New York in the 1920s saw tremendous economic and cultural growth, becoming the capital of American culture. The construction of skyscrapers like the Chrysler Building and Empire State Building showed the ambition and competition between developers. However, the stock market crash of 1929 marked the beginning of the Great Depression, wiping out billions in wealth and plunging the country into economic ruin.

1. New York: Cosmopolis
Susan Hiner
Hist 141-Fall 2011

2. The Roaring 20’s
• The great boom of 1920 saw the increased production of consumer
goods and New York was the center of the marketplace and media
• Second industrial revolution and a ten year period of growth.
Income and economic growth increased as well as the living
conditions.
• First radio ad in 1922 was announced, followed by motion pictures
• New York attracted the African American population and they had
their own place of residence in Harlem. In 1924, Jazz, the most
exciting music of the era was being performed by black musicians.
They also contributed as writers and poets
• Our two cultures were mixed and the music was integrated leading
to the songs made by Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong
• New forms of entertainment were created including Broadway
musicals
• By 1927 New York was the capital of the American culture

3. Heights and Depths
• In 1929 Walter P. Chrysler wanted to have the title of building the tallest
skyscraper in the world. Their was major competition between his
building and the Bank of Manhattan.
• It appeared that the Bank of Manhattan building would win until one
week after they finished, the Chrysler building erected the 185ft spire
that was secretly built inside. The Chrysler building won at 1,048 feet
• October 23, 1929, the stock prices on Wall Street crashed and 10 billion
dollars were wiped out.
• 16 million shares traded and 14 billion lost
• Lost ten times more than the government budget
• Houses and life savings lost
• Bank withdrew funds
• Led to the beginning of the Great Depression

4. Empire State
• After Al Smith was defeated by Hubert Hoover in the 1928 presidential
election, John Jacob Raskob, a financial executive and key supporter of
Smith, told him that he would build the tallest building in the world and
make him president of it.
• Built on 34th street, the plan was to make it a port of call for air ships and
use the interior for office space
• The construction began in 1929 with the demolition of the Waldorf Astoria
• It was built with steel and bricks. The steel beams were made in
Pennsylvania and sent by rail within 20 hours. The beams were still warm
when the construction crew received it
• Over 3,000 talented construction men finished the building in record time,
13 months. It opened on May 1, 1931 and stood as the tallest building for
40 years
• Mr. Raskob,’s plan for its commercial use failed due to the location of the
building. Less than 30% of the office space was rented and the mooring
mast was abandoned as well