Rise of the New York Skyscraper: 1865-1913

As a practicing Structural Engineer in California, I was involved in a project that required rapid determination of structural systems of buildings in and around New York City based on viewing photographs. This book, along with "Historical Building Construction" by Friedman, provided a fairly complete description of structural systems used over the years in the New York area. I would imagine that the audience for both books would tend to be primarily architects, engineers, or other construction professionals but both books have useful bits of information that might be interesting to even the layperson that just enjoys buildings. Doug Silver, S.E. Los Angeles, CA

As the title indicates, this book covers New York 'skyscrapers' (loosely-defined) from 1865 to 1913. The book begins with 5-story masonry buildings of the late 1800s and culminates with such landmarks as the Woolworth and Singer Buildings. The authors highlight the technical angle, and explain the developments that occurred in steel framing, foundations, and elevators, although the exterior aesthetics of these buildings also receive attention. Some space is allocated to hotels and apartment buildings; however, most of the book is devoted to office buildings. Best of all are the magnificent period photographs of early high-rises, about a hundred in all. Also, there are twenty floor plans.