Top 25 States Ranked by Their Tallest Building

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Fact Checked by Pat McLoone

June is Skyscraper Month so EmpireStakes.com decided to take a break from NY sports betting to rank states by their tallest buildings. Unsurprisingly, New York wins. If we’d just ranked the tallest buildings overall, New York City and Chicago would hold the first 13 spots.

We utilized World Poplulation Review’s “Tallest Building by State” list to develop a ranking of the Top 25 states by their tallest building in the state.

Here is a list you won’t find on any NY betting apps:

 

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Tallest Buildings in States

State Building City Height (feet tall)
New York One World Trade Center New York City 1776
Illinois Willis Tower Chicago 1451
Pennsylvania Comcast Technology Center Philadelphia 1121
Georgia Bank of America Plaza Atlanta 1023
Texas JP Morgan Chase Tower Houston 1002
Ohio Key Tower Cleveland 947
Washington Columbia Center Seattle 933
New Jersey 99 Hudson Jersey City 900
North Carolina Bank of America Corporate Center Charlotte 871
Florida Panorama Tower Miami 868
Oklahoma Devon Energy Center Oklahoma 850
Indiana Salesforce Tower Indianapolis 811
Minnesota IDS Tower Minneapolis 792
Massachusetts John Hancock Tower Boston 790
Alabama RSA Battle House Tower Mobile 745
Michigan Detroit Marriott Detroit 727
Colorado Republic Plaza Denver 714
Louisiana Hancock Whitney Center New Orleans 697
Nevada Resorts World Las Vegas Las Vegas 679
Nebraska First National Bank Tower Omaha 634
Iowa 801 Grand Des Moines 630
Missouri One Kansas City Place Kansas City 624
Tennessee 333 Commerce Nashville 617
Wisconsin U.S. Bank Center Milwaukee 601

 

Snapshots of Skyscrapers

In first place, is One World Trade Center, at a patriotic 1776 feet. Built on the northwest corner of the former Twin Towers site, One WTC is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and the seventh tallest building in the world. It was designed by Yale alum David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and opened Nov. 3, 2014. By the way, the tallest building in the world is Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates, whose tippy top is nearly 1,000 feet higher.

In second place in the U.S. is Illinois, with the Willis Tower in Chicago, trying to reach the clouds at 1,451 feet. Previously called the Sears Tower, it opened in 1973 and until 1998 was the world’s tallest building. Now it’s No. 23 in the world. It was officially re-named the Willis Tower in 2009 and was purchased by the Blackstone Group in 2013 for $1.3 billion, and then restored for another $500 million in 2017. The building was designed by University of Pennsylvania graduate Bruce Graham of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

At No. 3 is Pennsylvania with the 1,121-foot Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia. The building, not to be confused with the Comcast Tower across the street, is the 14th tallest in America. The designer was Foster & Partners, with interiors by Gensler (no relation). It opened in July 2018.

California comes in at No. 4 with the Wilshire Grand Center, rising 1,100 feet in Los Angeles. It was designed by AC Martin Partners and opened June 2017. The tallest building west of Chicago, its construction holds the record for the longest continuous pour of concrete — 82 million pounds.

Georgia snags the fifth spot with Bank of America Plaza in Atlanta — 1,023 feet. It’s the 23rd tallest building in the U.S. and tallest in the southeast. It was designed by Kevin Roche, John Dinkeloo and Associates and opened in 1992. At that time, it was the 8th tallest building in the country and tallest outside of NYC and Chicago.

Texas, at No. 6, is our last state winner with a building over 1,000 feet. The JP Morgan Chase Tower in Houston sneaks by with 2 feet to spare. This one is the tallest building in the south-central part of the country and the tallest five-sided building in the world. It was designed by I.M. Pei & Partners and opened in 1982.

Author

Howard Gensler

Howard Gensler is a veteran journalist who’s worked at the Philadelphia Daily News, TV Guide and the Philadelphia Inquirer and is a founding editor of bettorsinsider.com.

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