Empire State Building
Built during the Great Depression in 1930 to 1931, the Empire State Building was and still is considered the skyline symbol of New York City. For years the building was the tallest skyscraper in the world and was a symbol of confidence.
In 1799, the City of New York sold a virgin tract of land to John Thompson for $2,600; Mr. Thompson farmed the land until 1825 and then sold the farm to Charles Lawton for $10,000. Two years later, William B. Astor bought the farm for $20,500 as an investment and, in 1859, his brother, John Jacob Astor, Jr., erected a mansion on the northwest corner of the property. Three years later, William B. built his own mansion on the southwest corner. In 1893, William Waldorf Astor, son of John Jacob Astor, Jr., razed his inherited mansion and erected the Waldorf Hotel in its place. And four years later, Mrs. William Backhouse Astor, aunt of John Jacob, Jr., allowed her mansion to be razed and the Astoria Hotel to be erected. The new complex was known as the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The Hotel was sold to Bethlehem Engineering Corporation in 1928, for an estimated $20 million. In 1929, the Empire State, Inc. was formed and the property purchased from the Bethlehem Engineering Corporation. A year later the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel was torn down and construction for Empire State Building was begun.
With the invention of steel frames and their use in the construction of bridges, designers started constructing the skeleton of tall buildings with steel beams to support the building’s weight. This new construction method started in Chicago in 1884, when Louis Sullivan designed and built a 10-story Home Life Insurance Building. When the Empire State Building was being built on the corner of 5th Avenue and 34th Street in Manhattan, it was in competition with other buildings to be the tallest building, specifically those being built by Walter Chrysler of Chrysler Corp. and John Jakob Raskob creator of General Motors.
The Empire State Building was designed by the architectural firm Shreve, Lamb & Harmon Associates and built by Starrett Brothers & Eken, Inc. It was completed in May of 1931, costing a total of $24,718,000 for the building alone due to the onset of the Depression (the property, which was about two acres, cost $16,230,900). This was half the amount anticipated. Excavation began on January 22, 1930, even though the demolition of the old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel was not yet completed. Construction started two months later on March 17. Framework rose at a rate of 4 ½ stories per week, and, on September 17 of the same year, the cornerstone was laid by the former governor of New York, Alfred E. Smith.
Stone cladding of Indiana limestone and granite, trimmed with aluminum and chrome-nickel steel were the materials used on the exterior from the 6th floor to the top of the building. On the interior lobby ceiling, the elevators and the office floor corridors, marble, imported from France, Italy, Belgium and Germany, was used. The masonry was completed on November 13, 1930.
The building was built with four facades in low-key Art Deco style; the 60 foot setbacks were to emphasize the tower, which was intended as a mooring dock for air blimps. "With a wind of 110 miles per hour, the [b]uilding gives 1.48 inches. Movement off center is never greater than one quarter inch, thus measurable movement is only one half inch, one quarter inch on either side." (Empire State Building Comp., d)
Seven million man-hours were required to build the building; the time it took was 1 year and 45 days, which included Sundays and holidays. During the peak building periods, the work force was made up of approximately 3,400 men. Unfortunately, five people died during its construction.
"Lewis Hine was commissioned to photograph the construction of the building in 1930. Taking many of the risks the construction workers endured, Hine photographed the workers in precarious positions while they secured the iron and steel framework for the structure. In order to obtain the best vantage points, Hine was swung out in a specially designed basket 1,000 feet above Fifth Avenue." (Troncale)
President Herbert Hoover officially opened the Empire State Building on May 1, 1931, by pressed a button in Washington, D.C. turning on the building’s lights. Unfortunately, the building was largely vacant in its early years. But tourism accounted for much of its income and the building always was and will be a main attraction to many of the world’s renowned political and entertainment figures, such as Fidel Castro, Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, The Dutchess of York, Nikita Krushchev, King of Siam and others. The annual attendance is approximately 2.8 million visitors.
The Empire State Building is located at 350 Fifth Avenue and is a commercial skyscraper with over 900 tenants. The building is 102 stories high (1860 steps from street level) with a total height of 1454 feet. The 86th Floor Observatory is 1050 feet up and the 102nd Floor Observatory is 1224 feet. On a clear day, one can see five states from the observatory floors. In 1950, a television antenna was placed on top of the building adding another 204 feet of height. The foundation is 55 feet below the ground with the basement only being 35 feet below. The lobby is 47 feet above sea level.
Some interesting events have happened since the building was built. "A dirigible mast, now the base of the TV tower, was part of the original construction of the Building. One attempt to moor a privately owned blimp was successful for three minutes. But during a second attempt, in September 1931, a Navy Blimp was almost upended and nearly swept away celebrities attending the historic affair, while the water ballast drenched pedestrians several blocks away. The mooring mast idea was ultimately abandoned." (Empire State Building Comp., d). In July of 1945 at the end of World War II, an Army Air Corps B-25 twin-engine bomber crashed into the 79th floor due to fog, killing 14 people and causing $1 million worth of damage. The structural integrity of building was unaffected. The building has 73 elevators, including six freight elevators, operating at speeds from 600 to 1400 feet per minute; at one time one of the elevators had problems that caused it to plunge 1000 feet to the bottom. The operator survived.
The first light to shine atop the Empire State Building was installed in 1932. It was a search light beacon, able to shine 50 miles, declaring Franklin D. Roosevelt president of United States upon election. In 1956, "revolving beacons, the ‘Freedom Lights,’ were installed. The ‘Freedom Lights,’ four beacons each five feet in diameter and weighing one ton, were installed 1,095 feet above the streets to symbolize not only a welcome to this country but also the unlimited opportunities in America and the hopes and prayers of the American people for peace." (Empire State Building Comp., c). Light from these beacons could be seen 300 miles from the air and 80 miles on land. For the beginning of the 1964’s World’s Fair, the top 30 floors of the building were illuminated by floodlights making the building a landmark at night. For America’s Bicentennial the tower was lit in red, white and blue. This colored lighting was introduced by Douglas Leigh. In 1977, when the Yankees won the World Series, the building was lit up by blue and white flashing lights. By this time the building had a wider range of colors to choose from in its lighting. Now "204 fixtures, utilizing metal halide lamps, plus 310 fluorescent lamps, light the building from the 72nd floor to the base of the TV antenna." (Empire State Building Comp., c) Over these lamps are fitted plastic gels and colored plastic sleeves for national holidays and events of interest. During foggy nights in the Spring and Autumn months, lights that illuminate the building are turned off so as not to confuse migrating birds, causing them to fly into the building.
On May 18, 1981, the Empire State Building was declared a Landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and on October 23rd, 1986, it was recognized as a National Historic Landmark by the National Parks Services and the I.S. Department of the Interior. And the building was listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places on December 20, 1982.
--------
Columbia University Press. "Empire State Building." [http://www.encyclopedia.com/articles/04097.html]. 1994.
Daniel’s Manhattan Architecture. [daniel@commkey.net]. "Empire State Building." [http://users.commkey.net/daniel/empire.htm]. 2000.
"Empire State Building." [http://www.flick.com/~x/400/esb.html].
Empire State Building Company.
Epinions, Inc. "Empire State Building." [http://www.epinions.com/trvl-attract-Empire_State_Building_3.html]. 2000.
Kevin Matthews and Artifice,Inc. [http://www.greatbuildings.com/cgi-bin/suggestion.cgi?buildings/Empire_State_Building.html]. "Empire State Building." [http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Empire_State_Building.html]. 1994-99.
Knowledge Adventure, Inc. "Empire State Building: Scraping The Sky." [http://www.letsfindout.com/subjects/america/empire.html]. 1998.
Troncale, Anthony T. "Facts about the Empire State Building"/"The Miriam & Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection." [http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/spe/art/photo/hinex/empire/about.html]. 1996.
World Federation of Great Towers. "Statistics at a Glance."/"Empire State Building; New York, United States of America." [http://www.great-towers.com/Towers/newyork.htm].
Fred J. Becker, Architect
Back