Workmen spray down the McMath Planetarium dome while under construction at the Cranbrook Institute of Science. 1955. Cranbrook Archives.
The workmen who built the McMath Planetarium at the Cranbrook Institute of Science in the 1950s must have been circus performers as well as skilled craftsmen. Here they balance on plywood platforms, managing a high-pressure hose as they perch above the nearly-completed dome. The planetarium, which opened in 1955, has now been expanded into the Acheson Planetarium and includes research resources as well as visitor viewing opportunities.
Cranbrook Kitchen Sink 
Circus performers, indeed. The most incredible photo I’ve seen, however, is of cement trucks having to back up a very long, elevated ramp—without guardrails—to dump concrete on Kingswood’s original roof.
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