, Brookline, Massachusetts and they felt the sun rose and set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/both-my-parents-came-from-russia-and-suddenly-they-wound-up-in-boston/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [“In the symphonic world, musically inclined industrialists and financiers were having problems of a different sort with the New York Philharmonic. The old German…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/in-the-symphonic-world-musically-inclined-industrialists-and/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) [Explore all 102 Mike Wallace quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) ## More Elevator quotes > [The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-girard/the-elevator-to-success-is-out-of-order-you-ll-have-to-use-the-stairs/) [Joe Girard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-girard/) > [When I go to my health club, and it's in the basement, you have to take the elevator down. And this drives me crazy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/when-i-go-to-my-health-club-and-it-s-in-the-basement-you-have-to-take/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“The rent should rise with the elevator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-rent-should-rise-with-the-elevator/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Every time I get in an elevator, the operator says the same thing to me: 'Basement?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/every-time-i-get-in-an-elevator-the-operator-says-the-same-thing-to/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [Almost all of us have an elevator or two in our lives somewhere. We wait for them, we ride on them. We're annoyed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/almost-all-of-us-have-an-elevator-or-two-in-our-lives-somewhere-we/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [“He stepped aside, allowing me back into the hallway. As we headed to another elevator, he was glued to my hip. "As close as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/he-stepped-aside-allowing-me-back-into-the-hallway-as-we-headed-to/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [The elevator shaft was a kind of heat sink. Hot food was cold by the time it arrived. Cold food got colder. No one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-elevator-shaft-was-a-kind-of-heat-sink-hot-food-was-cold-by-the/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [When I get in an elevator, before I press a button, I look at everyone inside & say: Are you ready to take this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itsme867/when-i-get-in-an-elevator-before-i-press-a-button-i-look-at-everyone/) [Itsme867](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/itsme867/) > [Life tells you to take the elevator, but love tells you to take the stairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/life-tells-you-to-take-the-elevator-but-love-tells-you-to-take-the/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“in the blink of an eye, one’s whole world could take a swan dive; the elevator from heaven to hell was a fast-moving one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sierra-rose/in-the-blink-of-an-eye-one-s-whole-world-could-take-a-swan-dive-the/) [Sierra Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sierra-rose/) > [“Things to do in an elevator: Install a glass display, like in a museum, over the floor buttons and have a sign affixed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/things-to-do-in-an-elevator-install-a-glass-display-like-in-a-museum/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [The reason I quit being a sales manager over twenty years now is because I hate elevator pitches. I want to write stories and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-busiek/the-reason-i-quit-being-a-sales-manager-over-twenty-years-now-is/) [Kurt Busiek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-busiek/) > [“Marvin," he said, "just get this elevator go up will you? We've got to get to Zarniwoop." "Why?" asked Marvin dolefully. "I don't know,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/marvin-he-said-just-get-this-elevator-go-up-will-you-we-ve-got-to-get/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [After seeing 'Big,' I wanted an elevator that opened directly into my apartment, just like Tom Hanks did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/macaulay-culkin/after-seeing-big-i-wanted-an-elevator-that-opened-directly-into-my/) [Macaulay Culkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/macaulay-culkin/) > [Before, I would play a little hoops, a little tennis. Now it's more yoga, Pilates, stretching, some light weight work, push-ups, sit-ups, resistance things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-roberts/before-i-would-play-a-little-hoops-a-little-tennis-now-it-s-more-yoga/) [Robin Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-roberts/) [Browse all 240 Elevator quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elevator/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Before the war, five-stories was the rule, and commercial life was carried on primarily at ground level—in streets and showrooms, at sales counters, on exchange floors. After the war, office buildings went vertical, climbing to unprecedented heights—six stories, seven, eight. “Our business men are building up to the clouds,” one newsman exclaimed. The elevator made this possible. Lift technology had improved since the vertical screw used at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. Now the “steam and drum” method was available. Steel wire cables were run over a drum at the top of the shaft, which was then revolved to raise or lower the cab. An alternative model hauled the cage up and down the shaft by looping its wire cable over a pulley, then attaching a wrought-iron bucket almost as weighty as the cage. When filled with water from a tank, the bucket descended by gravity, pulling the cage up. 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