The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1896-02-12
Two Hundred Stories.

Harding & Gooch, the architects,
have drawn plans for the most ire
mendous building on earth, a struc-
ture Of 200 stories high.
A capitalist of this city submitted
the idea of this building to Harding
& Gooch. They were the architects
of the Postal Telegraph building and
of other noble edifces In this city.
At first they regarded the idea as
visionary. Examine it carefully"
said their client, "and make your re-
port
The architects did so. They con-
cluded that their part Of the work was
practical and practicable; that a 200
story building could be erected, pro-
yided the vast sum of money neces-
sary to construct it was forthcoming.
The huge pile will be called the
King building. It's plan, as drawn by
Harding & Gooch, somewhat resem-
bles that of the Eiffel Tower, that
wonder of the last Paris exposition.
But the King building will be nearly
three times as high as the Eifel Tower
and its construction presents vastly
greater difficulties.
The structure will occupy INT large
city block; a block of the dimensions
of that between Fifty and Sixth ave-
nues, Twenty-second and Twenty
third streets. It will, of course, be
built of steel, just as the buildings
that are now considered tall are built
of steel. The framework Of these
buildings is like that of a bridge.
The bridge is placed on end and sur
rounded by an outer wall of stone or
granite.
In the 2OO-story building the bridge
will be longer, that's all.
Compared to this building the 23-
story pile of the American Surety
company will be as a mushroom
sprouting at the base Of a tall flag
pole.
The King building will have $780,
600 square feet of space on each floor;
"a, 600, 900 square feet of space on the
200 floors.
1t will contain 100, 900 separate Of
fees and suites.
It will accommodate 400, 600 people
under one roof.
Necessarily~the first question to be
answered in planning for this sky
piercing structure was: Glow will
~naonle reach the INNER stories?"
The answer is, by electric eleva-
tors"
Frank J. Sprague is a pioneer in the
construction of electric railways and
electric passenger elevators. Mr..
Sprague is confident that the develop
ment in the construction of electric
elevators will keep pace with any
possible progress in architecture and
building. Manufacturers of passen-
ger elevators have been consulted.
They are positive that it will be as
easy to build elevators in a 2OO-story
building as in a 20-story building.
In the King building there will be
express elevators and way elevators.
The express elevators will stop, say
at the 18th, 50th, 10Th and Tooth
floors, and so on to the top story. 1t
has been calculated that the express
elevators will make the journey-the
word "trip" scarcely describes it
from basement to roof in two and a
half minutes. The way elevators will
stop at each story where passengers
await them, making an ordinary jour
ney in ten minutes. There will be at
least 80 elevators.
It is the purpose Of the projectors
of the building to gather on its COM
modious floors 200 distinct communi-
ties oil business men. On one floor
will be the jewelers., ON another the
hardware dealers, on another the har-
ness makers, and so on. So the con-
duct Of great interests will be simpli-
fed and more work can be done in that
building in four hours than a be &C
complished elsewhere in an ordinary
work day of eight or ten hours.
In the building will be the retail
clothing stores, haberdashers' shops,
barber shops, restaurants, a physi-
clans Office and drug store. In fact,
it will be a city under one roof. 1t is
proposed to lay out that vast roof as a
garden in summer and to inclose it in
glass in winter. 1t is also expected
that some invaluable meteorological
knowledge will be obtained by means
of the observations taken by the
United Signal service at such a ire
mendous height.
The King building will be, in fact,
the highest type Of present day de-
velopment in architecture. 1t will be
the irnt of the mighty, fre-proof
structures that within the next 20
years will zeal their heads in New
York below Twenty-third street.
In the plans as drawn by Messrs.
Harding & Gooch it has been deter
mined that the thickness of the lower
walls of the building will be nearly Is
feet, gradually diminishing towards
the upper stories. -Nev York World.
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