This prizewinning book chronicles the history of New York`s first skyscrapers, challenging conventional wisdom that it was in Chicago, not New York, that the skyscraper was born. Drawing on rich contemporary sources to show how remarkable developments in commerce, land use, technology, design, and zoning law enabled architects and engineers to create the first tall buildings, the authors claim New York City was beyond doubt the birthplace of skyscraper form and construction techniques.