When Pier 40 at West Houston St in lower Manhattan opened in March 1963, it was innovative - inner-core parking, advanced handling methods for passengers & cargo and, most of all, the capacity to handle three, even four ships at one time with three-sided berthing. Holland America, moving over after nearly a century across the Hudson in Hoboken, was the principal tenant. 
Unfortunately, Pier 40 had less than a dozen years of commercial use -- the Port was changing, there were fewer & fewer ships and the likes of Holland America went north, to Piers 88, 90 & 92, to the new Consolidated Passenger Ship Terminal.
These days, Pier 40 is up for renewal as a combination sports center, art museum & parking garage. In the attached views: I snapped 800-ft long Pier 40 on a spring afternoon in 2010; the older, earlier view shows Holland America ships at dock some forty years ago, in 1963 (a busy day indeed -- the Rotterdam, Statendam (on the outer side), Westerdam & the freighter Kinderdyk).
Texto e imagens /Text and images copyright Bill Miller. Favor não piratear. Respeite o meu trabalho / No piracy, please. For other posts and images, check our archive at the right column of the main page. Click on the photos to see them enlarged. Thanks for your visit and comments. Luís Miguel Correia