NYC Landmarks Law turns 50; exhibition highlights how it re-shaped the face of the city

A new exhibition opens next week at the Museum of the City of New York to mark the 50th anniversary of the city's ground-breaking Landmarks Law.

Titled "Saving Place," the exhibition looks at the events leading up to its passage and how preservation has created dynamic neighborhoods that blend old and new.

The law's adoption ended decades of hard-fought efforts to save New York City's historic character. The destruction of the old Pennsylvania Station in the early 1960s was among the major catalysts for the law.

Today, the city has 33,000 landmarked buildings, 135 historic districts, 117 interiors and 10 scenic landmarks.

Famous places given such designation include Radio City Music Hall, Federal Hall, Brooklyn Botanical Garden, the New York Stock Exchange and Coney Island's Parachute Jump.