One World Trade Center: New York tallest building

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One World Trade Center will lay claim to the title of New York City's tallest skyscraper on Monday when workers will erect steel columns that will make its unfinished skeleton a little over 1,250 feet high.

The iconic Empire State Building -- 1,250 feet before its 204-foot antenna -- will no longer be king of the Big Apple's skyline. One World Trade Center, the giant monolith being built to replace the twin towers destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks, will lay claim to the title of New York City's tallest skyscraper on Monday.

The rising steel frame of One World Trade Center is expected to surpass 1,250 feet in height, overtaking the roof of the observation deck of the 1930s vintage skyscraper.

Construction of One World Trade Center, which began in 2006, won't be completed until late 2013.

When completed at a patriotic 1,776 feet and 104 floors, the so-called Freedom Tower will be 408 feet taller than the twin towers.

One World Trade Center towers above the Lower Manhattan skyline and Hudson River in New York.

Once completed, One World Trade Center would surpass the 1,451-foot Willis Tower in Chicago as the tallest in the Western Hemisphere by pinnacle height. Freedom Tower's roof top height of 1,368 feet, however, will still be 82 feet shorter than the roof of Chicago's 108-story tower formerly known as the Sears Tower. The world's tallest building is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, at 2,717 feet.

Construction on One World Trade Center progresses about one floor per week. Its glass panels cover about two-thirds of the building. The building's structure is expected to top out sometime this summer, when its 408-foot radio antenna will be installed.

The new World Trade Center complex will also feature three other high-rise office buildings. Four World Trade Center (right) top out at 72 floors.

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The iconic Empire State Building -- 1,250 feet before its 204-foot antenna -- will no longer be king of the Big Apple's skyline. One World Trade Center, the giant monolith being built to replace the twin towers destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks, will lay claim to the title of New York City's tallest skyscraper on Monday.

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