The Rise of Skyscrapers - Wyatt
Wyatt Quillin
Mr, Roddy
IHSS
29 April 2022
The Rise of Skyscrapers
The first skyscraper ever built was in 1885 in Chicago. It was called the Life Home Insurance building, it was only 10 stories tall and was completely supported by a steel frame. From here, skyscrapers only started to get taller and more sophisticated. As technology improved, stronger frames could be built, resulting in taller skyscrapers. These massive towers were becoming more popular not just for their conservative use of horizontal space, but for their status. As cities were becoming more urbanized, space was becoming less and less of a resource. Because of this, builders started taking to building vertically to adapt to the denser areas. With the growing urban population, real estate prices started to increase, making skyscrapers more desirable as they could pack a lot more people in for a lot less space. Because these buildings were so impressive, businesses began using them as symbols of status and power. An example of an office building known for its architecture and status is the Chrysler building. It was built in 1928 and is still used today as office space. One of the biggest breakthroughs in technology that made skyscrapers possible was the elevator. The first elevator was created by Elisha Graves Otis in the mid 1800s which allowed skyscrapers to climb to the heights they sit at now. Skyscrapers are now often associated with city centers or dense urban areas because almost every modern metropolis has a "downtown" filled with them. Skyscrapers have become a staple of urban cities because of their many uses, and they only seem to be getting taller and taller.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Elisha-Otis
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-ushistory2os2xmaster/chapter/urbanization-and-its-challenges/
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