Fighting to Be Tallest The race was on Who could build the tallest building in the world Two friends John J Raskob and Alfred E Smith thought they could Raskob at left and Smith stand beside a model of the Empire State Building
The first design for the Empire State Building included a landing area for dirigibles or airships Raskob and Smith decided to build the Empire State Building in New York City They hired planners and builders
A man named Walter P Chrysler had the same idea He had New York’s Chrysler Building built in 1930 It is almost 1,050 feet 320 meters tall For less than one year the Chrysler Building was the tallest building in the world
The following year the Empire State Building was finished It opened on May 1 1931 It was the tallest building in the world Lots of people gathered for the grand opening of the Empire State Building on May 1 1931
