The Willis Tower
Everyone knows the Willis Tower. But not everyone knows its history.
For starters, the Willis Tower is one of the tallest buildings in the world. It is the tallest building in America. It all started in 1969. The Sears Roebuck and Company was the largest retail in the world. It had about 350,000 employees. It needed a central office space for them, so they hired architects Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill to work on designing what would be the largest office building in the world. They broke ground in 1970, and ended up using so much concrete they could have built an eight-lane five-mile highway! The last beam they put up was inscribed with 12,000 signatures by construction workers, sears employees, and Chicagoan's. The Sears tower was 1,729 feet In 1998, Sears Roebuck and Company sold and moved out of the building. The tower's name remained the "Sears Tower". That is, until 2009 when it was renamed the Willis Tower, because the Willis Group Holdings company bought the famous structure.
For starters, the Willis Tower is one of the tallest buildings in the world. It is the tallest building in America. It all started in 1969. The Sears Roebuck and Company was the largest retail in the world. It had about 350,000 employees. It needed a central office space for them, so they hired architects Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill to work on designing what would be the largest office building in the world. They broke ground in 1970, and ended up using so much concrete they could have built an eight-lane five-mile highway! The last beam they put up was inscribed with 12,000 signatures by construction workers, sears employees, and Chicagoan's. The Sears tower was 1,729 feet In 1998, Sears Roebuck and Company sold and moved out of the building. The tower's name remained the "Sears Tower". That is, until 2009 when it was renamed the Willis Tower, because the Willis Group Holdings company bought the famous structure.
Facts
- Willis (Sears)Tower contains approximately 4.56 million square feet and has an area of 3.8 million square feet that people or companies can rent.
- 4.56 million square feet would cover 105 acres if it was spread across on one level!
- In the building, there are 25 miles of plumbing, 1,500 miles of electric wiring, 80 miles of elevator cable, and 145,000 light fixtures.
- The building weighs more than 222,500 tons, and it cost more than $175 million to build.
- Only the best materials are used throughout the buildings common areas to highlight the property’s reputation, such as the lobby’s walls of highlighted stainless steel trim, polished granite flooring, and decorative ceiling lighting.
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