The Home Insurance Building is considered the world's first skyscraper. It was a 10-story building located in Chicago, Illinois, in the heart of downtown. Although the Home Insurance Building did not soar into the sky like today's skyscrapers, its structure was groundbreaking
The architect and engineer for the building was William Le Baron Jenney. He studied architecture and engineering at l'Ecole Centrale des Arts et
Manufactures in Paris. It was the same school attended by Gustave Eiffel, the famed designer of the Eiffel Tower. Jenney was the first to include steel into a
building's skeleton for support. Steel had only a third of the weight of stone, which was generally used for building frames. Jenney's structure would
eventually help buildings grow upward. It would also help create more floor space in an area where space was compressed.
After the development of the skyscraper, more buildings began to populate the skyline. They appeared in big cities around the world where land was a
limited resource. Such cities, like New York and London, began to build their own skyscrapers. One of the most famous buildings still standing is the Empire
State Building in New York. It was built in 1931, and for 40 years, it was the tallest building in the world at 102 stories. Now, Burj Khalifa in Dubai holds the
title as the tallest structure in the world. It towers over the city with 160 stories.
Without the construction of the Home Insurance Building, city life would be drastically different. It created a shift in architecture. This shift changed
architecture around the world.
1
Select the correct answer.
Which of the following notes would be most relevant if you were researching the structure of skyscrapers?
OA. Materials made from steel are lighter than stone.
OB. The height of skyscrapers became popular in big cities.
OC. Skyscrapers focused on bringing business into cities.
OD. A degree in engineering and architecture is required.