Skyscraper Appreciation Day was created to honor the mastermind behind the Chrysler Building, William Van Alen, and to celebrate this architectural feat! Here is some history and fun facts about skyscrapers:

A Bit of Skyscraper History

The building of skyscrapers was brought on by the development of steel production and an increase in urban commerce. The first skyscrapers were built in the 1880s, and were originally very small in comparison, only around 10 stories. Originally, skyscrapers relied on thick, masonry walls to keep them upright, but architects soon figured out to use wrought-iron and cast-iron, allowing them to support more weight, and therefore have more floors.

As time passed, there was an increasing demand to use skyscrapers as housing, which then led for more artistic appeal. Greek architecture was used as inspiration for some of them, as well as Gothic, neoclassical, and the art deco styles. Recently, designs have also been motivated by the need to conserve energy.

For more information about skyscrapers, visit the website for the Skyscraper Museum!

Cool Facts About Skyscrapers!

• They were created for population control. Eventually, cities started to run out of room to put people, so instead of building out, they built up!

• To be a skyscraper, a building has to have at least 40 floors.

• Buildings that are taller than 984 ft are ‘Supertall,’ and buildings above 1,969 ft are called ‘Megatall.’

• Hong Kong has the most skyscrapers, with 308 of them.

• For more cool facts, visit this link!

How to Celebrate National Skyscraper Day:

• Learn more about skyscrapers! There are lots of websites that have facts on their history and engineering.

• Visit a nearby skyscraper and admire the architectural beauty (or just look online at all the fancy skyscrapers that Corpus doesn’t have)!