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NO government building in his' tory has achieved such great fame as quickly as the Pentagon, the world's largest office building and the nerve center of this nation's mili' tary might.
In less than a decade, the Pentagon has come to rank with the centuries' old Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Tower of London and the Louvre Museum as a world-prominent landmark.
One reason for the reputation of the huge five-story structure is the wide number of stories in circulation about it. A favorite is the one concerning the Western Union boy who came to deliver a message. But before he could find his way out, he had been made a colonel and equipped with his own private office.
Being confused and "lost" in the 17 miles of corridors within the Pentagon isn't far-fetched in the least. The structure gives every impression of being a modern labyrinth. Actually, however, the Pentagon is of dignified, simple construction. But to make sure a visitor will discover the right exit before old age overtakes him, the corridors and intersections are lined with maps. And special guides are everywhere to steer the puzzled arrivals straight.
Built during the war, when the nation's military force was being expanded at a great pace, the Pentagon was rushed to completion in 16 months (1943) although some of its offices were occupied and in use nine months earlier. In terms of real estate, the "house of brass," as it is sometimes known, covers 34 acres and has three times the space of the Empire
State Building. The Pentagon's six million square feet of office space are contained in five rings of buildings spliced together by ten spokelike corridors. To get around the five sides of the Pentagon, you'd have to walk a mile.
Opponents of the huge center predicted it would be a white elephant; and termed it "Somervell's Folly" after work was begun under the supervision of General Brehon Somervell. A bundle of energy, the general spurred contractors, cut away miles of red tape and bulldozed suppliers to get the project completed in far less than two years at a cost of about $65 million.
The building seemed to spring up out of nowhere in a maze which once was swampland. At one stage during the work, the government had 30,000 workers putting the Pentagon together.
The project provided a field day for "sidewalk superintendents" who watched day-by-day operations and marvelled at the speed of construction. The Pentagon, incidentally, is