Woolworth Building
Woolworth Building
Woolworth Building je se svými 57 patry jedním z nejstarších a nejznámějších mrakodrapů v New York City. Více než devadesát let po svém dostavění je stále mezi padesáti nejvyššími budovami USA a mezi dvacítkou nejvyšších budov v New York City. Budova je od roku 1966 evidována jako National Historic Landmark.
Architektura
Woolworth Building byl postaven v novogotickém stylu architektem Cassem Gilbertem, kterého si objednal Frank Woolworth v roce 1910, aby navrh nové sídlo společnosti na Broadwayi, mezi Park Place a Barclay Street na Lower Manhattan, naproti radnici. Původně byla plánována výška 625 stop (190.5 m), dle tehdejších zákonů pro danou oblast, ale budova byla nakonec zvýšena až na 792 stop (241 m). Stavba stála $13,500,000 a Woolworth platil v hotovosti. On completion, the Woolworth building overtook the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower as the world's tallest building; it opened on April 24, 1913.
With splendor and a resemblance to European Gothic cathedrals, the structure was labeled the Cathedral of Commerce by the Reverend S. Parkes Cadman during the opening ceremony. It remained the tallest building in the world until the construction of 40 Wall Street and the Chrysler Building in 1930; an observation deck on the 58th floor attracted visitors until 1945.
The building's tower, flush with the main frontage on Broadway, is raised on a block base with a narrow interior court for light. The exterior decoration was cast in limestone-colored, glazed architectural terra-cotta panels. Strongly articulated piers, carried—without interrupting cornices—right to the pyramidal cap, give the building its upward thrust. The Gothic detailing concentrated at the highly visible top is massively scaled, able to be read from the street level several hundred feet below. The ornate, cruciform lobby has a vaulted ceiling, mosaics, and sculpted caricatures that include Gilbert and Woolworth. Woolworth's private office, revetted in marble in French Empire style, is preserved.
Engineers Gunvald Aus and Kort Berle designed the steel frame, supported on massive caissons that penetrate to the bedrock. The high-speed elevators were innovative, and the building's high office-to-elevator ratio made the structure profitable. Tenants included the Irving Trust bank and Columbia Records, which housed a recording studio in the building.
Lower Manhattan
- Wall Street
- Woolworth Building
- World Trade Center
