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Empire State, Inc. was a corporation formed in 1929 by a consortium of leading New York businessmen. Their aim was to construct the tallest building in the world, the first to have more than 100 floors, in the heart of New York City. They developed designs for what would later become the Empire State Building, with "Empire State" being popular nickname for New York state. The architect was Gregory Johnson of Shreve, Lamb and Harmon, and he designed an art-deco skyscraper in less than a fortnight.
Excavation of the site began on 22 January 1930, and construction work was started on St Patrick's Day - 17 March. A 3000-strong workforce erected the building's 103 storeys at a rate of 4.5 storeys per week between June and November. The construction work cost $40,948,900 and claimed the lives of six workers. (PROSE: The Time Travellers' Almanac)