A truck driver spent over 20 years creating models of all the buildings in New York City.
A truck driver spent 20 years creating miniature models of all the buildings in New York City. The models measure 1,350 square feet (125 square meters) and are currently on display at
A Truck Driver Spent 20 Years Making This Astonishing Scale Model of Every Single Building in New York City
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-truck-drive-spent-20-years-making-this-astonishing-scale-model-of-every-single-building-in-new-york-city-180988443/
In 2004, truck driver Joe Macken built a miniature model of 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City using balsa wood. Initially, Macken intended to stop making miniatures, but he became completely engrossed in the process and was building a new one the very next day .
After that, Macken spent over 20 years recreating the streets of New York City in miniature. After recreating Manhattan in miniature, he began creating models of other counties, and it is said that he succeeded in recreating the entire city of New York using wooden buildings, painted parks, and artificial trees. The miniature models became so large that he could no longer keep them in his home, and Macken had to rent a warehouse to store them.
Macken eventually succeeded in recreating the entire city of New York in his own miniature model. The model reportedly measures 125 square meters, which is equivalent to the size of 75 tatami mats.
The following video shows Mr. Macken introducing his miniature models. You can clearly see how large they are and how detailed they are.
@balsastyrofoam300 Full Entire Model of NYC with all 5 Boros included.
♬ original sound - minninycity04
Macken's model of New York City has been on display at the Museum of the City of New York since February 2026 under the title 'He Built This City.' Visitors can view Macken's model from all angles, and binoculars can be used to observe specific areas in detail.
He built this city | Museum of the City of New York
Elizabeth Sherman, chief curator and deputy director of the Museum of the City of New York, told The Guardian that when they first saw Macken's model of New York, 'We all gathered around and cheered, 'Look, that's our museum!' 'That's the Metropolitan Museum of Art! That's the Guggenheim Museum!''
According to Times Union , Macken makes a living as a delivery truck driver in Clifton Park, New York, while his family has lived in New York since 2003. Because Macken is the only one living far away, he misses New York and started making miniature models.
Macken says that he became interested in miniature models after seeing ' The Panorama of the City of New York, ' a diorama model of New York created for the 1964 World's Fair, at the Queens Art Museum during a school field trip when he was in first grade.
According to Macken, in the past, he would ride trains and streetcars around buildings to create miniature models. However, he says that now, with the use of satellite imagery, it's possible to view buildings from above, making model making much easier. Macken also mentioned that while walking around buildings and gathering reference materials for his models, he realized, 'Ah, this is what I want to do.'
Macken said, 'I had absolutely no idea what I was going to do. I had no plan whatsoever. I never imagined it would end up on display in a museum.' Macken made the miniature model of New York using balsa wood, Elmer's glue, acrylic paint, and an X-Acto knife , and the materials cost approximately $20,000 (about 3.2 million yen).
Stephanie Hill Wilchfort, director and president of the Museum of the City of New York, said of Macken's model, 'It offers a glimpse into the beauty and complexity of this city through the eyes of someone who lived in, loved, and meticulously crafted this city.'
Incidentally, Mr. Macken's miniature models are on a 1/24,000 scale and reportedly reproduce one million buildings, stadiums, roads, bridges, and other structures that exist in New York City.
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