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Empire State Building

The Empire State Building is a skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is 1,454 feet (443 m) tall and has 102 floors.[1][2] Named after the popular nickname for New York, the Empire State,[3] it is one of the most famous landmarks in the US.[4][5] When the Empire State Building opened on May 1, 1931, it was the world's tallest building.

Empire State Building
Record height
Tallest in the world from 1931 to 1970[I]
Preceded byChrysler Building
Surpassed byWorld Trade Center (North Tower)
General information
LocationMidtown Manhattan, New York City, New York
CountryUnited States
Construction started1930
Completed1931
Height
Antenna spire1,454 feet (443 m)
Technical details
Floor count102
Elevators73

History

Designed by the architects named Shreve, Lamb & Harmon Associates,[6][3] it was built at a time when many people were trying to make the world's tallest building, but the Empire State Building won.[7][8] The old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel was destroyed so that the Empire State Building could be built.[9] The Empire State Building was completed in 410 days. It opened on May 1, 1931, when United States President Herbert Hoover pushed a button in Washington, D.C. to turn on the lights.[10][11][12] The Empire State Building's design was based on the 21-story Reynolds Building in Winston-Salem, built in 1929.[3] In the 1930s, the Empire State Building was called the "Empty State Building" because not many people worked in the building.[13]

The Empire State Building became the tallest building in New York City and the world until the first World Trade Center towers passed it in 1970. When these towers were brought down in the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Empire State Building was again the tallest building in New York.[14][15] It stopped being New York's tallest building in 2012 when the new One World Trade Center was built.[16]

On Saturday, July 28, 1945, a plane crashed into the building due to heavy fog and started a fire, but the building was only damaged a little. 14 people (3 in the plane) were killed in the accident.[17][18]

On January 24, 2000, an elevator cable snapped, causing one of the building's elevators to crash from the 44th floor, stopping on the 4th floor. Both passengers in the elevator were only slightly injured.

Building design

The Empire State Building is at 350 Fifth Avenue. The building has its own ZIP code, 10118.[19][20] There is a big Art Deco lobby with shops at Fifth Avenue.[21] People can also go to a lobby on 34th Street.[22] The Empire State Building has 73 elevators.[23]

The 80th, 86th, and 102nd floors have places where people can look at the city from high above.[24][25] There is a steel mast on the top of the Empire State Building. The builders wanted to have an airship station on the roof, but the station was not opened. Today, people cannot go to the mast.[26][27][28] The mast has a radio transmitter.[29] The Empire State Building also lights up at night.[30]

Photos

Empire State Building Media

  • The five-story base as seen from Fifth Avenue, with the main entrance at center. The Empire State Building sets back significantly above the base.

  • Empire State Building, 2013

  • Lights representing the Democratic and Republican parties as results are tabulated in the 2012 presidential election

  • The Empire State Building is bathed annually in rainbow-colored lighting during the Pride Month of June, evoking the international LGBT icon, as seen in this 2015 image.

  • One of several elevator lobbies

  • Fifth Avenue lobby of the Empire State Building, looking west on New Year's Day 2020

  • Aluminum relief of the building

  • 80th floor observation deck

  • Antennas for broadcast stations located at the top of the building

  • The Waldorf-Astoria in 1901

Related pages

References

  1. ↑ Willis & Friedman 1998, p. 14.
  2. ↑ "Empire State Building" The Skyscraper Center Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat website
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Al-Kodmany 2017, p. 72.
  4. ↑ "Empire State Building is America's Favorite". Bloomberg. February 9, 2007. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  5. ↑ Young, William H.; Young, Nancy K. (2007). The Great Depression in America: A Cultural Encyclopedia. The Great Depression in America: A Cultural Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press. pp. 144–145. ISBN 978-0-313-33522-8. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  6. ↑ Langmead 2009, p. 89.
  7. ↑ "Smith Skyscraper Has a Novel Design; Setbacks of the Empire State Building Will Begin With the Sixth Story". The New York Times. 1930. ISSN 0362-4331 . https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1930/01/08/94228622.pdf. Retrieved December 8, 2017. 
  8. ↑ Langmead 2009, p. 81.
  9. ↑ "Razing Of Waldorf Started By Smith; Ceremony on Roof Marks the Beginning of Demolition of Historic Hotel". The New York Times. October 2, 1929. ISSN 0362-4331 . https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1929/10/02/94184775.pdf. Retrieved October 22, 2017. 
  10. ↑ Langmead 2009, p. 87.
  11. ↑ Tauranac 2014, pp. 227–228.
  12. ↑ "Empire State Tower, Tallest In World, Is Opened By Hoover; The Highest Structure Raised By The Hand Of Man". The New York Times. May 2, 1931. ISSN 0362-4331 . https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1931/05/02/102231255.pdf. Retrieved October 23, 2017. 
  13. ↑ See: . Archived from the original on October 19, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20101019094149/http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/north-america/united-states/new-york/new-york-city/attractions.html. Retrieved October 11, 2010. 
  14. ↑ "World Trade Center tower surpasses Empire State". CBS News. April 30, 2012. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
  15. ↑ Dunlap, David W. (April 30, 2012). "1 World Trade Center Will Reclaim the Sky in Lower Manhattan". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
  16. ↑ "It's official: 1 WTC is New York's new tallest building". Daily News (New York). April 30, 2012. https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/official-1-wtc-new-york-new-tallest-building-article-1.1069925. Retrieved April 11, 2020. 
  17. ↑ "Upper floors of tallest building blazing inferno". UPI. December 31, 1969. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Crash Fire Ruins Sculptor's Studio; Photo-diagram Of The Plane Crash". The New York Times. July 29, 1945. ISSN 0362-4331 . https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1945/07/29/284668382.pdf. Retrieved October 24, 2017. 
  19. ↑ Verrill, Courtney (May 1, 2016). "14 weird facts that you probably didn't know about the Empire State Building". Business Insider. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
  20. ↑ "The plane crash of '45, more Empire State Building secrets". am New York. Newsday. April 25, 2016. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
  21. ↑ Landmarks Preservation Commission 1981.
  22. ↑ "New York's Empire State Building Gets a Surprising Upgrade". 23 August 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  23. ↑ Taranath 2016, p. 459.
  24. ↑ Ricciulli, Valeria (December 2, 2019). "Empire State Building completes $165M revamp with new observatory". Curbed NY. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  25. ↑ "Empire State Building's 80th floor renovations offer new visitor experience". CBS News. November 27, 2019. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  26. ↑ Tauranac 2014, p. 186.
  27. ↑ Langmead 2009, p. 82.
  28. ↑ Rothstein, Edward (July 15, 2011). "A View Inside King Kong's Perch". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/16/arts/design/empire-state-buildings-new-exhibition-review.html. Retrieved May 27, 2013. }
  29. ↑ Kinney, Harrison; Gill, Brendan (April 1, 1953). "The Talk of the Town". The New Yorker: 19. http://archives.newyorker.com/?i=1953-04-11#folio=018. 
  30. ↑ Melina, Remy (August 24, 2010). "What Do the Empire State Building's Lights Mean?". Live Science. Retrieved October 26, 2017.

Books

Other websites

  Wikivoyage has a travel guide about: Empire State Building
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