40 Wall Street

Now known as The Trump Building, the magnificent structure at 40 Wall Street was once in a race to be the Tallest Building in the World.

The History of 40 Wall Street

In 1928, developer 

George Ohrstrom began amassing parcels of land so that he could realize his dream of building the world's tallest skyscraper. This commercial building was to be the headquarters for the Bank of Manhattan Trust Company and would be designed by H. Craig Severance, whose former partner William Van Alen was - at the same time - working on plans for the famed Chrysler Building.

High Line

The High Line is a 1.45 miles (2.23 km) long elevated park, 30ft (9m) above the ground. It was originally built in the 1930s as an elevated railroad along the

Tracks on the High Line

West Side of Manhattan.

An Elevated Railroad

In the 1860s a railroad was built along the sparsely populated west side of Manhattan, known as the West Side Line. By the 1930s however traffic had increased to such an extent that the railroad became a safety concern.
So in 1934 a mile and a half long part of the track - 22 blocks from Gansevoort Street to 34th street - was elevated 30 ft (9m) and became known as the High Line. The tracks were used by freight trains which could go straight into the warehouses in the Meatpacking and Chelsea districts.
After the trains stopped using the tracks in 1980, the railroad started to fall in disrepair, and wild plants quickly covered the tracks.

Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum

Commissioned to service in 1943, the aircraft carrier USS Intrepid is now a wonderful museum and a National Historic Landmark.

History of the USS Intrepid

USS Intrepid

The USS Intrepid is considered by many to be one of the most successful ships in U.S. history. After a victorious 2-year stint in World War II, the ship went on to serve NASA as a primary recovery vessel and, following that, played an important role in the Vietnam Conflict.

Trump Tower

Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue epitomizes the glamour of the 1980s. The building is just one of many Trump real estate holdings in New York City.

Trump Tower, located on Fifth Avenue near 56th Street in the

Trump Tower

midtown section of Manhattan, is a 58-story structure that was built in 1983. The tower was designed by Der Scutt of the architectural firm of Swanke, Hayden, and Connell. Scutt has designed a number of buildings in NYC, but Trump Tower has been his most notable.

The Building

Trump Tower stands 664 feet (more than 200m) tall. It is a reinforced concrete, shear-wall/core design, similar to Trump World Tower, built much later and completed in 2001.
A concrete hat-truss at the top of the building ties exterior columns with the concrete core, increasing resistance against lateral forces such as wind and minor earthquakes. 

Main Entrance

At the time of completion the Trump Tower was the tallest such building in the world.

The building's exterior is clad in dark reflective glass with setbacks beginning near of the base of the building. The setbacks provide more corner spaces and wider views of the city.