The Woolworth Building, at sixty stories, is one of the oldest - and one of the most famous - skyscrapers in New York City. More than ninety years after its construction, it is still one of the fifty tallest buildings in the United States as well as one of the twenty tallest buildings in New York City.

Constructed in neo-Gothic style by architect Cass Gilbert, who was commissioned by Frank Woolworth in 1910 to design the new corporate headquarters on Broadway, between Park Place and Barclay Street in Lower Manhattan, opposite City Hall, it opened on April 24, 1913. Originally planned to be 625 feet (190.5 meters) high, it was built to 792 feet (241 meters); construction cost was US$13,500,000, which Woolworth paid in cash.

For its splendor and resemblance to European Gothic cathedrals, it was labeled the Cathedral of Commerce by the Reverend S. Parkes Cadman during its opening ceremony. It was the tallest building in the world until the construction of 40 Wall Street (and, shortly thereafter, the Chrysler Building) in 1930. An observation deck on the 58th floor attracted visitors until 1945.


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