Skyscrapers of Philadelphia

Illustration by Webster & Hunter showing the tallest buildings in Philadelphia in 1898. The collage is dominated by the City Hall Clock Tower.

The illustration above shows a lineup of tall buildings from 1898 in Philadelphia. All of them are of similar height, save for the City Hall Clock Tower. It stands alone, rising to a height of 548 feet, or 167 meters. It was the tallest building in the world when it was completed in 1894, and remained so until the completion of the Singer Building in New York in 1908. This status as the world’s tallest building is reinforced by the illustration, which shows it utterly dominating the other buildings in the city. They crowd around its base like a group of children around an adult.

The clock tower was meant to mark the presence of City Hall and to create a landmark in the center of the city. It did this through verticality, and its status as the world’s tallest building made it that much more important. Not only did it say this is where City Hall is, but it also announced the power and importance of Philadelphia through its height.

Check out other height lineups of tall buildings here.