Which US President officially opened the Empire State Building in New York?
Empire State Building of "corporate flak" into "exhilarating art". These images were later organized into their own collection. Onlookers were enraptured by the sheer height at which the steelworkers operated. "New York" magazine wrote of the steelworkers: "Like little spiders they toiled, spinning a fabric of steel against the sky". The Empire State Building was officially opened on May 1, 1931, forty five days ahead of its projected opening date, by United States President Herbert Hoover, who turned on the building's lights with the ceremonial button push from Washington, D.C.. Over 350 guests attended the opening ceremony, and following luncheon, at the 86th
Empire State Building floor including Jimmy Walker, Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Al Smith. An account from that day stated that the view from the luncheon was obscured by a fog, with other landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty being "lost in the mist". The building officially opened the next day. Advertisements for the observatories were placed in local newspapers, while nearby hotels also released advertisements that lauded their proximity to the newly opened tower. According to "The New York Times", builders and real estate speculators predicted that the Empire State Building would be the world's tallest building "for many years", thus