THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

THE CONSTRUCTION OF
THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

Empire State Building: Made by Hand

Cable Connection

The 102-story Art Deco tower in Midtown Manhattan known as the Empire State Building was the tallest building in the world from its completion on May 1, 1931, until the World Trade Center eclipsed it in 1972. It was the product of the labor of 3,400 men.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

A Derrick Gang at Work

Most of the men who worked on the building were European immigrants. They were joined by hundreds of Mohawk iron workers, many from a reserve near Montreal.

Photo: George Eastman House/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1930

Corner Riveters Hold Steady

Two construction workers rivet on the edge of a steel girder on the mooring mast of the Empire State Building in 1931.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Triangular View From a Rival

A view of the uncompleted Empire State Building from the Chrysler Building. The Chrysler Buidling, which is 1,047 feet tall, was the tallest building in the world for 11 months before being surpassed by the ESB.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

On the Level

An engineer makes sure everything's on the level as the Empire State Building is constructed. In a wind of 110 miles an hour, the building moves only about a quarter inch on either side.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Empire State Pulley

A worker lifts an object with a pulley. The building houses 2,500,000 feet of electrical wire, and some 9,000 faucets

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Made by Hand

Working on the Mooring Mast

Workmen ready themselves for more construction on the mooring mast. On a clear day, you can see five states from the top of the building.

Photo: George Eastman House/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1930

Construction Team From Above

A construction team establishes a corner joint of the mooring mast. At one time, there were 255 carpenters, 290 bricklayers, 384 brick laborers, 107 derrick men, 285 steel men, 249 elevator installers, 105 electricians, 192 plumbers, 194 heating and ventilating men, and trade specialists, inspectors, checkers, foremen, clerks, and water boys at work on the building.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Wrenching Work

A worker uses a wrench on the edge of a beam high above the city, with the Chrysler Building in the background. It took 10 million bricks and 200,000 cubic feet of Indiana limestone to build the ESB.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Holding on for Dear Life

A worker clutches onto a steel girder high above the city. Five men died accidentally during construction: one struck by a truck; another who fell down an elevator shaft; a third hit by a hoist; a fourth in a blast area; and a fifth who fell off a scaffold, according to records. More than 30 people committed suicide by jumping off the building over the years.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Riveting View

Workers rivet a steel girder on top of the mooring mast. The building is struck by lightning about 100 times a year.

Photo: Lewis W. Hine/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1931

Celebrating the Completion of the Iron Work

Construction workers celebrate the completion of the iron work in 1930. When the building was fully complete on May 1, 1931, President Herbert Hoover pressed a button in Washington, D.C., that turned on the building's lights.

Photo: FPG/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1930

Empire State Night

The Empire State Building glows in 1932. When it opened, the Great Depression had just begun, and the ESB struggled to find renters. Now it's the second-biggest office complex in the U.S., with 21,000 workers and its own ZIP code.

Photo: Fox Photos/Getty Images

Jan 01, 1932

Crash by a U.S. Army B-25 bomber on July 28, 1945
On the foggy morning of Saturday, July 28, 1945, Lt. Colonel William Smith was piloting a U.S. Army B-25 bomber through New York City. He was on his way to Newark Airport to pick up his commanding officer, but for some reason he showed up over LaGuardia Airport and asked for a weather report. Because of the poor visibility, the LaGuardia tower wanted to him to land, but Smith requested and received permission from the military to continue on to Newark. The last transmission from the LaGuardia tower to the plane was a foreboding warning: "From where I'm sitting, I can't see the top of the Empire State Building."
Confronted with dense fog, Smith dropped the bomber low to regain visibility, where he found himself in the middle of Manhattan, surrounded by skyscrapers. At first, the bomber was headed directly for the New York Central Building but at the last minute, Smith was able to bank west and miss it. Unfortunately, this put him in line for another skyscraper. Smith managed to miss several skyscrapers until he was headed for the Empire State Building. At the last minute, Smith tried to get the bomber to climb and twist away, but it was too late. The Crash
At 9:49 a.m., the ten-ton, B-25 bomber smashed into the north side of the Empire State Building. The majority of the plane hit the 79th floor, creating a hole in the building eighteen feet wide and twenty feet high. The plane's high-octane fuel exploded, hurtling flames down the side of the building and inside through hallways and stairwells all the way down to the 75th floor
The plane crash killed 14 people (11 office workers and the three crewmen) plus injured 26 others. Though the integrity of the Empire State Building was not affected, the cost of the damage done by the crash was $1 million.


The Empire State Building Today.