Manhattan's natural history -- Mannahatta to Manhattan: settlement to grid plan -- Land use before the Civil War -- The tenements and the skyline -- The economics of skyscraper height -- Measuring the skyline -- The bedrock myth -- The birth of Midtown -- Edifice complex? The cause of the 1920s...

This paper provides a synthesis of the state of knowledge on the economics of skyscrapers. First, we document how vertical urban growth has gained pace over the course of the 20th century. Second, we lay out a simple theoretical model of optimal building heights in a competitive market to...