History of Empire State Building Construction

Two similar skyscrapers appeared in New York at about the same time. The Chrysler Building appeared first. The building has 77 floors. It was the highest structure in New York until the Empire State Building was built. For 39 years, from 1931 to 1970 it used to be the tallest building in the whole world. Thus it became one of the most popular symbols of the USA. This building is the most conclusive confirmation of human development and the greatest contributions of humankind. Anyone who sees it for the first time (especially in the 1930’s) is always wondering how such magnificent construction could have been created by a man. And it still remains the 50th tallest building in the world.

Nowadays, working on such constructions in NYC, you have to be trained by an approved provider. Stay safe, take a fall prevention online course, and be prepared for the work. It will help you and your co-workers to get back home safely at the end of the day.

Top 10 facts about Empire State Building

1. Excavation works on the site started on 22^nd of January, 1930, and the construction of the tower itself started on 17^th March.
2. The building site had over 3400 workers – mainly emigrants from Europe. Additionally, several hundred construction workers were Indians from the Mohawk tribe.
3. Building construction lasted for 410 days. The tempo of construction was 4 floors per week. According to the Empire State Building newsletter, “This is the fastest construction of a skyscraper to date – from project to construction.”
4. The opening of Empire State happened on May 1, 1931, when U.S. President Herbert Hoover switched on a building’s lights by pushing a special button in Congress.
5. At first, the use of a spire as a docking station for zeppelins was expected. Empire State Building’s 102nd floor was a mooring platform with lift gangways on an airship. Nevertheless, the idea of a mooring mast was declared insolvent by construction management due to security concerns.
6. Empire State weighs more than 331 000 tons and, moreover, there are 6 500 windows and 73 elevators in it. To get to the top floor, you should take two different elevators (one goes to 86, and other one from 86 to 102).
7. Due to the fact that workers were working without any PPE (Personal Protective Equipment), five of them died.
8. Staff today should not have been permitted to work in the NYC building industry without any fall safety or special approval of working at height. In order to get approval workers should pass safety courses.
9. Empire State building is a popular place for suicidals. Since the day it was opened, there have been more than 30 suicides committed there, including Evelyn McHale, whose death was dubbed the “the most beautiful suicide” by Time magazine.  She jumped off the observation deck and fell from the 86th floor of the building. Despite the severe blow, she looked like a living, but dormant. Photographer Robert K. Wiles took a photograph in few minutes after her death. It inspired Andy Warhol to create a series of prints entitled “Fallen Body”.
10. On a foggy morning, a pilot crashed into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building. The plane punched a hole in the wall 18 feet wide and 20 feet high. Fortunately, the building was renovated, but it costed $ 1 million. In the 1960s this incident motivated World Trade Center architects to consider one of the twin towers as the scenario of an accidental hit of a Boeing 707.