1931 95 years ago Selected Events May 1 2 sources

New York City's Empire State Building (pictured), at the time the tallest building in the world, opened.

On May 1, in the year 1931, New York City's Empire State Building (pictured), at the time the tallest building in the world, opened. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of May 1, one of 399 recorded events on this date across all of history.

The Empire State Building is a 102-story, supertall skyscraper in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building was designed in the Art Deco style by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and constructed between 1930 and 1931. Its name is derived from "Empire State", the nickname of New York state. The building has a roof height of 1,250 feet (380 m) and stands a total of 1,454 feet (443.2 m) tall including its antenna. The Empire State Building was the world's tallest building until the North Tower of the World Trade Center was topped out in 1970; following the September 11 attacks in 2001, the Empire State Building was once more New York City's tallest building until it was surpassed in 2012 by One World Trade Center. As of 2025, the building is the eighth-tallest building in New York City, the tenth-tallest completed skyscraper in the United States, and the 59th-tallest completed skyscraper in the world.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on May 1, 1931 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 2 Wikipedia articles.
  • The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 17 April 2026.

On This Date in History 399

Type Year Date Event
Historical Events 2026 May 1 The United Arab Emirates leaves OPEC after six decades of membership, becoming the first member of the organization to d
Historical Events 2024 May 1 The 2024 Loblaw boycott, a Canadian boycott against retail corporation and grocer Loblaw Companies, begins
Notable Deaths 2023 May 1 Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2021 May 1 Olympia Dukakis, American actress (born 1931)
Historical Events 2019 May 1 Naxalite attack in Gadchiroli district of India: Sixteen army soldiers, including a driver, killed in an IED blast
Historical Events 2019 May 1 Naruhito ascends to the throne of Japan succeeding his father Akihito, beginning the Reiwa period
Historical Events 2018 May 1 Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) resumes the Deir ez-Zor campaign in order to clear the remnants of
Selected Events 2016 May 1 The evacuation of nearly 88,000 people began when a wildfire swept through Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, and burned fo
Notable Deaths 2015 May 1 Geoff Duke, English-Manx motorcycle racer (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2015 May 1 Vafa Guluzade, Azerbaijani political scientist, academic, and diplomat (born 1940)
Notable Deaths 2015 May 1 María Elena Velasco, Mexican actress, singer, director, and screenwriter (born 1940)
Notable Deaths 2015 May 1 Grace Lee Whitney, American actress (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2014 May 1 Adamu Atta, Nigerian lawyer and politician, 5th Governor of Kwara State (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2014 May 1 Radhia Cousot, Tunisian-American computer scientist and academic (born 1947)
Notable Deaths 2014 May 1 Assi Dayan, Israeli actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1945)
Notable Deaths 2014 May 1 Juan de Dios Castillo, Mexican footballer and coach (born 1951)
Notable Deaths 2013 May 1 Chris Kelly, American rapper (born 1978)
Notable Deaths 2013 May 1 Pierre Pleimelding, French footballer and manager (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2012 May 1 James Kinley, Canadian engineer and politician, 29th Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2012 May 1 Mordechai Virshubski, German-Israeli lawyer and politician (born 1930)
Historical Events 2011 May 1 Pope John Paul II is beatified by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI
Notable Deaths 2011 May 1 Henry Cooper, English boxer (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2011 May 1 Ted Lowe, English sportscaster (born 1920)
Historical Events 2010 May 1 Faisal Shahzad attempts to detonate a car bomb in Times Square, but the bomb fails to go off
Notable Deaths 2010 May 1 Helen Wagner, American actress (born 1918)
Selected Events 2010 May 1 Faisal Shahzad attempted to detonate a car bomb in Times Square, New York City, but it failed to explode
Historical Events 2009 May 1 Same-sex marriage is legalized in Sweden
Notable Deaths 2008 May 1 Anthony Mamo, Maltese judge and politician, 1st President of Malta (born 1909)
Notable Deaths 2008 May 1 Philipp von Boeselager, German soldier and economist (born 1917)
Notable Births 2005 May 1 Linda Fruhvirtová, Czech tennis player
Notable Deaths 2005 May 1 Kenneth Clark, American psychologist and academic (born 1914)
Historical Events 2004 May 1 Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia join the European Uni
Notable Births 2004 May 1 Charli D'Amelio, American social media influencer and dancer
Historical Events 2003 May 1 Invasion of Iraq: In what becomes known as the "Mission Accomplished" speech, on board the USS Abraham Lincoln (off the
Notable Births 2003 May 1 Lizzy Greene, American actress
Notable Deaths 2003 May 1 Miss Elizabeth, American wrestler and manager (born 1960)
Notable Deaths 2003 May 1 Wim van Est, Dutch cyclist (born 1923)
Notable Births 2002 May 1 Chet Holmgren, American basketball player
Notable Deaths 2002 May 1 Ebrahim Al-Arrayedh, Indian poet and author (born 1908)
Notable Births 2000 May 1 Rema, Nigerian singer-songwriter and rapper
Notable Deaths 2000 May 1 Steve Reeves, American bodybuilder and actor (born 1926)
Historical Events 1999 May 1 The body of British climber George Mallory is found on Mount Everest, 75 years after his disappearance in 1924
Notable Births 1999 May 1 YNW Melly, American rapper
Notable Births 1999 May 1 Tiffany Stratton, American wrestler
Notable Deaths 1998 May 1 Eldridge Cleaver, American author and activist (born 1935)
Historical Events 1997 May 1 The Labour Party wins the 1997 General Election and Tony Blair is elected as Prime Minister
Notable Births 1997 May 1 Miles Sanders, American football player
Notable Deaths 1997 May 1 Fernand Dumont, Canadian sociologist, philosopher, and poet (born 1927)
Notable Births 1996 May 1 William Nylander, Canadian-Swedish ice hockey player
Notable Deaths 1995 May 1 Antonio Salemme, Italian-American painter (born 1892)

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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