Empire State Building

Welcome back to the series related to US architecture!

From the previous post you already know some basic facts about the architecture of the Pre-Columbian era, so let's now move on to the  'real' American architecture. When it comes to the typical architecture of the States, instead of overburdening you with historical overviews and some boring data, I will just be choosing one particular building for each post separately. Let's then start with one of the most famous and recognizable buildings of the U.S.A - the Empire State Building.

The Empire State Building

The Empire State Building (ESB) is a 102-story skyscraper. It is located in New York City, on Fifth Avenue. It can be either 381 m high (when we look at the end of its roof) or 443 m high (when we include its antenna). It was designed in Art Deco style and is now considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. It is also considered to be an American cultural icon. It is a constitute of the National Historic Landmark list and in 2007 was ranked number one on the AIA's List of America's Favorite Architecture.

The Empire State Building was designed in just two weeks by William F. Lamb. The construction works on the site of the building started on March 17, 1930 and finished on April 11, 1931. The construction works were moving on incredibly quickly and involved approximately 3,500 workers, which were mostly immigrants from Europe or Indians. 

Workers on the construction of ESB

Construction site

A worker on the construction site (The Chrysler Building is visible in the background)

The main reason for such an immense pace of construction was the competition between developers, each of whom wanted to built the tallest skyscraper in the States. Two other buildings which were also trying to gain this title were The Chrysler Building and 40 Wall Street (which is also known as The Trump Building). The construction having been finished, the Empire State Building became the tallest building in the NYC. It was only surpassed by the World Trade Center (417 m), which opened in 1973, however the Empire State Building regained the title after the September 11, 2001 attacks in which WTC towers were destroyed. In April 2013 the new One World Trade Center again surpassed it and the Empire State Building is no longer the highest building of the States.

Today, the Empire State Building functions mostly as an office building for thousands of workers. Also, some TV and radio stations have installed transmitters on its roof and transmit their programs via these devices. 

The ESB is also one of the most popular tourist attractions in NYC, because the panoramic view on NYC from its top is just incredible and breathtaking. 

Panoramic view from the Empire State Building

Some interesting facts:

- ESB is very ecological, its lighting meets eco-friendly standards

- many people choose the ESB to commit suicide by throwing themselves off its roof

- it is now the 3rd tallest building in New York, the 5th in the US, and the 25th in the world

Thank you for reading and have a nice week!