The Sky is The Limit — the History of Early Skyscrapers
Trebbi Polska
Project Management | Development & Bank Monitoring | Technical Due Diligence | Claims & Expertise
Reading time: 5 min
To celebrate World’s Skyscraper Day, let’s take a closer look at the early skyscraper, one of man’s most ingenious inventions.?
Is it possible that humankind always longed to literally “touch the sky”, pushing the limits of engineering from the very beginning? According to the Book of Genesis, our early attempts weren’t so successful. The Babylonians set out to build a mighty tower “with its top in the heavens”. But God didn’t like the idea very much, and who can blame Him - we all value our privacy. As it happens, God decided that the only way to get rid of those insufferable architects and construction workers was to confuse their language, so they could no longer understand one another. But have you ever spent some time in one room with architects, investors, and contractors? They truly seem to speak different languages sometimes.?
Let’s cut to the chase and explore the history of skyscrapers as we know them today. Fast-forward to the 19th?century, and things seem to start taking shape, but this time, we aren’t just building castles in the air (pun very much intended). The Age of Industrial Revolution saw a dramatic change in our way of living due to processes such as industrialisation and urbanisation. Major American cities experienced rapid population growth, but they struggled to contain all of the newcomers. What is more, developers had to deal with shortages of land, which due to colonial legal processes was divided into small parcels. At this time, the US economy was recovering from the Civil War, and growing businesses fuelled the demand for office space in downtown areas.?
New technologies were flooding the market as a surging number of inventions was registered yearly at the patent offices. As we know, American pragmatism rarely sleeps, and the invention of the modern skyscraper came at just the right time. Late 19th-century engineers endeavoured to supply innovations which would allow the buildings to reach unknown-before heights and satisfy the needs of the bustling commercial centres. Firstly, the hydraulic elevator was introduced in the 1870s, and very quickly, in the 1880s, it was outshined by the electric elevator which was better suited to operate in taller buildings. Secondly, mass production of iron led to the popularisation of iron-frame building technology, which revolutionised engineering, as internal metal frames could support thinner walls and bigger windows.?
Undoubtedly, the first skyscrapers of New York and Chicago differ greatly from the glistening glass towers of our modern urban centres, but they paved the way for what was yet to come.?One can’t talk about the earliest skyscrapers and engineering innovations without mentioning Louis Henry Sullivan (1856-1924), by some called “the father of the American skyscraper”. Sullivan was a representative of the Chicago school of architecture, and he fully embraced new technologies. He implemented them in his famous designs, including the Guaranty Building, formerly known as the Prudential building in Buffalo, New York.??
However,?it is generally believed that William Le Baron Jenney designed the first skyscraper in 1884 – The Home Insurance Building in Chicago. Making use of the cutting-edge metal frame and masonry cladding construction, Jenney was able to erect a ten-stories high building. Jenney’s successors took over from there and dared to go much further. Here are some of the notable names which, I’m sure, can be effortlessly woven into any cocktail party small talk.?
领英推荐
New York, 1889. Architect George Browne Post oversees the construction of The World Building, also known as the Pulitzer Building. Post was commissioned for one of the leading newspapers of the time,?New York World. This skyscraper design made use of a hybrid structure comprising steel framing and exterior masonry walls which also offered support.??Reaching 310 feet (94m), it challenged the spire of New York’s Trinity Church.??
Chicago, 1892.??Architects Burnham and Root get together to work on the Masonic Temple (don’t you just love that name). Truth be told,??as Scientific American reported in 1894, “[i]n spite of its name, it is proudly claimed to be the ‘highest commercial building in the world.’ In it we find exemplified the union of Freemasonry and commerce, a four and one-half million dollar building supplying beautiful halls and parlors for Masonic rite, as well as an unequaled collection of business offices.”?Indeed, at twenty-two stories and 302 feet (92m), it must have been a striking sight for late-19-century onlookers.??
But enough of the dry facts, let’s get down to one of the most gripping stories from early skyscraper history. Did you know that in the 1930s, New York became the battleground for the World’s tallest building? The papers called it “the Race into the Sky”, and believe it or not, this competition got truly acrimonious. The main competitors in this lofty race were the Chrysler Building designed by architect William Van Alen, and Empire State Building envisioned by Van Alen’s ex-business partner, Harold Craig Severance. Yep, the tension was real. This rivalry led to the buildings rising higher and higher from their original plans. Both skyscrapers, however, were executed in the awe-inspiring Art Deco style.?
The Chrysler Building was commissioned to house the headquarters of?Chrysler Corporation – a well-known car manufacturer. Initially, Van Alen’s contract entailed a 40-storey building, but later the design was revised many times. More and more floors were added at a truly impressive speed. On average, 4 floors were built per week until the building reached?68 stories and a height of 808 feet (246 m).?What was Severance doing at that time? I’d like to imagine him sitting in his office, grinding his teeth, and devising a master plan to do Van Alen dirty. He was determined that his building should be taller than Van Alen’s. Thus, he added two more stories to his original design, bringing the Empire State Building to 840 feet (256 m) and later even higher.?
Van Alen, however, had one more trick up his sleeve and a cunning one at that. Under a veil of secrecy, he installed a 125-foot spire to add a flourish to his design.?This meant that upon its completion on May 27, 1930, the Chrysler Building?was proclaimed the tallest building in the World, rising to 1,046 feet (319 m). Yet it couldn’t bask in its glory for very long – in fact, just 11 months. By then, the Empire??State Building reached 1,050 feet (320 m). A new player on the scene, businessman John Raskob who represented the investor, wasn’t taking any chances. He suspected that Chrysler might still try to "pull a trick like hiding a rod in the spire and then sticking it up at the last minute”. After final alterations to the design, the roof of the Empire State Building reached 1,250 feet (380 m). When the building was completed on May 1931, it was, without a shadow of a doubt, the tallest building in the World. What is more, it managed to hold the title until the completion of the World Trade Center towers in 1973.??
So to wrap this up: how to celebrate in style and make each September 3 truly special? Why not get inspired by the architects at the 1931 Beaux-Arts Ball and dress up as one of your favourite skyscrapers, donning a Chrysler spire hat simply to amaze everyone around you??
Sources: