Niagara Falls & Peanut Butter Cups
The Skylon Tower was built in the 1960’s. This project was developed by W.P. Piggott of Piggott's Construction of Hamilton, William Young of the Hamilton Cotton Company and Richard V. Reese of Niagara Falls, New York.
Richard Reece, formerly of the Reese's Candy Company of Hershey, Pennsylvania, was the son of the founder of the Peanut Butter cup, H.B. Reece. Richard Reece went into a joint venture with another well known family in Niagara Falls, the Sainovichs. The project was financed by The Hershey Company. Together they set out to build the famous Skylon Tower, a prominent landmark in Niagara Falls.
The Skylon Tower includes indoor/outdoor observation of the Falls from 236 metres (775 feet) above the Falls. Visibility of observation on a clear day is 128 km (80 miles).
Two great dining rooms overlook the Falls, the Revolving Dining Room and the Summitt Suite Buffet. The Revolving Dining Room seats 276 persons and does one complete revolution per hour. On the main level, as a prelude to your Ride to the Top in a glass enclosed Yellow Bug elevator, you can enjoy the many specialty shops. At the base you'll find the Skylon Fun Centre, complete with a food court and 4D Theatre.
The total height of the tower from the base to the top of flashing beacon is 160 metres (520 feet). The weight of concrete for the tower is 48,000,000 lbs. (21,772,800 kilograms) and the weight of concrete for the base of the tower is 13,200,000 lbs. (5,987,520 kilograms). There are 3 elevators to take you to the top observation deck and restaurants in 52 seconds. The number of steps in each of the two stairways from the lower exhibition floor to the observation floor is 662.