Construction on the Empire State Building began in 1930 and was completed in a record one year and 45 days - that's fast! The building's framework was constructed using a method called "fast tracking", where the steel framework was built before the exterior walls were even complete. It was a risky move, but it paid off in the end!
The building's exterior is made up of limestone and granite, with a distinctive Art Deco style that's hard to miss. The exterior walls are covered in 200,000 cubic feet of limestone and 60,000 cubic feet of granite - that's a lot of stone! The building's symmetrical design is also pretty cool, with a central tower that's flanked by two wings.
The Empire State Building's elevator system is also worth talking about - it's a complex network of 73 elevators that can transport 10,000 people per hour! The building's original elevators were even operated by human elevator operators, who would manually control the elevators using a system of levers and pulleys. It's a quirky piece of history that's still fascinating today!
Empire State Building Construction 13 Amazing Photos Of The
