Woolworth Building: One of the City’s First Skyscrapers

The Woolworth Building was the tallest building in the world from its opening in 1913 until 1930, when the Chrysler Building surpassed it.

More than a century later, at 241 meters and 57 floors, it ranks 39th among New York's tallest skyscrapers. It doesn't impress as much today, but imagine how it must have towered over everything else in the early 20th century.

History of the Woolworth Building

This slender tower, in Tribeca just steps from Manhattan's Civic Center, has a very particular story: it was commissioned by the merchant Frank Winfield Woolworth, founder of F.W. Woolworth Company, the discount stores that sold everything for 5 and 10 cents, the equivalent of today's dollar stores.

The story goes that Woolworth paid cash for the entire project (can you picture the mountain of pennies that transaction would have taken?).

Architecture of the Woolworth

That penny-by-penny origin contrasts sharply with the neo-Gothic elegance that architect Cass Gilbert achieved in the Woolworth tower, crowned with gargoyles, vaults and pinnacles that echo religious architectural styles.

The building's lobby holds a shopping arcade that you should be able to visit, to admire the sacred beauty of its high vaulted ceilings decorated with gold leaf in the Byzantine style.

In that same space there's a sculpture of Woolworth counting pennies, a nod to the humble origins of the money behind this cathedral of commerce, as it was called in the early 20th century.

Unfortunately, security here is very strict and the guards are extremely unfriendly toward tourists. Try anyway, playing dumb about understanding English. The neo-Gothic beauty of this entrance hall is worth a scolding or two =)

A fairly recent pop culture reference to the Woolworth Building shows up in the charming Disney film Enchanted (2007): the evil Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon), turned into a dragon, attacks Princess Giselle at the top of the Woolworth Building, whose turrets and Gothic details make it look like a castle, which does a lot for the mood of the story (and by the way, it's a great movie for spotting New York, since the plot is basically one long cinematic tour of the city).

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Address
233 Broadway, between Barclay Street and Park Place in Downtown Manhattan.

Getting there

Subway 2, 3. Park Place station
Subway N, R. City Hall station

Map

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