William A. Starrett Explained
| William A. Starrett |
| Birth Name: | William Aiken Starrett |
| Birth Date: | 14 June 1877 |
| Birth Place: | Lawrence, Kansas, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Madison, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | University of Michigan |
| Occupation: | Builder |
| Notable Works: | Empire State Building |
William Aiken Starrett Jr. (June 14, 1877 – March 25, 1932) was an American builder and architect, best known for his work overseeing the construction of New York City's Empire State Building.
He was born on June 14, 1877, in Lawrence, Kansas. He left the University of Michigan in 1895 after two years and finally received a bachelor's degree in civil engineering two decades later. He married the former Eloise Gedney on June 14, 1900.[1]
In Skyscrapers and the Men Who Build Them, he described the construction of skyscrapers as "the nearest peacetime equivalent of war". On behalf of Starrett Brothers and Eken, the general contractor on the construction of the Empire State Building, Starrett oversaw the demolition of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and the completion of the Empire State Building on May 1, 1931, a total of 410 days.[2]
He died on March 25, 1932, at his home in Madison, New Jersey, as the result of a stroke. A Republican, he had served as the borough's mayor from 1920 to 1921.[1] [3]
Further reading
- Book: Benardo. Leonard . Weiss. Jennifer. Brooklyn By Name: How the Neighborhoods, Streets, Parks, Bridges, and More Got Their Names. 2006. New York University Press. 978-0-8147-9149-3. 131 - 132.
- Contractors' & Engineers' Monthly. Associated General Contractors: A.G.C. Biographies. December 1921. 59 - 60.
- Book: Cody, Jeffrey W.. Exporting American Architecture 1870 - 2000. 2003. Routledge. 9781135804879. 74 - 78.
- Book: Fenske, Gail . The Skyscraper and the City: The Woolworth Building and the Making of Modern New York. registration. 169. 2008. University of Chicago Press. 978-0-226-24141-8.
- Architecture. [Obituaries] Colonel William A. Starrett, 1877 - 1932 ]. 20. 65. 4. April 1932.
- The Bulletin of the Associated General Contractors Association. 12. 4 . Who's Who in Construction. April 1921. 39.
- The Gothamite. [uncertain]]. 1910. University of Michigan Club of New York. 15, maybe others.
- Book: Langmead, Donald. Icons of American Architecture: From the Alamo to the World Trade Center. 2009. Greenwood. 978-0-313-34207-3. 1 and 2. 90.
- Book: Kingston, George C.. William Van Alen, Fred T. Ley and the Chrysler Building . 2017. McFarland & Company. 9781476668475. 112, 125 - 127, 134, 146.
- Book: A Handbook of Economic Agencies of the War of 1917 . 3. 1919. Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff.
- Book: Tauranac, John. The Empire State Building: The Making of a Landmark. 2014. Cornell University Press. 978-0-8014-7109-4. 172 - 179.
- Book: United States War Dept. War Expenditures: Hearings Before Subcommittee No. 2 (Camps) of the Select Committee on Expenditures in the War Department . Serial 3 - Part 27. 1919. U.S. House of Representatives. 2525 - 2538.
- Book: Willis. Carol . Building the Empire State. 1998. W.W. Norton. 978-0-393-73030-2. 12.
External links
Notes and References
- https://www.nytimes.com/1932/03/27/archives/col-i-a-stamett-medbuilderdmd-was-coordinating-official-of.html "Col. W. A. Starrett, Noted Builder, Dead. Was Coordinating Official of Extensive Realty, Finance and Construction Enterprises."
- Christianson, Scott. "When the Empire State Building Was Just an Architect’s Sketch", Smithsonian Magazine, November 10, 2015. Accessed March 25, 2023. "The general contractor was Starrett Brothers & Eken, the recognized leader in skyscraper construction. Indeed, one of the brothers, William A. Starrett, had recently authored the book, Skyscrapers and the Men Who Build Them, in which he wrote: 'Building skyscrapers is the nearest peacetime equivalent of war... The analogy of war is the strife against the elements.'"
- https://www.rosenet.org/370/Former-Mayors Former Mayors
